I use OmniFocus more on mac than ios. It is great that OF 3 for iOS was released today. When will you release mac version?
More information at https://www.omnigroup.com/blog/omnifocus-3-for-ios. OmniFocus 3 for macOS is estimated to be in beta testing later this summer. If you want to get an early look at the mac beta and give us feedback, considering signing up at https://www.omnigroup.com/test/.
Thank you. I just signed up the testing.
Hope this doesn’t get delayed because of WWDC and more attention to iOS. Many of us still use the Mac as the primary work machine and iOS for more “consumption” activity.
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According to @kcase it will definitely have to wait for WWDC and Omni Groups assessment of the changes coming in Mac OS 14 and IOS 12. These annual major updates a re a significant burden on dev teams who have to commit time and effort every year just to make sure their apps remain compatible with the sometimes radical changes that come with operating system updates.
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This wait is unacceptable. Poor planning.
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I think that’s harsh. You may or may not have seen the Apple keynote just now but iOS and macOS are totally different platforms. You really can’t just port one app from platform to platform.
Adding support for multiple tags is a major shift, the database structure had to be altered and Omni already put the foundations into place. But having it work on two platforms simultaneously would have been very challenging. And probably a complete headache.
Is it inconvenient? Absolutely. Will Omni get the macOS app up to speed in the coming weeks for a first beta? I know they will.
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I am a former developer, so I understand what is entailed. I also have been an OmniFocus user for several years, and I have been waiting for this change just as long as I have been a user. Not everyone subscribes to the GTD philosophy which engendered OF. It is not harsh. There comes a point in every development cycle where you have to decide whether the product is working as you would like it to work, and even if there ARE major design changes that need to be made, at some point you need to REFACTOR and make those changes if you want the product to meet your design goals/ideals. Frankly, the only reason that I have stuck with OF so long is that it is the only product which allows me to have the level of customizability that I neeed, and the level of drill-down that I require in my -tasks (i.e., sub-sub-sub-sub tasks ad infinitum) What is lame is that they keep piecmealing changes out like this, when they should have done a refactor years ago.
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p.s. I ALSO use OF more on my Mac than on my iPhone or iPad. Planning is done on the desktop, execution is sometimes done with the iPhone or iPad.
Hey all,
I don’t necessarily think this is poor planning at all.
@kcase has explained that the rollout was done as such because the iOS version required a lot more reworking than the Mac version will. It is apparently also the version that the majority of users actually use.
I agree it’s inconvenient - I use OF predominantly on my Mac - so am really eager to try some of the new features on that platform. Having said that, I think the Omni group have been very responsive in general and very interactive overall - in terms of their willingness to listen to suggestions, their interaction with consumers through slack and other forums etc. It sounded like it just wasn’t going to be feasible to try and sort out all issues for all platforms at the same time.
That time will come… and at the end of the day OF2 is still functional until then - even if it doesn’t quite work the way I envisage it can in the future. I have certainly tried a number of other productivity softwares - but find that OF does indeed give me the best flexibility in terms of setup and customizability. Things3 just can’t deal with a large number of tasks after a while.
It has been great to be part of the beta for the iOS version and I eagerly await the release of the Mac version for testing as well.
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OmniGroup has been a great Mac developer for many years, and the frustration some of us are expressing is a function of how much we appreciate and rely on the product.
A little more communication would go a long way, as in roughly when we can expect a Mac beta to drop.
Hopefully it’s not going to be delayed by prioritizing the new WatchOS features like interactive notifications.
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After using the OF3 TestFlight for a while, I’ve been using my iPad with a bluetooth keyboard a lot more now. I’ll use OF on the Mac mostly for archiving and quick capturing if I’m at my Mac Mini. It would be nice to have OF3 for Mac just so that I can have OF3 on all of my devices. But the iPad+ BT keyboard + OF3 has completely changed my workflow now. I was very surprised at how much OF3 changed my workflow. Batch editing was the major factor in switching. Multiple tags was more of an extra feature for me.
I haven’t seen the below the hood news yet, but based on wwdc there’s not a lot new in mojave to slow things down.
Correct, this may be a major advantage for Omni’s development schedule. Usually WWDC throws a wrench in the works, but this time around there appear to be no seismic shifts. Let’s hope this allows the team to move faster on the macOS version of OF3.
I’m in the same boat as you. macOS is my main OF platform and just like you I’m anxiously awaiting the next version.
It’s actually very good planning -make use of finite resource to solve a defined set of problems, then move on to a different defined set of problems.
Poor planning would be throwing finite resource at more problems than it can resolve effectively and then not delivering anything at all.
I spend my working life dealing with the gap between resources and requirements every single day; most days, I also have to deal with someone telling me that my decisions are “unacceptable”. I think @kcase and his team should be congratulated for both organising themselves so well and dealing with the abuse they get for it so professionally.
Oh - and I speak as a user for OF on the Mac who would love OF3 to arrive right this minute, but is prepared to respect the decisions of a professional software development organisation
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I didn’t realize how much I needed batch editing on iOS.
After a couple days of steady use, I am thinking I may not even get the Mac version. Gonna depend on what the JS automation is capable of.
@dfay My concern is they will use resources that should be working on the Mac to update iOS and WatchOS.
@wilsonng I think we need a more concrete estimate than “sometime in the summer”. That’s a four-month window at this point.
Guys (and Gals) if you have been a customer for a long time you know that this will be done. When they announce beta sign ups it means that they are close to Beta. Having been a user and beta tester for a very long time I can say that they have not failed me yet.
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