OmniFocus 3 for the Mac


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This week, the Omni Group has released version 3 of OmniFocus for the Mac. This release closes the loop on the version 3 release which began a few months ago with the release of version 3 for iOS.

While the new version of OmniFocus still works with GTD, I look at the new release as an intentional breaking away from prior constraints related to making it a GTD tool. Contexts are out. Tags are in. But what does that mean? I wrote an article for Inside OmniFocus over the weekend where I explained the addition of tags has fundamentally changed the way I use the application.

Multiple vectors into your task system can only be a good thing. With the new version of OmniFocus you don’t need to put four tags on every task but where appropriate, you could. With increased flexibility with tags, it makes OmniFocus’s custom perspectives even more useful.

One example I cited in my above-linked Inside OmniFocus article is invoice follow-up. I’ve got many legal clients and some automation that will generate a task for me to follow up on invoices. Those tasks appropriately belong with each individual client but with the new OmniFocus, I’ve been adding one additional tag to my creation script that inserts an “invoice” tag. Now when I set aside time to follow up on invoices, it no longer involves a hunt through my system. I simply pull up available tasks with the “invoice” tag and go through my list. That’s a small example, but you get the idea.

Just like with the release of version 3 for iOS, this new version of OmniFocus doesn’t make any change simply for the sake of change but only where it makes the application easier to use or more powerful and, in several cases, both of those things. 

Another example of that is the new Forecast view that now mixes your calendar items in with your tasks in their calendar order. If you have a deadline at 9:00 and a dentist appointment at 10:00, the deadline appears first. Clever.

The deceptive part is that these changes and refinements add up to way more than the sum of their parts. I find the application more nimble and more powerful than before. It’s completely changed my own “system” for using the application. To learn more about version 3 check out the OmniFocus web site. If you’d like a lot more words on the new version, I’d recommend Rose Orchard‘s review over on MacStories. And, of course, if you’d like 5+ hours and 69 separate videos on using OmniFocus, I’ve got that covered too.

SaneBox, It Just Works … Everywhere



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This week’s sponsor, SaneBox, might be my most used web service. SaneBox helps me manage the deluge of email. I’ve had a few releases in the past month, and that means the old inbox has been getting hammered. SaneBox has had my back the whole time, sorting email, with uncanny precision, into different folders automatically so I can find everything I need, exactly where I’d expect it.

Best of all, SaneBox works everywhere. The last few weeks we’ve had updates to both iOS and macOS and mail tools and plugins are breaking everywhere. Not SaneBox. SaneBox runs in the cloud so no matter how many times you update your operating system, change to different platforms, or just decide to switch mail apps, SaneBox keeps working for you.

There is a whole lot SaneBox can do to help you tame your email. To learn more, head over to SaneBox and use the links in this post to get a discount. Who doesn’t love a discount now and again?


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Announcing the OmniFocus Field Guide, 3d Edition



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I’m happy to announce the release of the third edition of the OmniFocus Field Guide. This is a video course that takes you, soup to nuts, through the Omni Group’s supremely bad-ass task manager. My goal is to make you no less than a task-managing ninja.

This course includes 69 videos totaling over 5 hours of content.

Topics Include:

Introduction and Overview

Learn what makes OmniFocus unique and learn how to download and install the apps and a basic overview of how the apps work on the Mac, iPad, and iPhone.

Syncing OmniFocus

This section also demonstrates how to set up the OmniSync Service.

Capture

Emptying your brain into your task manager should be fast and efficient. OmniFocus is both. In this section, you’ll learn how to quickly capture tasks into your iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

Process

This is the meat and potatoes of OmniFocus. This section teaches you how to set up projects and contexts along with their different types and flavors. There is also an extensive explanation of defer and due dates and full tutorials on how you can use OmniFocus to put these tool to use. This section also demonstrates the rational use of flags and how to set repeating tasks. With version 3, OmniFocus added tags. There is a lot of content concerning how tags work and the best strategies for implementing them.

Perspectives

There is also an extensive demonstration of OmniFocus perspectives. Understanding how the built-in perspectives work (and how to roll your own) will make all the difference in your OmniFocus ninja-hood. This portion of the video walks you through, step-by-step. Once you figure out custom perspectives, you’ll wonder how you ever got by without them. This section also explains how to use the OmniFocus Forecast feature to get ahead of the curve and plan your days out into the future.

Action

Next, you’ll learn about how to crank through your days and complete your tasks. This section also has practical advice about how to make sure you spend your time completing tasks and not fiddling with OmniFocus. Once you’ve got process sorted, action will be where you get things done, and it will feel great.

Review

Adding a regular review practice to your tasks can make a huge difference in your productivity (and sanity). OmniFocus supports this, and this section teaches you how along with some common sense tips for everyday use.

Settings and Interface

Learn how to customize the app to work and look the way you want it.

