Omnifocus 3 Web
Appendix E
- Gtd & omnifocus 3 setup guide table of contents (continued) projects and next actions (continued) 15 setting up clippings 16 setting up mail drop 16 creating email support folders 17 integrating with your calendar 17 syncing to ipad® and/or iphone® 18 using the web version of omnifocus 18 using siri with omnifocus populating omnifocus.
- OmniFocus 3 for Mac —Download from the Omni website (direct OmniFocus download link). Click Restore during first run to unlock OmniFocus Pro by signing in to your Omni Account. If you’ve already gone through the first run experience, choose Sign in to Omni Account from the OmniFocus app menu.
- Stay informed of new business and student Omnifocus 3 Web offers. Speak with our friendly, certified experts. Get a Omnifocus 3 Web free Omnifocus 3 Web quote or learn about bulk licensing incentives. Easily download, manage and assign software to multiple systems. Call us today to learn more.
The OmniFocus Web Add-On Subscriptions exist for customers who already own a standalone app, but wish to add web access. ⚠️ An existing license for OmniFocus for Mac or iOS is required for the Web app to work. Yearly Payment $49.99 USD Save 16.5%! The Web Add-On subscription is only available through the Omni Store.
OmniFocus as a standalone app is an incredibly powerful tool. Beyond what you can do with OmniFocus alone, the app interacts with other apps and services to help you get stuff done with even greater convenience and efficiency.
This appendix lists ways that OmniFocus can be used in tandem with other software to achieve your goals.
Email Capture (Mail Drop)
Mail Drop is a feature of the Omni Sync Server that lets you send emails directly to your OmniFocus Inbox. You can create multiple private send-to addresses to give access to third parties, and delete those addresses at any time. In order to use Mail Drop, you’ll need to have an Omni Account (they’re free), and OmniFocus must be configured to actively sync with that account on our server.
If you’re already using Omni Sync Server to sync OmniFocus, you can log in to the Omni Sync Server web interface and create your first Mail Drop address. After logging in, click or tap Add An Address to automatically generate the email address (a combination of your account name and a random string of characters).
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If you don’t have a Omni Account yet, you can sign up in OmniFocus Settings under Omni Account. The account creation process includes instructions for configuring OmniFocus to use your new account.
When you send an email message to a Mail Drop address, the subject line of that message becomes the name of the new Inbox item. The body of the message becomes the note, which can contain text and simple HTML; attachments to the email (such as images) are added as attachments to the OmniFocus item as well.
See OmniFocus Mail Drop on the Omni support website for more details on this feature.
Workflow Automation
With some knowledge of programming, you can use callback URLs to automate conversations between OmniFocus and other apps on your iOS device. This offers the ability to set up project templates with custom data fields, for example, along with many other powerful automation possibilities.
This is an advanced feature that requires some tinkering under the hood; for help getting started integrating OmniFocus with the workflow app of your choice, see URL Schemes in OmniFocus on the Inside OmniFocus website.
Omni Automation
OmniFocus Pro supports automating tasks in OmniFocus using JavaScript. You can create your own plug-ins or use plug-ins created by others; see the Omni Automation website for a set of sample Plug-Ins that you can use right away, or find documentation resources for creating your own.
Installing Omni Automation Plug-Ins
Once you have a plug-in that you would like to try, you will need to install it in a connected folder that OmniFocus recognizes.
If you are looking for a place to start with plug-ins, head on over to the Omni Automation website and find one you like.
First, download the plug-in file and navigate to it in the Files app. If it is zipped, tap the file to unzip it. The resulting file will have an .omnijs extension (the file format for Omni Automation Plug-Ins).
Next, tap the plug-in file, which presents an import dialog in OmniFocus:
If everything looks in order, choose an install destination from the Location menu and tap Install Plug-In. The plug-in is copied to that location and appears in the Plug-Ins management screen.
iOS might not associate the .omnijs file type with OmniFocus the first time you try to open a plug-in from the Files app. If this happens, you can use the Share menu to open the plug-in in OmniFocus instead.
