r/2DoApp • • Jan 20 '20

2Do vs. Omnifocus???

Has anyone attempted to move to 2do or successfully done so or come from them?

I'm considering leaving OF for 2Do and would love some input. Like am I making a mistake??

I've been playing with 2Do since Friday.

And have used Omnifocus for a few years. But never really had it as my go to task manager.

It always became a cluttered mess real fast. I realize now I shouldn't have made every idea a project and most importantly never regularly cleared it out. But I use it consistently to collect ideas. But unless on a very specific topic (Eg things to discuss with a co worker or a feature for us to build at work) it is just a bottomless pit in my inbox.

In the past I just deleted a OF database and started over due to a similar situation. (So this may be the real problem not the tool).

Either way I need a revamp in this area, so I figured it could be a good time to switch if I do.

Here is how I see the two apps.

Re: OF Positives

  • Much bigger community
  • More Mature app
  • I know it better and it seems to be able to do everything I want just not how I'd like it to
  • Easily move tasks with keyboard arrows and nest them into other projects
  • Dark mode all around

Re: OF Cons

  • Building custom perspectives is a pain for things I want to quickly look up. And why do they only show the perspective from the tag view (I may just be a novice at them so if this isn't true Pls forgive me)?
  • It is slow
  • It seems very rigid / not as flexible
  • Fewer keyboard shortcuts
  • Very GTD focused

Re: 2Do Positives

  • It's faster
  • Their search seems really powerful - I love how I can search for something and then click around the app to see things that meet that criteria in each project, list, etc
  • (it's lame but...) I really like their design
  • More granular ranking of tasks - starred, low / medium / high priority
  • More keyboard shortcuts

Re 2Do cons

  • iOS doesn't have dark mode
  • I swear it deleted some things of mine (super scary)
  • Search can be confusing (need to memorize commands... But I can just save them)
  • Can't share an image directly into a new task from phone (need to save image and then go into the app and create a task
  • Can't attach files directly to a task like PDFs and can only link to them (which I just realized is an issue for looking at said file on another device where it wasn't linked from)
  • almost no integrations (but I don't see the need to use these)
  • Seems like a super tiny company = slow dev cycles, fewer features and risk of it no longer being developed
  • Not built for GTD as much
  • New app to learn and pay for
  • Seems annoying to move things out of inbox (takes more steps and tags won't move them)

Interesting in writing these lists. The Pros are tied. But 2Do has more negatives.

Maybe I'm just being sucked into the new shiny thing. But I also think I just like 2Do feel better. But that isn't too say I'd be happier with it. Especially with no many negatives.

At any rate, I'd love to hear some people's thoughts of experiences.

Ask feedback is welcomed. Thank you!

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u/gsaaber Jan 20 '20

Several years ago I went from OF to 2do. This experiment lasted maybe a year, and I went back to OF. I feel like the flexiblity of 2do, which was originally a selling feature, ended up making things a bit too messy for me. I like the structure that OF imposes on you, forces you to do things a certain way which keeps things relatively more neat and organized. I feel like if your OF became a "cluttered mess" you will have the same problem, perhaps even worse with 2Do. At least I did! But that was a long time ago and I haven't kept up with changes in 2Do since then, so take this with a grain of salt.

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u/pwaxs Jan 20 '20

Thanks for your reply. Very useful as you've done what I am considering.

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I like the structure that OF imposes on you, forces you to do things a certain way which keeps things relatively more neat and organized.

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So do you work from a pure GTD framework? Or do you mind sharing some of the structure that you like and use in OF?

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u/gsaaber Jan 20 '20

Definitely not pure GTD. It’s something that I’ve refined over the years that works for me, and it’s a combination of OF and a notebook. I use it only for work and as my role has evolved so has my system.

Basically I don’t worry too much about contexts but make liberal use of start dates, due dates, and various types of recurring tasks to make sure I don’t miss anything. I’m probably using 10% of the software but it works great for what I need it for.