Every few years, this Art Kane image, “Harlem 1958” comes up (Wikipedia), and it always stops me in my tracks, looking at all these great musicians, many of whom were on the cusp of a career that would change the course of music. They are all luminaries, and only one of them is left, Sonny Rollins.
The New York Times did a great job with this interactive web page and it’s worth scrolling through just to learn a little bit of the history. Sonny Rollins looked cool in 1958 and he still looks cool in 2024. My favorite Sonny Rollins song, Strode Rode, where his solo absolutely shreds.
OmniFocus 4.5 With so many great task managers available these days, people sometimes ask me why I’m still using OmniFocus after 15 years. Believe me, I’ve tried them all and OmniFocus remains the best solution for me.
One of the reasons is that The Omni Group never rests. The most recent update to OmniFocus, version 4.5, re-engineered all of the Shortcuts Actions. Because OmniFocus is built using Swift, they were able to add a bunch of new Shortcuts Actions in addition to keeping the old ones for legacy support. (I tried to get a screeenshot of all of available actions, but there were too many. They wouldn’t fit on my 6K monitor.)
Even after all these years, automation is only getting easier with OmniFocus.
I’m not sure there is a humble brag in Mac software better than how Greg Pierce numbers each significant update to Drafts. We just got Drafts 46, where he added the ability to have Drafts narrate your words for you. This is an excellent way to proofread your own work. First, empty your soul into the keyboard for those precious words. Then have Drafts read them back to you while you close your eyes to see if your soul produced anything worth sharing.
If you’re unfamiliar with it, Recall traces your history on your computer, allowing you to find just about anything: Recover deleted files, replay a meeting or even find a now-unpublished web page. With Recall, if it’s been on your screen, you can later find it with the use of some clever AI.
Microsoft’s initial launch was delayed due to security problems, but now they have a revised version in beta. The utility of this feature can’t be argued. While us nerds can do a pretty good job of finding old data, most users are clueless. If you could throw a query at a local AI that could find anything in the computer’s past, it would solve a lot of problems for a lot of people.
The problem, of course, is privacy, but there’s no company better to address that problem than Apple. Through some concoction of encryption and perhaps even the Secure Enclave, Apple should be able to pull this off in a way that is entirely local and entirely private to the user. Of course, you’d be able to turn it off, and of course, there would be a lot of privacy controls. But for most of us, I think it would just be damn useful.
I’m not saying it’s easy, but I firmly believe it’s possible. I’d be shocked if Apple doesn’t have a team looking into this already.
The new year is almost here, and with it comes fresh projects, big ideas, and opportunities to grow. Whether you’re writing your next novel, finishing a research project, planning your business, or journaling life’s moments for your loved ones, having the right tools makes all the difference.
That’s why I’m excited to have WinterFest 2024 as this week’s sponsor. This annual event brings together a curated collection of artisanal software–thoughtfully crafted tools designed to help you think, write, and create more effectively.
WinterFest is a celebration of software artisans–small teams of developers who care deeply about their tools and their customers. These aren’t cookie-cutter apps churned out by big corporations. These are finely honed tools that are constantly updated, well-supported, and built to help you do your best work.
No gimmicks. No bloated bundles. Just great software with a terrific discount for a limited time.
I’ve been using and recommending many of these tools for years. They’re the kinds of apps you rely on every day–apps that spark creativity, improve productivity, and make hard work feel a little easier.
I want to explain a project I’ve been working on all year: An update to the Productivity Field Guide, due for release in January 2025.
I have to admit that it makes me a little nervous. I’m in the process of releasing the new Shortcuts for iPhone & iPad Field Guide (later this month!), and I’ve never released a new edition of an existing guide in just one year. But in the case of the new Productivity Field Guide, I think it is merited.
Having taught the course materials to many people over the past year ranging in age from 15 to 90, I’ve learned much about where the system gets hard for people and where the friction points are. Moreover, I’ve spent a lot of time researching the underlying principles of the system, and I’ve got additional thoughts about it. Perhaps the most crucial reason for the update is the messages and emails I’ve received from people who’ve gone through the course explaining how the ideas in the course changed their lives.
I can tell you that I’m always happy to release a new Field Guide and teach people how to master some element of their technology. This Productivity Field Guide, however, is different. In this course, I’m teaching you how to master your life. And if I’m being honest, at the end of the day, this course is probably where I will make the most significant impact with my life. So I’ve put a lot of wood behind the arrow on this one with this upcoming update.
Again, we’ll be running an extended webinar series. (Last year, it ran for 12 weeks!) There’ll be a lot of new material. But I wanted to give you a heads-up that this is coming down the pipe. The price will go up to reflect all the work I’ve put into this, but there will be a healthy discount for returning customers.
I can tell you my own relationship with productivity-style literature has always been somewhat skeptical. I don’t believe there’s some magic cure that will make you double the amount of your output or suddenly make a million dollars. Indeed, the only reason this guide exists is that I had to answer some tough questions for myself. I do, however, believe that in the modern world, it’s harder than ever to figure out what’s important and find a way to focus on that. We’re all here for just a limited amount of time, and if we’re going to make a dent, we should at least put that dent exactly where we want it. That’s ultimately my goal with this course: to help you figure out those things for which you resoundingly say yes, so that saying no to the other nonsense becomes easy.
Staying on top of your time is crucial–but it’s not always easy. Between juggling client work, creative projects, and the administrative overhead of running a business, time can slip through your fingers. That’s exactly why I’ve been so impressed with Timing. It’s a Mac app that automates time tracking, giving you a clear picture of how you’re actually spending your day.
Traditional time trackers force you to remember to click “start” at the beginning of a task and “stop” when you’re done. Forget to press that button? Your records become a patchwork of guesswork. Timing fixes that. It automatically records how long you spend in each app, document, and website–no manual input is required. The result is a richly detailed timeline of your day, presented in a way that’s intuitive and insightful.
Over time, Timing learns which activities belong to which projects. It uses intelligent rules and machine learning to categorize your work, so you can quickly see how your hours break down by client, project, or activity type. And when it’s time to invoice clients or measure project profitability, Timing’s reports practically build themselves. The app’s built-in reporting tools make it simple to generate clear, professional summaries you can trust.
Timing integrates with your Mac’s workflow without getting in the way. However, it is that you pay for your shoes and whatever apps you’re running, Timing runs quietly in the background, capturing the data you need. The app’s privacy features let you exclude sensitive activities, ensuring you’re only tracking what matters to you.
Timing helps you identify patterns you might never have noticed. Maybe you’re spending more time than you realize on email, or maybe your brainstorming sessions are shorter–but more frequent–than you’d think. Armed with this knowledge, you can make intentional adjustments: block out more time for deep focus, limit unproductive browsing, or optimize your meeting schedule.
If you’ve been frustrated by manual timers or unsure where your day really goes, give Timing a spin. It’s helped me better understand my workflow and given me the data I need to make meaningful improvements. Head over to Timing’s website to learn more, start a free trial, and see how much more productive (and confident) you can be with an accurate view of your time.
Thanks to Timing for sponsoring MacSparky this week!
