Get Everything Done

I am happy to announce that FocusPad for iPhone has just been released. Just search for "focuspad" in the App Store.

This app has been designed to work optimally with AutoFocus:

* Easy to add new tasks
* Flick through pages to see your existing tasks.
* Mark tasks as completed
* Delete a page when all the tasks on it are done
* With one tap you can mark a task as completed and add a copy to the end of your list.
* Highlight tasks for review
* Dismiss tasks by graying them out
* Draw line to separate backlog
* Optionally show date created and date completed
* Mark pages and hide/unhide marked pages

I worked for many weeks with beta testers from this group to make sure that the app suited the needs of an Autofocus user as closely as possible. If you have an iPhone, give it a try!

I have to say that this is a fabulous app for AFers and that Tony is an incredibly responsive developer. Often he honored our requests the same day! I was using paper happily before trying FocusPad but found that this app is much quicker than paper. You won't be sorry you tried it!

O.K. So I downloaded it and ... now what? The screen does not match the screen shots on the website. I don't see how to "draw the line" between closed and open lists. I see a way to change the color, and I suppose it is intended that we give whatever interpretation to the color that we like. I also see the "complete and copy" function. I don't have a problem with extreme simplicity, but it would be nice to have SOME indication of what to do. No help, no nuttin ;-)

Also, it does not have a landscape mode. I find that I prefer to do data entry in landscape mode because it allows for more accurate typing ... less backing up and typing over. Obviously, I'd prefer to work in portrait mode as it gives a longer list.

I guess what is needed is a tutorial of some kind on how to use it. Or is it just a list that you manually enter things into and manually cross off and manually work your way through.

Puzzled ?-)

Nice app Tony

I'm guessing that the line between lists is effectively typed in using "-"? Anyway, that seems to work well and look good.

Like the creation and completed dates as well. Simple as possible but not simpler.

Thanks

Martin

Hi Mike.

The screenshots on the FocusPad site were taken from this release of the app. Maybe you are talking about my old blog posts? I need to update those!

Martin is right: type in one or more hyphens to turn an entry into a line.

You are right that it is a "manual" list, but it provides what you need to follow the Autofocus process. I tried to make it simple enough to figure out how to use the basic features. A tutorial on using it with Autofocus would be a good idea, though.

I will implement landscape mode in the next version.

..tony.

Martin, thanks for the kind words. "Simple as possible but not simpler" was absolutely my mantra!

..tony..

So ...

- How do you show the dates?

- What is the diamond in the lower right corner for?

- What is the explanation of the numbers on the lower left ... they seem to make sense sometimes but other times they don't seem to mean anything.

Also, is there any way to import tasks into this? I'm not sure I want to retype 426 tasks from my ListOmni list to test this out.

And while on that subject ... how about export and/or backup?

Mike,

Since I was one of the beta testers, I can help.

- Go to the Settings from the iPhone home screen, and go to the FocusPad setting to show or hide the dates.

- The diamond selects a page. You tap the lower left icon to cycle through 1) "Show all pages," 2) "Show selected page only," and 3) "Show non-selected pages only." The numbers indicate the number of 1) all the pages you have, 2) selected page(s)/all pages, and 3) non-selected pages/all pages. The intention of this function is to select completed pages so as to hide them, rather than to delete them if we want to keep them for a record. I personally prefer deleting the completed pages. I use the select function almost like a bookmark.

- No export/import/backup features yet, but I'm sure Tony is working on it. I recommend you start from scratch. I'm sure that's what Mark would suggest. You'd be pleasantly surprised to find out how effective this program is!

Jo

Pretty good! I lové the simplicity of your layout.

Some nice enhancements could be:
.status (and Time counting) for a task (only one of course; only exception: whenn clicking + button)
.status as a tickler (clicking a line as the one done/duplicate), putting thé line in a tickler with delay (eg NeXT week, NeXT month, ...); then thé tool readd thé task to thé regular list after this delay

keep on this good work

Pascal

Hi Jo,

Thanks for taking a moment to 'spain it. ;-)

>>> - Go to the Settings from the iPhone home screen, and go to the FocusPad setting to show or hide the dates. <<<

DUH, how obvious! LOL ;-) Man, something that obscure deserves just a word of explanation, no? How is anyone else to learn about that?