Automation

OmniFocus has some mighty automation chops if you know how to use them. In this section, learn about automation through text, Siri Shortcuts, and an entire mini-course on creating project templates.

The Apple Watch

OmniFocus has an impressive Apple Watch application. Learn how it works.

Systems

There isn’t just one way to conquer the world using OmniFocus. This section covers the best systems to get the most from OmniFocus.

Additional Concepts

This course wraps up with further discussion about advanced task management concepts like how to deal with too many projects and tasks, the relationship between managing tasks and creativity, and the difference between your internal manager and your internal maker.

The OmniFocus Field Guide, by the numbers

69 videos

5+ Hours

One appearance by a lovable alien, far from home.

The OmniFocus Field Guide is sold at an introductory price of $24. It will raise to $29 shortly after launch.

If you bought the prior version of the OmniFocus Field Guide in 2018, you are entitled to a free upgrade. Send us a note and proof of purchase. If you bought the prior version before 2018, it is a new purchase.

Did you say you wanted a trailer?

Mac Power Users 449: macOS Mojave



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On this week’s episode of Mac Power Users, Katie and I talk about Apple’s latest operating system, macOS Mojave. We discuss the state of the Mac, yearly release cycles, what we like, what we don’t, new features for productivity, and more.

This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:

  • Molekule: The only air purifier that actually destroys pollutants. Use mpu for $75 off.

  • SaneBox: Stop drowning in email!

  • 1Password: Have you ever forgotten a password? Now you don’t have to worry about that anymore. Save up to 20% using this link.

  • Fujitsu ScanSnap: ScanSnap helps you live a more productive, efficient, paperless life.

Easily Track Your Time with the Updated Timing – Sponsor



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I love it when a sponsor is a product I use every day. That’s true with this week’s sponsor, Timing.

Timing is a Mac App that quietly, and privately, keeps track of where you spend your time while you are on your Mac. Rather than timing how you think you spent your time after the last time you forgot to turn your timer on or off, Timing has precise data about what you were doing an sd when you were doing it. You can assign that time to projects and Timing will give you useful charts and data to help you figure out where you could do better.

Today Timing is releasing version 2018.3. The new version features full support for macOS Mojave’s Dark Mode, as well as a minor design overhaul in Light Mode with an emphasis on using macOS’ “Vibrant” appearance.

Also, the new version features:

  • Detailed tracking support for Mailplane (and thus Gmail), Bear, Dash, and Opera.

  • Integration with GrandTotal 5: tasks created in Timing will automatically show up in GrandTotal and can be inserted into invoices.

  • A full Chinese translation.

  • Full support for macOS Mojave.

This is a nice update. I like the dark mode design (above). Figuring out how you are spending your time is the first step toward spending your time on the right things, and in my opinion, if you drive a Mac, there is no better tool.

It’s a great app and using this link, you can get it at a discount. If you’re a SetApp subscriber, you can also get Timing as part of your subscription. 

Free Agents 56: Iterate in Public, with Sean McCabe



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Sean McCabe started his free agent journey as a designer doing hand lettering and has built a successful online business through teaching what he knows. On this week’s episode of Free Agents, Sean talks about the lessons he has learned along the way, including the power of rest and why he takes a sabbatical every seven weeks.

This episode of Free Agents is sponsored by:

  • FreshBooks: Online invoicing made easy.

  • Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code FREEAGENTS at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.

1Password 7.2 Brings Autofill for Apps


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It’s easy to be cynical these days. So at WWDC when Apple announced app autofill, an API that will fill in usernames and passwords in applications the same way it does in websites, I naturally assumed this would be a feature for Apple’s own password service only and this would be a not-so-subtle nudge to third-party password managers. Then, just minutes later, Apple explained they are making this also available to third-party password managers. My heart grew two sizes larger.

Fast forward to the iOS 12 release and now we’re getting this feature in 1Password 7.2 for iOS 12. I’ve long been a 1Password subscriber (Disclosure: they sometimes sponsor my podcast.) because 1Password brings so much to the table. I love that I can now use my chosen password manager for applications as well.

To turn it on, go to iOS 12 Settings > Passwords and Accounts > Autofill Passwords. You can leave the iCloud Keychain passwords at the same time. It’s a nice update and I already can’t believe I ever lived without application-based password autofill.

Mac Power Users 448: iOS 12 and the September 12th Event



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On this week’s episode of Mac Power Users, Katie and I run through our favorite new features for iOS 12 and watchOS 5, and we’ve got thoughts on the September 12th announcements.

This episode of Mac Power Users is sponsored by:

  • Squarespace: Make your next move. Enter offer code MPU at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase.

  • Timing: The automatic time-tracking app for macOS. Use this link to save 10% on your purchase.

  • PDFpen from Smile: With powerful PDF editing tools, available for Mac, iPad, and iPhone, PDFpen from Smile makes you a Mac Power User.

  • Gazelle: Sell your iPhone for cash at Gazelle!