Originally Posted by xmas

From the FAQ (sticky):

Q.Can I synchronize my data between multiple computers?
A.We're working on synchronization now that we've finished the basic single-computer functionality for our 1.0 release.

For the time being, you can place your OmniFocus database on your iDisk and access it from your various machines. But I should note that you're definitely heading out towards the land of bleeding-edge beta testing. We want feedback from folks, but we don't want folks to set this up casually and then be upset if something they didn't expect happens. Proceed with our blessing, but also with caution. We recommend you set the backup preference to 'twice a day and on quit' on all your machines. ;-)

On one of your machines, open up OmniFocus' "General" preferences pane and use the "Move" button to get your database on your iDisk.

On your other machines, open up those same preferences and use the "Select a Different Database" button to select your database on your iDisk.

You should now be all set.

Have been using iDisk and it seems to work fine so far. When both machines are on with OF, I get a message about unlocking but I simply click through and have not had data integrity issues.

I am new to the forum, so I apologize if this is a repeat. Will it also work to
1)Back up the database in Computer A to a thumb drive
2) Quit OF in Computer A
3) Insert thumb drive in Computer B, start OF and Revert to Database.
4) Repeat process when back from a trip to update computer A?

Originally Posted by Lizard

A few more specifics:
Assuming computer A is where your OmniFocus database is now, here's how you'd set it up:
1) Mount the USB thumbdrive on computer A.
2) On computer A, open OmniFocus, then the General tab of the Preferences.
3) In the Database section, click the "Move to a new location" button and browse to somewhere on the USB drive.
4) Quit OmniFocus
5) Mount the USB thumbdrive on computer B.
6) On computer B, open OmniFocus, then the General tab of the Preferences.
7) In the Database section, click the "Select a different database" button and go find the file you put on the USB drive in step 3
8) Now just make sure to quit OmniFocus and eject your USB drive every time you go from one computer to the other.

[Lizard]

That would also work. Let me detail what I see as some pros and cons of each approach.

The "backup" and "revert" process would have to be done every time. And it might refuse to overwrite a previous backup on the thumb drive, so you might eventually get a whole bunch of copies. On the other hand, you can store the main database on your hard drive, and get faster file access times while you're using it, and the "backup" on your thumb drive will be smaller than the file stored on your hard drive.

If you move the database onto the thumb drive as I suggested, you'll only need to steps 1-7 once. So it's less process you have to remember to do every time you launch or quit. On the other hand, OmniFocus will be writing to your thumb drive frequently, which will probably slow down performance a bit.

I guess it might depend on whether you do this daily (home machine/work machine) or just once in a while (primary computer/laptop for traveling).

[aetrix9]

I've been a loyal Omnifocus user since the initial public beta and since then I've also been a loyal USB-drive sync-er. I have my home laptop, my work desktop and my academic computer. (I'm a grad student with a job). Omnifocus comes with me on a 1GB SDmedia card that plugs into card readers on all of the computers. I've confirmed that I'm using USB 2.0 speeds on all of the machines for IO.

I'm officially frustrated with the lag. The first time the database is opened on a new computer (leave work, go home, open OF on home laptop) the lag is absolutely UNBEARABLE - approaching 5 minutes in some cases and frequently causing crashes, or allowing the process to stay with <0.1% CPU usage for more than 5 minutes. However, subsequent openings on that computer are relatively quick (15-20 s). I'm routinely late to my 9am meetings because I'm waiting for OF to open so I can print my agenda.

Am I doing something wrong or does everybody else have this same lag when opening off the USB drive?