>>> - The diamond selects a page. You tap the lower left icon to cycle through 1) "Show all pages," 2) "Show selected page only," and 3) "Show non-selected pages only."<<<

O.K. I get that ... but gee, how is that even a bit obvious? And I'm not even sure why I'd want to select pages. I suppose it is a way of hiding them because they are complete? I can see where that would be useful. But would it not make sense to do that automagically? Why would the pages simply not vanish when full on their own?

>>> The numbers indicate the number of 1) all the pages you have, 2) selected page(s)/all pages, and 3) non-selected pages/all pages. <<<

I am not even close to understanding that. Does this thing come with a secret decoder ring? LOL ;-)

>>> The intention of this function is to select completed pages so as to hide them, rather than to delete them if we want to keep them for a record. I personally prefer deleting the completed pages. I use the select function almost like a bookmark. <<<

Yeah, I see the point of it. It would actually be more useful if the completed items were "compressed" as they were hidden. IOW, move all the lines up so there is never any consideration of "pages" at all. After all, "pages" don't exist in AF4. AF4 consists of two lists of indeterminate length. And many other products do that now. In ListOmni when you mark an item complete, it vanishes and the other items move up to take its place. Very nice.

>> - No export/import/backup features yet, but I'm sure Tony is working on it. <<<

OY! Not ready for prime time. Why release incomplete software?

>>> I recommend you start from scratch. I'm sure that's what Mark would suggest. <<<

EEEK! No No No NO! I will NOT start yet again from scratch. What kind of product says: "Hey, this is great, just dump everything you have worked out and start over from scratch to see IF this product is something you can use." That's just crazy nuts. If you download a new GPS application do you have to return home and start the trip over? If you get a financial application do you have to close your bank accounts and open new ones to see how the software works? If you get an alarm clock application, do you have to wait until midnight to try it? I just don't get the thinking here. It seems very "user hostile". If the software does not do what the user might want, the user should change his way of doing things to accommodate the software. Is this some new kind of development standard? Good grief.

Each time there is a change to AF, the advice is to start from scratch. O.K. that makes sense if you have not tried AF before. You really need to work the system from scratch to learn it. If switching from one AF to another, maybe once or twice is fine, but right now I am running two systems in parallel. When AF4 came out, I moved from my pocket sized book to a larger book so I could give it a trial the way Mark intended it. That was good because it cleaned things out a but ... quite a bit, in fact. In my quest to get back to my portability and to get some filtering and scheduling, I've been looking for a software solution, if one exists. ListOmni seemed to fill that bill (thanks Mel ;-) There is absolutely no way I'm going to trash it all because yet another software application has not figured out how to do a simple import! Nor am I going to run THREE systems in parallel! Come on now, who's the master and who is the slave here? Good grief, the point of this is to actually DO things, not endlessly start over with new systems and software.

Seriously, without import, export, backup, and SOME labeling of icons and just the smallest bit of documentation why was this even released? We have been writing software now for more than half a century ... surely everyone knows to document a system before it is released. Surely every developer knows to put in import / export / backup functions in their systems. How is anyone to test the product? Spend hours typing in tasks? And when is the user to get any work done if he spends his time typing?

>>> You'd be pleasantly surprised to find out how effective this program is!

Sadly, I don't see how I will ever find out ... and how effective can it be if it requires that I discard the very system I want to automate?

Don't let Mike's whining get you down, Tony. I think you've done a great job with the application and I really appreciate all the hard work you have put into it. I love the inline editing of tasks and the way the app jumps back to the page you're working on. You've captured the essence of AF perfectly.

I've been looking for an app like this for a long time. Keep up the good work.

One thing I do not like is the app's icon; it's not very striking and looks a bit amateurish. Little things like this matter, particularly if you want the app to stand out in the app store. I've put the app on my 1st hompage, and the icon really doesn't look very good alongside the rest.

And one extra feature: possibilty to have two (several) pads, as one for home and one for business.
By the way: my apologies for the thé and other French accent on my previous post.

Thanks.

Funny how some people are concerned about the way the icon looks but not at all that the app has no discernable function of any kind. ROTF ;-)

Oh, and just by the by, the icon is actually perfectly fine ... probably the only thing about the app that I really like. As I said, different strokes for different folks.

Tony

Just for the record, I wasn't a Beta tester and managed to work out the functionality pretty quickly.

Martin

There's a big difference between sneering at and berating a hard working developer with a long litany of complaints, and making a constructive suggestion about the app icon. Using phrases like "an app that has no discernible function of any kind" doesn't show that you have any respect for Tony and the work he has put into this app.

