Been using OF2 some more and what I’m really missing from v1.0 is projects displaying while in the inbox view. The way I process my inbox actions is by drag-and-dropping to projects. If OF2 were released today, I would continue using v1.0 until this functionality was added. Using the projects pop-over to assign inbox actions to projects is fine, though clunky compared to a quick drag-and-drop method in 1.0.
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I just left Evernote and the Secret Weapon as my GTD system about 10 days ago and jumped into the Omnifocus world. After just getting the basics down in OF1, I’m accepted into the OF 2 beta test and relearning everything!
Overall, I am completely in OF2 and prefer it greatly to OF1. From the new guy’s perspective, OF2 is just much more intuitive. Several of the “new features” I’ve easily came across in OF2 were present in OF1, I just hadn’t gotten around to finding them yet.
From a visual perspective, OF2 is more aesthetically pleasing then OF1. However, I’m hoping styles come back so I can increase the size of Notes. On a 27in iMac, the type is pretty small right now. The density works for me. When working on a detailed, fast-moving project, the separation in type makes it easy to pick out what I am looking for.
The main feature that caused me to switch over permanently is the presence of the inspector window. I am not sure if there was a way to pin it in OF1 but, if so, I hadn’t found it yet and it was getting annoying having to continually navigate to it while using the program.
So, relative to OF1, I am liking OF2 much much more!
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There is a setting in the preferences to change the text size. This is what I use to bump up the text size for my tired, old eyes. ;-)
So far, so good. Love the new interface and the ease of updating tasks with the Inspector always at hand. Having some issues with scripts that I’m sure will get ironed out.
I really like the look of OF2, especially the sidebars, as well as the Forecast feature, but to be honest I am still using OF 1 to actually keep up with my GTD. As a lot of people have already mentioned, the data density is better in OF 1, and I can just visually get a feel for the structure of my more complex projects in OF 1 than I can in OF 2.
My best case scenario would be to have all the new features (like Forecast and the sidebars), but with the old-style columns for task name / context / due date, etc.
Great job. I wasn’t a big fan of the previous beta, but this one really makes me want to use it. I was glad to see my old perspectives imported and been using OF 2 solely now.
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After NPR’s April Fools’ prank, I wondered how many comments here were based on day-to-day use of OmniFocus 2, rather than an initial visual impression.
A (very) rough review shows 40%+ either make no mention of actual use or specifically state the commenter has yet to use OF2. These commenters are split 50/50 between preferring the original and preferring OF2.
Of those who state they’re actually using the program, the ratio seems to be 2-3 commenters favouring OF2 for every commenter who prefers OF1, which is better, but not great: I’m not sure I’d want my version 2.0 to be rejected by 25%+ of my most passionate users. OmniFocus 2 is not Final Cut Pro X.
The main deal-breakers seem to be ‘data density’ and inability to view projects in the Inbox view. The main gripes (i.e. criticisms that aren’t deal-breakers) seem to be ‘check-boxes on the right’ and the absence of styling (e.g. coloured text for due/overdue items). These four are also the all-time Top discussion threads at the time of writing.
Ken Case said on the Omni blog
‘What we’re most looking for at this point are any issues that make OmniFocus 2 harder to use for your particular workflow than OmniFocus 1 was. We’ll be giving your feedback a hard look between now and when we ship in June and trying to address as much of it as we can, so the sooner we hear from you the better.’
His statement on data density is that a compact layout isn’t a priority for the 2.0 release: those who see this as a deal-breaker can keep on using OF1 in the meantime. Likewise, those who need to see their projects whilst processing the Inbox can just open another window, which kinda defeats the object of a single window design.
No one from Omni seems to have made any relevant comment — that I can find — on either ‘checkboxes on the right’ or ‘styling’.
So there’s no sign — as yet — that Omni are even ‘trying to address’ 3 out of 4 of the top ‘issues that make OmniFocus 2 harder to use for your particular workflow’.
Does this mean that the feedback Omni is receiving through other channels is distinctly different from the feedback on this public forum, and in this thread in particular? Or am I just being impatient and/or unrealistic?
