Questionable GTD Foundation for Common Software Feature

[TesTeq]

Folke's dreams are already available for everybody in reality!

What I will say though is that it's take several years to really grok all that Omnifocus can deliver in terms of support for managing my GTD system. Just really getting to a deep understanding of the power of perspectives takes a while.

I don't use OmniFocus but I've read this description of perspectives: OmniFocus Series Part 06: Perspectives and I am really impressed. It looks like Folke's dreams are already available for everybody in reality!

 

[Gardener]

But it is easy to see that none of the developers have their hearts and minds in these areas.

If you haven't used all of the apps, then it's distinctly premature to declare that "none" of the developers have done something. I understand that you can't use OmniFocus without a Mac, but that's not a good reason for making assumptions about how OmniFocus works or doesn't work.

 

[Folke]

If you haven't used all of the apps, then it's distinctly premature to declare that "none" of the developers have done something. I understand that you can't use OmniFocus without a Mac, but that's not a good reason for making assumptions about how OmniFocus works or doesn't work.

Well, you are absolutely right; I did express it too briefly, especially if you read that particular sentence out of context, so please let me try again:

It is my overall impression of all the apps I have tried that developers generally pay an awful lot more attention to horizontal integration and time/space automation than they do to facilitating calm and systematic reviewing of your plans.

I don't use OmniFocus but ... It looks like Folke's dreams are already available for everybody in reality!

Yes, it is definitely the case that you can do quite a lot with many apps, and Omnifocus certainly has a good (if mixed) reputation. Often, though, these apps are not as simple to use as I would like them to be. Some require extensive initial setup, which I can live with. Quite a few are a bit too clunky in their day-to-day use, which is worse. And most of them are a bit "messy" or unintuitive to read - endless lists with too little (or weird) structure, and you often simply cannot get the lists that you really need no matter how you try different setups and workarounds - this is a difficult area to address and improve, but I am convinced it is possible.

So, if you are still contemplating a start-up (which I would be a bit cautious about, as I have already explained; many players are dangerously near, but that is how this "feature request" discussion in this thread came about) perhaps simplicity of use and readability needs to be more strongly emphasized.

 

[Oogiem]

Yes, I've actually played with that thought, but it seems a bit extreme to get a Mac just for that.

Why? Currently in our household we have around 30 computers we are using. That's a rough guess, I have 12 and I am sure my husband is using more because of his hardware development work. Some are dedicated to specific tasks and they run a variety of systems.

I know one long time user of GTD who runs Windows machines for all her main work but moved her entire GTD system to an iPad just so she could use Omnifocus. A simple iPhone is expensive but it's a supercomputer. If I compare what is available now to the prices of memory and computers when I got started the phone in my pocket is a 3.2 billion dollar computer! And I can buy it for the price of selling 1.5 sheep!

It is not at all extreme to buy a machine to test out a piece of software that only runs on that machine. And if you are serious about doing any development then you need to do that as your market research if nothing else.

 

[Folke]

It is not at all extreme to buy a machine to test out a piece of software that only runs on that machine. And if you are serious about doing any development then you need to do that as your market research if nothing else.

If I were serious about doing any development I would definitely buy what I needed. Totally agreed. Even if it was only for market research. It is important to have the right tools for your work.

But research of a GTD app is not something that I have seriously considered; it was just a thought that TesTeq came up with.

As for my working tools in general, I have Windows computers and iOS devices. I'd hate to have yet another box just for my "todo lists", and I am generally reluctant to increase the complexity by straying off into Macs and Androids and Blackberries and all that. But then again, many people say Macs are generally better than PCs, so maybe I should consider a general replacement of my PCs.

I'll definitely give some thought to the possibility of just using the iPad/iPhone for GTD, as your friend did - and skip the desktop - thanks for the tip. (But I like the larger screens on desktops).

In general, it is like this: I already have everything I need for my task management; I can even get by with just paper. But it is an interesting enough subject to talk and think about - as a hobby, a hobby with at least some potential of bringing some practical improvements one day, and even if it does not, it at least was an intellectually stimulating topic to discuss.

 

[Gardener]

As for my working tools in general, I have Windows computers and iOS devices. I'd hate to have yet another box just for my "todo lists", and I am generally reluctant to increase the complexity by straying off into Macs and Androids and Blackberries and all that.

For what it's worth, the Mac can run Windows, native, now. So if you ever want to have the option of which OS to boot your computer into, or being able boot it into both at the same time, consider getting a Mac in your next upgrade.