If you're that happy with Listomni, then stick with it. For me, and perhaps others, the simplicity of FocusPad is its main appeal.

"Just for the record, I wasn't a Beta tester and managed to work out the functionality pretty quickly. "

Same here. I think Focuspad is an excellent application. Of course, there can be improvements. My vote for:

1. The possibility to put a future date on actions which would then pop up on that date (tickler functionality)
2. Landscape view for easier input
3. Desktop application with sync

With these three additions, going from paper to digital is a no brainer. Right now, I am still deciding which one is most effective.

By the way, I have and extensively use Listomni for groceries, errands, and routines. It is an excellent tool for these kinds of lists.

However, for AF it just doesn't cut it. I find that typepad is much more suited for AF as it was designed specifically for it.

Keep up the hardwork, Tony. I would love to be part of the future betas.

One last thing...well maybe last. For the date of completion I can only see the month which isn't very useful. For example, today underneath the checkmark is "10/..." That is it. Does anyone else have this problem.

Perhaps this is an American or Latvian problem (with the Latvian settings I get a 09/...for the year) Perhaps in England the date starts with the day.

>>> There's a big difference between sneering at and berating a hard working developer with a long litany of complaints, <<<

Well, I don't know if it is a litany, but it is certainly a long LIST. And that is because there are that many things wrong with this thing.

>>> and making a constructive suggestion about the app icon. <<<

Hey, you don't like his icon, I do. Big deal. Why are you criticizing him? LOL ;-)

>>> Using phrases like "an app that has no discernible function of any kind" doesn't show that you have any respect for Tony and the work he has put into this app. <<<

Mmmm, have I wandered into a "Tony fan club"? Who is Tony and why would I care? Someone produced a product which I bought so I feel free to criticize the product to my hearts content. The fee I paid for the product certianly gives me that right. As to Tony, I never met him so I can scarcely comment on him as a person. As to the application itself ... it is pretty silly. I was a professional software and systems developer for over 30 years so I know whereof I speak. Applications live or die by the standards used to create them.

There are many thousands of apps for the iPhone. It seems as if many thousands of people have ideas about what would make great iPhone applications. MOST of them are crazy. How many alarm clocks are out there? How many night lights? How many To Do list programs? Very few are useful or well done. That's life in the software biz ;-)

>>> By the way, I have and extensively use Listomni for groceries, errands, and routines. It is an excellent tool for these kinds of lists.

However, for AF it just doesn't cut it. I find that typepad is much more suited for AF as it was designed specifically for it. <<<

Hmmm... Typepad seems to be some kind of blogging application.

This is another one of those "different strokes" things, I guess. Mel got me to spring for ListOmni and while it is not perfect (what is?) it is very capable. With ListOmni I can:

- Write a list that mirrors a paper notebook
- Add items
- Mark items done and they either show as crossed out or vanish entirely
- Copy items to the end of the list
- Move or copy items between lists
- Add some tags to allow filtering
- Assign due dates
- Assign a priority
- Assign flags
- Do rudimentary project management measurements
- etc.

Much of this is over and above the needs of AF4. AF4 only requires a pair of ordered lists with the ability to mark, add and delete items. The basic "note" application of the iPhone will do much of that. I believe that if I wanted only a note pad, I could use the basic free iPhone app. to cobble a system together. I don't because I want more. ListOmni does that plus allows all of those other bells and whistles which people may or may not find useful. I hear that many people love OmniFocus for this use as well. I did not go that way because it seemed to be very much more GTD oriented than ListOmni.

If someone wants to write a new AF4 application, they would do well to study what Andreas has done. He knocks out those things overnight, so far as I can tell ;-) Now if HE wrote one for the iPhone, I'm sure it would not only be functional, but be well designed and slick as well.

Hi everybody. I think I can shed some light on this.

First, Tony developed FocusPad BEFORE Mark came out with AF4. It was really designed to work with AF3, but when Mark changed the rules, Tony realized that adding a line task would make it feasible for use with the current version. Mike, it isn't fair to suggest that the software have every bell and whistle before release when I haven't seen one app adhere to that standard. In fact, many I've purchased have been absolutely unusable! Not even Listomni has sync and that was promised for this summer. FocusPad is not a Toodledo or an OmniFocus, but it does have features that neither of these offer (swipe through pages and copy tasks to the end automatically).