Briefly: I like a lot of what I see, and I think it mostly looks much better than it did last summer. There is one thing that really bothers me, though – the enormous, space-wasting rows, and the fact that there’s no way to do anything about it. One of the best features of OF1 is the ability to edit basic styles like fonts, margins, row height, etc. It looks like that feature is not planned for OF2 (if it is, that’s a pretty big piece to still be completely missing only a couple months before the release target).
I’m looking at OF1 and 2 side-by-side, right now, with the exact same stuff in both. In OF1, I can see more than twice as many rows (folders, projects, actions) as OF2 – and that’s with all the notes expanded in OF1, and collapsed in OF2. The sidebar also has a really wide minimum width. I can’t get it any smaller than 304px, whereas my sidebar in OF1 is 205px wide.
Right now I’ve OmniOutliner and OmniFocus side-by-side on my 13" Air (1440x900), each using half of the screen, and it’s perfect. OF2 does not fit where OF1 did, and that’s going to be a dealbreaker for me. I don’t mind the spacious design as a default, but if the style editor isn’t coming back, and all the metrics remain as “generous” as they are now, there’s absolutely no way I’ll ever upgrade.
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Been on OF2 for a bit longer now and still sticking with it. But it’s becoming more difficult. I know it’s been said to death but I am finding it really difficult viewing my list of tasks when compared to OF1. I accept it may just be a get used to it situation but it seems to be getting worse vs better. I feel I’m not “flowing” in 2 the way I did in 1. Hard to describe otherwise. I like the overall aesthetic. I am really happy about forecast view and review function. But overall the usability feels like it’s suffering for me. I am experiencing some longing to go back to OF1 which is surprising to me because OF2 hits the mark in many areas.
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Love the new interface and forecast view, as an iPhone app user, this is a feature I widely use to help plan my day and actions.
Projects > New Action – It would seem “Defer until” should come after “Due.” When creating a new item within Projects view I add my task, context, due date. It is only after I feel completing by the due date is at risk would I enter a defer until date. E.g. Task due today, defer until tomorrow.
Would also be nice to have an estimated time in the new action as opposed in addition to the inspector where it currently resides.
Would like a quick visual indicator in sidebar (similar to OF1) for upcoming/overdue tasks, e.g. count of items that are either due or due soon
AWESOME. UI is fantastic. Don’t listen to people who say too much white space! I would definitely condense the tasks (1 line), but it looks like you’re already doing that. The UI is fantastic.
The one thing i would add is the ability to customize some keyboard shortcuts…
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Have you tried customizing the keyboard shortcuts through the Keyboard panel in the System Preferences?
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I moved 2 posts to an existing topic: How do we feel about the checkboxes on the right?
I couldn’t agree more. After entering item #2, I switched to Classic Mode. Keyboard shortcuts are supposed to be efficient. I’d suggest offering some way to avoid the double enter: Ctrl-Enter maybe?
So I’ve been at it with OF2 for a couple of weeks. I have found that over that time my initial excitement with it has continued to erode until this morning when I opened up OF1 just to recall what it looked like and to be honest, I think I may stay there a while. Here are some thoughts on it:
- I love the forecast view and have been wanting it since its intro on IOS.
- love the Review mode implementation.
- I (like others have singled out data density in OF2 as an issue and was happy to see that the recent build introduced greater density but unfortunately it just looks really cluttered now. I have concluded on this matter that the second line needs to be hideable.
- I really miss the columns in OF1. The layout is much more conducive to productivity. Much easier to scan through tasks.
- I miss the colour coding of next/due/upcoming items in the war that OF1 does it.
- I miss the style customization of OF1 much more than I ever thought I would. I got it to a point where it was almost exactly what I wanted it to look like. Perfect level of contrast for me. Project/context titles have highlighted backgrounds making them as visible as I need/want them to be. Font sizes are exactly what I like. etc. I don’t dislike the aesthetic overall of OF2 but I prefer having it setup exactly how I want it and being able to change it should me needs/preferences change.
- find that in OF1 I was just way more productive overall. I accept that this may just be a familiarity thing but I find that I spend more time in OF2 just kind of disoriented trying to review tasks whereas in OF1 I am able to just process and move on.
So the short answer to the original question for me would be, I do like OF2 but as the weeks progressed I found my productivity felt like it was suffering and that I longed for OF1 until today when I launched it and realized that in fact, I prefer so many things in OF1.