- Tap and hold the plug-in file in Files until the contextual menu appears.
- Choose Share and scroll through the available Application options. If Open in OmniFocus doesn't appear, tap More and scroll until you find it.
- Tap Open in OmniFocus and the plug-in import dialog appears, ready to continue the installation process.
Omnifocus 3 Webcam
After installing your first plug-in this way, for future installations tapping the plug-in file in Files will open the import dialog directly.
Once you have installed your first plug-in it appears as an action in the Automation menu and the Share dialog, ready to use. Tap it to run the plug-in and start experimenting with what Omni Automation can do.
Managing Plug-Ins
Use the Plug-Ins screen (opened with Configure Plug-Ins in the Automation menu or Automation settings) to add, remove, and organize your Omni Automation Plug-Ins and connected plug-in locations.
On My [Device]—This is the default local storage location for plug-ins associated with OmniFocus, a folder that lives on your device inside the OmniFocus container. Use the Files app to move plug-in files into this folder.
OmniFocus in iCloud Drive—With iCloud Drive set up on your device, OmniFocus can use its application folder there to sync plug-ins between your various devices and the cloud. Note that plug-in files are stored separately from your OmniFocus sync database and they must be managed separately. iCloud Drive is not capable of syncing your OmniFocus database.
Custom Locations—Beyond the two default storage locations above, you can link as many additional plug-in folders as you like. These are regular folders on your device or in the cloud that contain the plug-in files that you want to use in OmniFocus. Once a folder is linked, its plug-ins become available in the Automation menu.
Add Linked Folder—Tap to open a file browser for selecting additional plug-in folders that you would like to link to OmniFocus.
Unlink—Tap to remove a custom location's association with OmniFocus. This removes the folder and its contents from the Plug-Ins screen and Automation menu, but does not move or alter its contents in any way. If you change your mind, you can tap Add Linked Folder again to restore it.
Plug-In Info—Tap a plug-in's row to show detailed information about the plug-in, including its name, version, author, description, and information about the actions that the Plug-In contains. You can also share the plug-in from this detail view, delete it, or set up keyboard shortcuts for the plug-in's actions.
OmniFocus for the Web
OmniFocus for the Web is a browser-based companion app that works in tandem with OmniFocus for Mac and iOS to provide access to the core features of OmniFocus from any modern web browser. The app is provided as an optional subscription-based add-on to your existing OmniFocus purchase, or as part of an OmniFocus subscription package.
Learn more about subscribing to OmniFocus for the Web here.
There’s lots in store for OmniFocus in 2018, including OmniFocus 3 for Mac & iOS and OmniFocus for the Web.
OmniFocus, which is now ten years old, was prominently featured in today’s Omni Roadmap 2018 post. OmniFocus has come a long way in the past decade and the Omni Group has a well-deserved reputation for keeping up with advances in macOS and iOS.
OmniFocus 3 will continue this tradition with some innovative new features and enhancements. And the Omni Group revealed that they’re building OmniFocus for the Web, a simplified version of OmniFocus that will give you basic access to your OmniFocus data on Windows.
New Features in OmniFocus 3
Here’s a summary of some of the new features and enhancements that are coming to OmniFocus 3.
- Multiple Tags – In OmniFocus 3, contexts will become “tags”, and you’ll be able to assign multiple tags to actions. Tags can represent traditional GTD contexts (e.g. @home or @braindead), but are not limited to contexts. For example, you could have a tag of #today for everything you want to get done today and a tag of #vacation to flag actions that you want to complete before you go on vacation.
- Manual Sorting – A common frustration among OmniFocus users is the inability to manually rearrange actions when viewing them by context. This is all changing with OmniFocus 3. In addition to being able to specify the order of tasks within a project, you’ll be able to reorder by tag. For example, you’ll be able to define the order of actions that are tagged with #today independently from the ordering of these tasks in other tags and projects.