Second, I think because those of us have had constant discussions with Tony, it's obvious to us how to use the software. Mike is pointing out, legitimately, that its use isn't obvious to those who haven't been beta testing. I know Tony will take steps to correct that. If I'm a member of the Tony fan club ;-), it's because I have been so impressed by his responsiveness to us as beta testers. I've used so many iPhone apps and have read forums galore for them and most developers spend their time telling you why they are NOT going to give their users a certain functionality. That isn't true of Tony. I have every confidence that he will respond to his new users in the same fashion as he did to his beta testers: he'll give them what they want.

Third, Tony developed this software to be usable for other TM methods. It's not AF only and this is so he can have a wider customer base. However, he is catering to AFers primarily and as such, will listen to their requests in particular.

Fourth, the ability to hide pages manually rather than have them automatically disappear was something that was explored in beta testing. We decided that it was better not to have them automatically disappear and not be retrievable for review purposes. Remember that the software was developed for AF3. I imagine that the option to have them automatically disappear could be given to users.

Mike, I did start with a fresh list to use the software. You are right that it's very difficult to add all your tasks from another app. I would recommend that you continue using Listomni, but double-add new tasks as they occur to you just to give FocusPad a fair shot. If you still don't like it, I'll send you .99 because you bought it on my recommendation. LOL

Finally, I hope that everyone who has the app will join the Google users group and will talk with Tony. I have every confidence that you'll be members of his fan club, too, even if you find that another app works better for you.

Hi Mel,

>>> First, Tony developed FocusPad BEFORE Mark came out with AF4. It was really designed to work with AF3, but when Mark changed the rules, Tony realized that adding a line task would make it feasible for use with the current version. <<<

Not so much a problem, really. You have to do that kind of thing in most existing apps to use them for AF4.

>>> Mike, it isn't fair to suggest that the software have every bell and whistle before release when I haven't seen one app adhere to that standard. <<<

Not every bell and whistle, but maybe just a little squeaky toy or something! ;-)

>> In fact, many I've purchased have been absolutely unusable!

I can't argue with that.

>>> Not even Listomni has sync and that was promised for this summer. <<<

No, but it does have a way to backup your data via email, and it does have a way to import and export data via Google Docs. Not elegant and not really ready for prime time, but still it allowed me to import my data from another app to test ListOmni and convince myself that it would be a viable option.

>>> FocusPad is not a Toodledo or an OmniFocus, but it does have features that neither of these offer (swipe through pages and copy tasks to the end automatically). <<<

But ListOmni lets you swipe. Though it does not automatically add the task to the end, it is not really hard to do it manually ... at least in my implementation.

>>> Second, I think because those of us have had constant discussions with Tony, it's obvious to us how to use the software. Mike is pointing out, legitimately, that its use isn't obvious to those who haven't been beta testing. I know Tony will take steps to correct that. If I'm a member of the Tony fan club ;-), it's because I have been so impressed by his responsiveness to us as beta testers. I've used so many iPhone apps and have read forums galore for them and most developers spend their time telling you why they are NOT going to give their users a certain functionality. That isn't true of Tony. I have every confidence that he will respond to his new users in the same fashion as he did to his beta testers: he'll give them what they want. <<<

If that is true, then maybe there are good things in the future for this. And that is why I titled my review "Looking Forward". What I find intolerable is the attitude of the "professional victims": "If you don't like the app, you are a bigot who hates the designer." That is just silly and should be pretty much beneath any reasonable person. I'll tolerate someone refering to my comments as "whining", that's a cheap, but fair, shot ... but not the comment about lacking respect for Tony.

As I said, I was a professional software developer and so I know what standards should be used and releasing an application with not a word of explanation or documentation or even labels for icons is pretty much outside of even the fringe for these things. And knowing to go to the settings "app" to change the way it works is an example of the kind of insider information that should not be counted on to make it usable for someone who is not familiar with how iPhone stuff works. It was like in the days of Windows 98 when I'd tell someone to make a modification to the .INI file. How would the end user know about a .INI file and why should they have to in order to have an application work? That is precisely why Windows (and all things Microsoft, for that matter) have such a horrible reputation.

>>> Third, Tony developed this software to be usable for other TM methods. It's not AF only and this is so he can have a wider customer base. However, he is catering to AFers primarily and as such, will listen to their requests in particular. <<<

Makes good sense. But then where are contexts for the GtDers, Quadrants for the Coveyers, and Priority for everyone else? When I see a new application of ANY kind, the first question I ask myself is: "Why was this written? What does it intend to offer that no other application does?" I can't answer that question for this application. In my view it is a note pad with a spiffy way to add a line, color code the line, and do a delete/copy in one operation. None of that is useful in and of itself.