[juliadee]

Originally Posted by Lizard

A few more specifics:
Assuming computer A is where your OmniFocus database is now, here's how you'd set it up:
1) Mount the USB thumbdrive on computer A.
2) On computer A, open OmniFocus, then the General tab of the Preferences.
3) In the Database section, click the "Move to a new location" button and browse to somewhere on the USB drive.
4) Quit OmniFocus
5) Mount the USB thumbdrive on computer B.
6) On computer B, open OmniFocus, then the General tab of the Preferences.
7) In the Database section, click the "Select a different database" button and go find the file you put on the USB drive in step 3
8) Now just make sure to quit OmniFocus and eject your USB drive every time you go from one computer to the other.

Good Grief!!! Why not conform to Mac interface guidelines and make the program work like 99.9% of all other apps (yes, iTunes is a glaring exception), i.e. be document-based and have "Open", "Save" and "Save As" menu items? What is up with the special secret database file that has to live buried in a special place the library? I want to be able to put my document files wherever I want them. I have my own portability and sync methodologies worked out after 23 years of Macintosh use and it's pretty obnoxious to be forced into a different way of working.

I've tried a lot of programs over the years that have had sync features and not a one of them worked well enough that I really trust it. I'll do it myself, thank you. My life is currently run by three components: a corporate imap server for email, so sync is inherent; an Excel file, and a Circus Ponies NoteBook file. The Excel and NoteBook files go wherever I go on a thumb drive, and I copy them frequently onto each local machine in case of loss/damage to the thumb drive, which always contains the "current" versions. I don't have to go to any preferences to instruct these programs to "move" their databases or to look for their databases in specific locations, they obediently open whatever document(s) I ask them to. What a concept.

Originally Posted by juliadee

99.9% of all other apps (yes, iTunes is a glaring exception)

Well ... iCal ? Address Book ? Mail ? iPhoto even ?

Storage security (with XML transparency) is one of the outstanding features of Omnifocus. Personally, I would much rather entrust my work to this approach than to a single SQL file, in, for example, the fragile manner of iGTD.

[Ken Case]

Originally Posted by aetrix9

I'm officially frustrated with the lag. The first time the database is opened on a new computer (leave work, go home, open OF on home laptop) the lag is absolutely UNBEARABLE - approaching 5 minutes in some cases and frequently causing crashes, or allowing the process to stay with <0.1% CPU usage for more than 5 minutes. However, subsequent openings on that computer are relatively quick (15-20 s).

You might try rebuilding your database by selecting "Rebuild Database…" from the File menu. This will rewrite the transactions on your USB drive into a single transaction, which should make it much faster to open.

[Ken Case]

Originally Posted by juliadee

Why not conform to Mac interface guidelines and make the program work like 99.9% of all other apps (yes, iTunes is a glaring exception), i.e. be document-based and have "Open", "Save" and "Save As" menu items? What is up with the special secret database file that has to live buried in a special place the library? I want to be able to put my document files wherever I want them.

OmniFocus is actually document-based, and you can open multiple documents from anywhere and and use them. But OmniFocus has to know which one of your documents is primary so that it knows which one should be synchronized with iCal, take input from Quick Entry and Mail, and so on.

This primary document doesn't have to live in your library folder, it just starts out there so people don't have to think about where it should go before they start using the app; if you want it to be stored somewhere else, you can select a new location for by setting the "Database Location" in General Preferences.

Hope this helps!

[lfudold]

I'm just joining this thread, & didn't see the option I've played with covered; pls pardon, if I didn't go back far enough.

As of now, I'm not syncing w/iCal (for non relevant reasons).

In my situation, I have both my G5 tower & MBP in the same physical location when I want to sync. I've tried simply using target disc mode & moving the most recent file from one Mac to the other - overwriting the most recent on 'the other'.

It sometimes gives me a 'this file is locked' when I open on the MBP, for instance, but I'm able to over ride.

Any reason I shouldn't do that?

[Lizard]

You shouldn't be getting "this file is locked" unless you copied the file while OmniFocus was running. And you shouldn't be copying the file while OmniFocus is running. So that is a little concerning. If you're diligent about quitting Focus before copying the file, and you still get locked errors, please let us know.