- Flexible Scheduling – OmniFocus’ current repeat functionality is genuinely useful, but has its limitations. For example, there isn’t currently an easy way to have an action repeat on the first Thursday of each month. OmniFocus 3 will introduce flexible scheduling, employing a design principle called progressive disclosure to help ensure that this new flexibility doesn’t come at the expense of a tedious and complicated user interface.
- Flexible Notifications – OmniFocus 3 improves the way in which notifications are delivered and gives you more control over how and when you’re notified. For example, perhaps you’d like to be notified when an action becomes available or one week before something is due. Tasks can have even have multiple notifications and, for things that are particularly time-sensitive (e.g. taking medication), you can choose to be notified every few minutes until the action is marked complete.
- Design Enhancements – I’ve seen first hand how much thought the Omni Group puts into their products, so it’s not surprising that OmniFocus 3 will come with many meticulously crafted design changes. This includes features for onboarding new users and design aesthetics that will make OmniFocus feel right at home on the latest versions of macOS and iOS.
- Multiple Item Selection on iOS – OmniFocus 3 for iOS will gain a feature that Mac users have enjoyed for many years: multiple item selection and bulk editing. For example, you’ll be able to select a group of actions and, with a few taps of your finger, assign them all the same tag or defer date. On the iPad, you’ll even be able to drag all of the selected items to another app.
- Powerful Automation – Automation is a popular topic here on Learn OmniFocus. Our live sessions have showcased a variety of ways to automate OmniFocus on Mac and iOS, and Fraser Speirs wowed us with some amazing iOS automations using Workflow. While this is all great, it would be even better if automation workflows worked on both Mac and iOS. To take automation to the next level, the Omni Group will be introducing JavaScript-based automation capabilities that will make it possible to create multi-platform scripts. We’ll be monitoring these developments closely and sharing some of our favourite scripts.
- Collaboration – Whether you’re a solopreneur or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, you need a way to manage your personal tasks; details that other people don’t need to know about that help you honour your commitments and responsibilities. OmniFocus is fundamentally a personal task manager, and OmniFocus 3 won’t change that. But, you’ll be able to share specific tasks with other OmniFocus users. Once linked, both people will be able to see updates on the status of specific tasks.
Help Test OmniFocus 3
If you’re eager to get your hands on these new features sooner rather than later, consider signing up for OmniFocus TestFlight. Keep in mind that you’ll be using a pre-release version of OmniFocus that isn’t feature complete and will have some bugs.
OmniFocus for the Web
Last but not least, there’s some good news for those of you want access to your OmniFocus database on non-Apple devices.
The Omni Group are building OmniFocus for the Web. It will be a greatly simplified version of OmniFocus that will give you basic access to your OmniFocus database. You won’t have advanced features like Review and Custom Perspectives, but you will be able to see what’s in your Inbox, in addition to having access to projects, tasks and their associated notes and due dates. You’ll also be able to make basic edits, such as marking task complete and editing notes.
OmniFocus for the Web isn’t intended to be a stand-alone product. Instead, it’s a complement to OmniFocus’ Mac and iOS apps that will no doubt be invaluable when you’re sitting in front of your Windows computer at work.
Subscribe to the Omni Group’s newsletter to be notified when OmniFocus for the Web is available for testing.
Supporting You in Using OmniFocus 3
I’m already dreaming up some innovative ways to make good use of these wonderful new features. In particular, the ability to add multiple tags will open up some productive new workflow possibilities, and ultimately make OmniFocus an even more useful element of your productivity system.
I’m putting plans in place for new content that will showcase OmniFocus 3 features and build on workflows and best practices that we’ve been sharing since Learn OmniFocus launched in 2014. In the meantime, I’ll also continue to support you in making effective use of OmniFocus 2.
To stay in the loop, make sure you’ve signed up for our mailing list. We’ll also be posting updates on Facebook and Twitter.
Kudos to the Omni Group
Many thanks to the Omni Group for all of the work that they’re putting into this upcoming release. They’re a great group of people who have a genuine passion for productivity and an outstanding reputation for delivering quality products.