>>> Fourth, the ability to hide pages manually rather than have them automatically disappear was something that was explored in beta testing. We decided that it was better not to have them automatically disappear and not be retrievable for review purposes. Remember that the software was developed for AF3. I imagine that the option to have them automatically disappear could be given to users. <<<

O.K. But now that we are on AF4, it ought to be that the line disappears not the page. Pages are irrelevant now. If he wants to be all things to all people, then I suppose he needs to put in "mode controls". You know, like ListOmni has a GtD or Covey or Toodledo mode. He might want to do something like that for AF1, AF2, AF3, AF4 ... though I'd not go down that road, myself. Trying to be all things to all people often results in being nothing to anyone.

>>> Mike, I did start with a fresh list to use the software. You are right that it's very difficult to add all your tasks from another app. I would recommend that you continue using Listomni, but double-add new tasks as they occur to you just to give FocusPad a fair shot. If you still don't like it, I'll send you .99 because you bought it on my recommendation. LOL >>>

LOL ;-) No, I'll eat the $0.99. Hell, from what I understand the developer gets less than $0.70 for his work. Sad.

As to double entry, I thought of that but it won't work for AF4. I'd have to add tasks to a new open list and not process anything until that open list became the closed list ... and even then I'd have to enter previous open list tasks in bulk to get to where I stand today. My head hurts just thinking about it ;-)

Given that I have no clue how it works or how to use it, I can't see adding tasks in bulk just to do it.

>>> Finally, I hope that everyone who has the app will join the Google users group and will talk with Tony. I have every confidence that you'll be members of his fan club, too, even if you find that another app works better for you. <<<

Again, the "fan club" comment was directed more to the person who took a swipe at me for denigrating him as a person when I pointed out the deficiencies in a piece of software. I'm sure he is a fine person who loves cats and strawberry ice cream ;-)

Why not post the link to the Google group?

I haven't even used the App and have no idea who Tony is, so I'm clearly not a member of the "Tony fanclub", but I have to say: Mike your acting like an ass. There is a much more polite way to criticize someone's work. You really should examine the tone of your writing.

Well said.

Well, I'm so happy to see a contingent of the club respond in such a classy way.

Thinking about this for three more minutes, I will leave this topic for the fan club. There can obviously be no useful conversation about this here. Who ever these people are and whatever interest they might have in promoting useless software ... I don't see any point in my feeding the trolls.

Mel: If you have any useful info for me on this, please contact me off-list. I'll ignore the crowd promoting on this thread.

Mike, perhaps you should take the blinders off for a moment and examine your own behavior. The first time I heard of this app was by visiting this forum this morning, so I am not a paid up member of the "Tony fan-club", as you put it. I downloaded it and was impressed by how well-suited it was to AF. Lo and behold, when I revisited this forum, there was your boorish, arrogant rant against the app and its developer. I was so aghast I felt prompted to defend both the app and its developer.

In future, I will certainly remember to skip any of your posts.

As for your "troll" comment, I have three words for you: "Pot. Kettle. Black."

Day 2 and finding this app just perfect.

I've used a number of other apps over the past 6 months (Toodledo, RTM etc) for AF and this is by far the most effective. One of the most useful features is turning out to be the complete and copy to the bottom of the list functionality - very useful.

Have to be honest that I'm a little bemused about Mike's posts. Maybe he's just having a bad day (or two) :)

Martin

Interesting trip to the bottom of this post! Anyway, I feel I must weigh in. This app is absolutely wonderful for AF. I was using AF since February and I was a beta tester for this app since some time in August and I've been using it effortlessly right from the moment I started testing it. I have considered fooling around with other to do lists, but this, to me, is so harmonious with the philosophy of autofocus, there's no need to look elsewhere.
I think the tricky part here is just that it is so well suited for Autofocus. Putting myself in the shoes of the new user, I'm reminded a little bit of some of the criticism of autofocus by those who haven't taken the time to learn it or even try it. Perhaps there is a bit of a learning curve to this app, to be sure, but it is surely worth the effort, especially if you are already familiar with autofocus. If you don't know autofocus, learn that first, and you will be amazed at what this little app can do. I'm sure there are some new and amazing developments down the road. As has been said before, Tony has been great to work with in that way.