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I’ve commented (or others have) about things I would like to see, or some tweaks. From the staff responses, some are being already worked on, others are being considered after the 2.0 release.
That being said, as a user of OF1 (Mac), OF1 (iPad), OF1 (iPhone), and OF2 (iPhone) I think I can sum up my experience this way:
- I love the reviewing and forecast process/view on the iPad – so I love it in OF2
- I really enjoy the app design on the iPad (folder/project nesting); OF1 needed serious styling to keep things clean. – OF2 does this with a subtle line, works for me
- Once I got used to some of the button locations/options on OF2 iPhone, I absolutely enjoyed (and still enjoy) using it regularly. One of my favorite applications just for how it works for me visually on my phone. – I can’t say that about OF2 yet.
OF2 Mac…has so many of the elements that I love from the iPad and iPhone applications, I feel like I should be in heaven, but I’m not. I really like the design, I like some of the functional changes too. It is just really a struggle to use it as part of my regular workflow right now. I am still trying to figure out if it is just a visual issue or a functional issue. (sorry I cannot clarify better).
Visually:
- Fonts are easier for me to read at regular working distance
- Spacing between everything makes it easier to read; something I played with WAY TOO much in OF1, looks great to me in OF2 (yeay!)
- I am struggling with the whitespace where columns were in OF1. For me, it’s less of a checkbox on the left or right and more of is that checkbox for this action? Maybe the grey line needs to be darker?
I think some of the design elements from OF2 iPhone are not translating well (checkboxes, data density, colors, flags, etc) with more screen real estate. I love the spacing, most views are more readable, but something is just not working for me yet.
Keep up the tweaks and changes, it will get there…I’ll keep using it and see if I can pin-point what functional issue I am having. Cheers to the team!
Ken: I’ll answer your question directly and say, no, I’m not liking v2 overall. I will likely go back to v1 rather than continue with the betas. Right up front, I’ll admit that my reasons are not based on function or features, but rather the UI.
The first is data density. I configured my v2 window to match v1 as closely as possible:
- I matched dimensions of windows, based on how I typically size it in v1, which is a bit under 1/4 of my 27" Cinema Display.
- I selected Projects view in v2, and Projects > Library in v1. This displays the same listing of my available tasks in the main outline view of each.
- In v2, I have the text size set to “Medium”. In v1, I have the main outline styles set to Open Sans 13pt with row and child spacing set to 0.
I won’t upload a screenshot, but v1 shows twice as many tasks in the main outline and 5 more projects in the sidebar.
The second reason I’m not thrilled with v2 is that, as someone who has never worn prescription glasses but now is at the age where I’m needing reading glasses more and more, I find v2 much harder to read on the whole. The overall lack of contrast and the low legibilty (for me) of the default typeface are dealbreakers. The adjustability of text size is a step in the right direction, but the difference between “Medium” and “Medium and a half” is too great–Medium is too small, while M-1/2 is too large (which exacerbates the info density problem). To my pushing-50-yr-old eyes, the choice of typeface is problematic. It sets wider than the 13pt font I use in v1 (again, info density), but its relatively small x-height and vertical compactness means that some of the descenders and counters are tiny. I might eventually need to wear glasses all the time, at which point this issue may well will go away, but for the time being, the inability to select both the font and the size are going to keep me in v1.
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Having re-engaged with this after taking a short vacation I’m feeling a lot more productive within OF2 than when I first started using it. After setting my perspectives and increasing the font size I’m happy with what OF2 can offer on a day-to-day basis. . My niggles have been stated elsewhere so I’ll keep to the point and in answer to the subject: Yes, I’m really enjoying using OF2 and now use it exclusively.
Overall, it’s looking great, but I can’t use it until the data density is closer to OF1. The attached screenshot shows the comparison of how many fewer tasks I see at a glance, which isn’t really the biggest problem.
The biggest problem is that between each task I have to filter out what I perceive as extraneous information (the +[] ProjectName). It makes scanning the list harder. I would be 100% on board with OF2 if there was an option to get rid of that second line in each task.
Quick open is awesome. Love the new inspector.
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It’s essentially useless since you dropped local network syncing. See my post in the bonjour sync thread.
