Running Errands
groceries
I use OF2 to get my groceries with absolute ease. I have a grocery perspective with every dept in the supermarket as headings. The groceries are listed underneath in their appropriate sections. I have copied the order of the sections according to the exact layout in my supermarket. It means as I enter the supermarket and look at my groceries perspective on phone or watch (I prefer the watch-much easier) everything is in the right order.
All my groceries are on repeats depending on frequency of replacement and I never forget anything as I have the supermarket on a location based context (it beeps every time I pass the store). The way I set the perspective up ensures only available items appear as needed and this makes for absolute efficiency. The repeats can be set for the expected time an item normally lasts for (I err on sooner rather than later as a caution).
Eg: Cornflakes last about 2 weeks-I set the repeat at about 12 days to remind me to buy them before they run out.
Before OF2 came into my life, I was useless at grocery shopping. Paper lists failed, memory useless, always buying extra items I didnât need or not buying items I did need. Forgetting what make of shaving razor I last purchased for replacement blades was a major bugbear. Standing like other guys in a comatose state staring at shelves wondering what on earth I am actually doing.
I look at other guys (women seem to have photographic memories for grocery shopping!) and feel like shaking them. I donât know what they make of me as I glance at my wrist and whizz past them to the checkout!
I just take a look at my watch, then grab the item from the shelf and check it offâŚvoilĂ ! as they say!
Other errands
I have similar perspectives set up for the DIY store, Computer store, etc, etc. I cannot imagine doing such big lists in Things 3-it would be a chaotic mess.
Summing up
I now measure other apps by how they can manage groceries. If they canât then they are useless to me. Iâve tried the majority of task reminder/management apps. On this measure (grocery list) alone they all fail. Not being able to make sequential lists is a massive mistake and these other companies need to understand this simple point.
I played with Thing 3 a lot. I chose this word âplayedâ carefully. Things 3 is a toy. Nice to look at, nice to use. By the end of the day the novelty has worn off. I copied my entire OF2 database to Things 3 (using they script supplied) and stared aghast at the cluttered mess I had created. It does have some good points; flexible task adjustment (not my thing but I can see why others like it), Nice looking (form over substance?), it has brilliant repeat options (OF2 have promised this). Nice watch app aesthetic. However my gripesâŚ
inter aliaâŚ
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Poor structure organisation
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inability to attach files/images (a major requirement for me)
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reorganising all tasks every day a major bore (OF2 has it all done)
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no sequential lists-why, why, why? (beats me this one!)
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no repeat tasks in lists (I understand they are working on it)
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Repeat tasks difficult to manage (if finished earlier than expected-makes it all a bit clunky)
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No visual calendar to drag and drop tasks to (I really thought they would have included this/OF2 has it and they better not remove it-ever!).
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Difficult to get a visual update on whats coming in the months ahead (OF2 makes this as easy as falling out of bed)
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Location (geofenced) perspectives (standard stuff nowadays)
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No proper review mode
If as @wilsonng says you have simple enough needs, then itâll be great. However I think most people have a need to save tickets/files/images on their task management app. To de-clutter busy lives sequential lists and review modes are vital. I am going to Italy shortly. I have all tickets, connections and pdfâs neatly tucked into each task in sequential lists. It is all self-contained beauty. I even attended a KISS concert in Glasgow the other evening and had the tickets in OF2. I couldnât imagine using any other app.