Another suggestion: A back button would be nice. I regularly jump from a newly completed task to the created copy on the last page in order to edit it. A back button would give you the possibility of going back to where you started in the tasks instead of having to flip back through the pages from the end of the list.

I second this suggestion, combined with my first suggestion: a way to remember the active task, with a quick access to it AND a Time counter (tracking elapsed Time, up to a change of status, ie non longer active).

Added to several pads (for différent locations) and tickling feature (hide a task and inject it at the end of the list after a defined duration), we'll get a totally compliant tool to AutoFocus (whatever version: wiht hyphen line, it is easy to circle through our closed lists).

One more word: I do agree that a to be included tutoriel/helpfile/supports doc Will ne usefull for new users. I also don't understand Mike's misbehavior and hope him better coming days (I'm IS project director, and clearly always ask m'y collaborators to define simple solutions, rather than tools which could everything, but painful as a normal user!).

Thanks.

Thanks Tony for such a useful app! I read your website instructions and played about with a few trial tasks and easily worked out how to use FocusPad. I think it's wonderful for AF, much easier to input and edit tasks than the Appigo ToDo app I've been using. The suggestions already made for tickler functionality for future due dates, and the option for one or two more lists for separate locations would make it the perfect TM app for me! ps thanks to you beta testers too as it sounds as though your feedback has helped contributed to the outcome.

Wow, glad to see so much interest in the app! Thanks for all the kind words.

Let's see if I can answer all questions and address any concerns in one mega-reply...

* There are no "trolls" here. Mel, Jo, and Paul were beta testers, and everyone else is a genuine new user.

* I plan on supporting landscape mode in the next release. I will strongly consider adding ticklers, a back button, and the ability to use multiple pads, as all of these features make good sense. No matter what, the app will always remain simple and clean.

* I am working on a web-version of the application and the iPhone version will sync with it. This will make it much easier to move data from an existing application into FocusPad.

* I was inspired to make the app page-centric by the original version of AF. And I have found that browsing my task list by pages is faster and more productive than reviewing one long scrolling list. When I have one incomplete task left on a page, it really motivates me to get that task done so I can delete the page as my reward! The current version of AF is no longer page-centric, but I still find pages useful myself.

* You can delete a task after you complete it, and all the tasks will "move up" so all your pages remain full.

* I will create a simple, basic tutorial on using the app as soon as I can. On the other hand, I am hesitant to make an AF-focused tutorial, since everyone will have a slightly different take on how to do so, and I don't want to push one particular method. But I welcome feedback here.

..tony..

Pascal,

Can you explain more to me about how a timer would work?

..tony..

Hi Tony

thé idea of a timer is thé following:
. Assume I want to work on a task: by clicking a button (l'île done or Color choice), thé task become active and therefore thé timer is started for that task (eg start date/hour)
. Then several cases:
1. I click on Done or Done/readd at thé end of thé list; thé active task is now closed and with thé end date/hour it is easy to calculate duration
2. I click on another task; then this new task is activate, saying thé old one is nô longer active; by recording thé date/hour we cancalculate thé duration (in that case this task could be reactvate later, which means we havé to record several work slots for not AF users; for m'y need, it could be easier and sufficient to record only one slot or duration as a sum)
3. At any moment from anywhere, by clicking on ad'hoc button, I'm able to be back on thé task (meaning on thé contenting page)

That thé way i'll see that feature useful (obviously, we need a way to retrieve thé recorded durations).
And I'd like this in keeping this very simple and efficient layout of your tool's screen.

Hope I was clear :)
let me know.

And again: your tool is well born; go on this good job!

Pascal

Wow, sorry for the accents and strange words, I'm keying on a French iPhone (I mean used in France with french dictionnary and automated correction). My apologies, hope it is readable.

Pascal,

Thanks for explaining this to me. I do not have plans to implement a task timer, but I will keep it in mind for a future release if there is sufficient demand. If I ever did it, it would be as simple as possible and would be unobtrusive for folks not using it.

..tony..

Hope there'll be a lot of votes for it, therefore
:)

I'm afraid some of the problem with Mike's reaction to FocusPad is my fault. I had recommended Listomni to him and later said that I thought FocusPad was better for AF. I still feel this way, but there is really no comparing these two apps. Listomni is certainly not in its first release and it has lots of features and functionality that has nothing to do with AF.

