In a world where technology is increasingly conspiring to steal our focus and attention, my goal is to teach you how to be more productive with Apple technology. I want to help you achieve what is most important to you and enjoy your life at the same time using technology instead of becoming another one of its victims. Pretty much everything I make points at that North Star. I believe in this message so much that I’ve staked my livelihood on it.
A Few Thoughts While in Production
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Hi [FORMATTED_FIRST_NAME GOES HERE], I’m currently working hard on the new edition of the OmniFocus Field Guide for version 4 of the application. This is not my first rodeo for OmniFocus, yet it still takes a lot of work. Every time I make a new edition, I make the entire Field Guide from scratch again. It’s interesting to note how my thinking on task management has evolved over the years. When I first started making the OmniFocus Field Guide with version 1, I was all in with Getting Things Done. That’s not the case anymore. There are many things that I’ve changed (for the better), yet I still use the same tool. I have spent much time looking at alternatives over the last few years, and OmniFocus is still the right task manager for me. But making an OmniFocus Field Guide in this new era with some new thinking about task management has been both challenging and a lot of fun. An interesting change with this new version is that I’m using my personal database throughout the recording. I couldn’t do that in years past because I was a lawyer and couldn’t risk sharing client data. That always irked me because I think that the only way to learn this tool is to see somebody using it under fire. While a couple of sample projects are helpful, it makes much more sense when you see a database with hundreds of projects. That’s one of the bits I’m already digging about this new version. I don’t know when this will be released, but I can tell you I’m working on it a lot right now. I’ve logged many hours, and the videos (there will be about 100 of them) are 50% recorded. In the news this week … The New iPads The rumors are now that they are arriving in early May. A lot of people have asked me about this, and I hope they show up soon. iWork Updates I was happy to see a series of updates roll out for the iWork apps. That team keeps delivering the goods for users of Pages, Keynote, and Numbers. Your pal, David P.S. New Mac Power Users Merch! We rebranded the Mac Power Users with new sounds and a cool new logo. For the next week only, you can order MPU Merch, including hats, tees, and sweatshirts. Get them while they are still available. |
David Sparks (MacSparky)
In a world where technology is increasingly conspiring to steal our focus and attention, my goal is to teach you how to be more productive with Apple technology. I want to help you achieve what is most important to you and enjoy your life at the same time using technology instead of becoming another one of its victims. Pretty much everything I make points at that North Star. I believe in this message so much that I’ve staked my livelihood on it.
Hi Friend, In an era of ever-expanding smartphone screens, a curious trend persists: many tech-savvy individuals, including several of my friends from Relay, still cling to their small iPhones. So, should Apple continue to offer a compact iPhone option despite its reportedly lower sales figures? Apple has had an on-again, off-again relationship with the small iPhone form factor. However, recent trends suggest that Apple is less enthusiastic about smaller models. Industry insiders report that...
Hello, friends! Many words have been applied to me throughout my lifetime, but very rarely has the word “spontaneous” been used. I suspect that’s true for a lot of my subscribers. As I’ve gotten older, however, I lean into it more than I used to. A good example is my daughter’s play at Edinburgh Fringe Fest. My youngest daughter wrote a play that’s getting produced at the Edinburgh Fringe Fest this week. As soon as I realized she was going, there was a long debate about whether I should go....
It's Never the Tools As the Paris Olympics wrap up, my favorite meme from the games is the story of Yousef Dikeç, the Turkish sharpshooter. I had no idea how much gear is involved in Olympic-caliber shooting. Special heavy clothes limit your motion. Special glasses with special lenses allow you to see your sight and target perfectly. Eye patches that would make Blackbeard jealous prevent your brain from getting confused. The whole thing starts to give off a Locutus of Borg feel. And then...