The other issue imo is that Mike is a new iPhone owner and I am a long-time user. I downloaded some of the first apps from the store and saw how bare-bones first releases can really be. I spent $12.99 on Pocket Informant when released only to find that it was completely nonfunctional for me for months! My personality and my experience (I am NOT a programmer) is such that I'm pretty patient with these things. I also found that my patience grew as I got to know the developers. For example, I read everything the developer of PI wrote and found out how stressed he was and what went into his thinking. Because I got to know Tony and the thinking behind his app, I found it to be a superb version 1 app for AF.

Enter Mike whose primary experience has been with well-developed apps like Listomni and who has no knowledge of Tony or even how to use FocusPad. His "review" of the app could seem harsh, especially when one considers how it might make the developer feel, but I'm sure Tony would rather hear it from Mike here than in reviews. I do not believe that Mike intended his comments to be construed as a personal attack. I think very highly of both Tony and Mike and wouldn't be surprised if at some point Mike joined the FocusPad fan club ;-).

I think it's unfortunate that Mike has now written a one-star review of the app in the App Store. To me, it's hard to see how anyone with any familiarity with AF could not appreciate the simple utility of this app or how well it mirrors the AF processes as outlined by Mark.

Trevor

I agree. The more non-core functionality an app starts to offer, the more inclined I am to run back towards a paper based solution (which is not ideal hence my continual flirtation with electronic solutions). I'd almost prefer not to have functions such as the timer included simply because I don't see them as being core to the AF system. This particular one would probably end up being a distraction for me as I could see myself starting to focus more on the time taken for a particular task rather than its actual essence. And, strange as it sounds, it's not always easy to ignore these extra functions... Anyway, that's just my take on it - others may clearly find a timer very useful.

Nevertheless, I think Tony has clearly got to think very carefully about what functionality he does end up adding. I really don't see that this app is intended to rival some of the more complex ones such as RTM, Listomni, ToDo etc. It's a niche solution that sets out to replicate the AF experience as closely as possible, something which I think it currently does excellently.

Finally, I think that Mike has been an incredibly valued member of this forum whose contributions around the whole AF experience have invariably been highly observant. Mike - if you're still reading this thread :) I think that it would be a very positive gesture to withdraw your review and suspend judgement for at least a week before resubmitting.

Martin

Nice post, Martin; considered and thoughtful.

Like you, I've tried using more feature laden apps to implement AF, with limited success. FocusPad absolutely nails the AF process without any unnecessary overhead. Again, a big thanks to Tony for developing this. What a breath of fresh air.

I plan on being very choosy when it comes to adding features. And I promise that the app will remain simple and free of distractions now and in the future.

I will be focusing on landscape mode and web sync first, since these are clear gaps in the feature set that need addressing. After this, I will consider some of the more common requests, like multiple pads, a back button, and ticklers.

..tony..

Tony
I bought your app and I am really liking it.
I find the ability to add a duplicate after marking it done really good.
I was apprehensive because the beta didn't install (and I couldn't sign up to your group),but heck,for the price I'm not complaining!
Four suggestions though:
1.Could you add the ability to drag around the tasks to change the order via an edit button.Would help to drag the "line" that marks the end of the closed list.
2.The trash can button is very close to the "expand" right arrow and I accidentally deleted a task.Could you add an "undo" or move the trash button?
3.Enable email and calls from within the app
4.Enable any form of backup just for peace of mind

Apart form these,Im loving the simplicity and the fact that It works for autofocus straight away.
Thank you
Jay

Jay, if you give your iPhone a quick shake it will bring up an "undo" dialog, in case you accidentally delete an item.

Tony, great to hear that your prime focus will be on keeping the app as simple as possible. As it stands, it just fits the AF methodology so well. Having said that, there's one thing I'd like to add to your list of future features: a search option. Sometimes my intuition tells me that a particular task needs doing NOW, and being able to jump instantly to that task would be handy. It would also be helpful for adding a new bit of info to the note section of a particular item.

Keep up the great work - it is much appreciated.

It would be a good idea for those of us that have tried and really enjoy this app to give it a good review in Itunes. This could both encourage others to try the Focuspad out and become familiar with Autofocus.

Seconded. I have already done so.

By the way, I just wrote a review on Itunes; however, I can't see it. Can someone take a look and see if a review from Jonlatt is there? If somehow I deleted it I will need to write a new one. Thanks!