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Adam Betts · Jul 22, 2006, 09:08 AM

Introducing OmniPlan. Our brand new project management application.

Please stay tuned, folks! We’re shooting to release a public beta of OmniPlan next Wednesday, July 26th.

http://blog.omnigroup.com/2006/07/21...nger-a-secret/

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I'm not sure I understand the yellow paper in icon but I'm excited for a decent project management app.

Mithras · Jul 22, 2006, 11:13 AM

I'm looking forward to it as well. I tinkered with Merlin, xTime, and some others, but ultimately decided that project management is more complexity than I need to run my research. Perhaps OmniPlan will make it easy enough to be worthwhile, though.

Art Vandelay · Jul 22, 2006, 02:35 PM

Wow! I'm surprised how long it took them to finally release it. They were working on this at least as far back as summer of 2002.

Adam Betts · Jul 22, 2006, 03:43 PM

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay

Wow! I'm surprised how long it took them to finally release it. They were working on this at least as far back as summer of 2002.

Wow, it better be good

TheIceMan · Jul 22, 2006, 11:45 PM

I'm not a project management app user, but I'm really curious to see what the Omni guys have up their sleeves.

rickey939 · Jul 23, 2006, 10:41 AM

This is going to rock.

gregomni · Jul 24, 2006, 12:42 AM

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay

Wow! I'm surprised how long it took them to finally release it. They were working on this at least as far back as summer of 2002.

It sat for quite a long time untouched before we decided to get serious about turning it into something releasable. . . .

nerd · Jul 24, 2006, 03:06 AM

I'm excited about it as well. I manage a few projects here and there for work and tried MS Project once. I didn't spend more then 15 minutes with it before I decided I'd just use pen and paper.

I'm looking forward to Wednesday.

Brad

quietjim · Jul 24, 2006, 03:44 PM

I used to use Mac Project (on a Mac SE, which shows you how long ago!) and I loved it. What I loved about it was the way you could draw the boxes for different tasks, then fill them out a bit here and a bit there and have everything update, including the critical path. I mostly do relatively small projectes and MacProject was great for that. Hoping this is a clone of that program!

tooki · Jul 24, 2006, 03:56 PM

Well, the automatic updating and adjusting is the entire point of a project management program. They all do that.

I've been disappointed by the PM apps on the Mac; even the ones that work fine are terrible at MS Project import/export. One I tried (I forget which) took 15 minutes to import a 20-item project!!

I'm looking forward to Omni's -- I would not be surprised to see it knock the socks off everything else.

tooki

Landos Mustache · Jul 24, 2006, 04:25 PM

I've never been that keen on Omni apps. Omniweb is nice but i find it rather unstable and the development is a big slow.

Peter · Jul 24, 2006, 05:31 PM

OmniPlan is really cool, I think it'll be the project planning application for OS X.
and the new omniweb has turned into 'the' web browser (for me)

Go Go Omni!

Cadaver · Jul 25, 2006, 12:05 AM

Interesting. Looking forward to see what it can do.

- - e r i k - - · Jul 25, 2006, 12:12 AM

Originally Posted by gregomni

It sat for quite a long time untouched before we decided to get serious about turning it into something releasable. . . .

So... poor project management?

eevyl · 04:04 PM

hate my ISP, conceptual dupe

eevyl · Jul 25, 2006, 09:03 AM

pwned!

Adam Betts · Jul 25, 2006, 11:05 AM

Screenshots released:

http://media.arstechnica.com/journal...sourcemode.jpg
http://media.arstechnica.com/journal.../resources.jpg
http://media.arstechnica.com/journal...a/taskmode.jpg

http://arstechnica.com/journals/appl...2006/7/22/4737

I was expecting for a much more prettier Mac interface but this'll do

Horsepoo!!! · Jul 25, 2006, 11:19 AM

Originally Posted by Adam Betts

I was expecting for a much more prettier Mac interface but this'll do

I agree...the icons are kinda lame.

And it's almost like Omni tried to reproduce the Mail interface...but failed very miserably. Pinstripes on the bar at the bottom of the interface and on top of the +, -, and Action button when the window doesn't have focus? Yeeeesh.

Looks like a nice app but needs a lot of polish.

Peter · Jul 25, 2006, 12:46 PM

we're writing a MacNN preview as we speak... we're hoping to then get it approved so we can release it in the next few hours, no promises. Fingers crossed!

monkeybrain · Jul 25, 2006, 12:58 PM

Originally Posted by Horsepoo!!!

I agree...the icons are kinda lame.

And it's almost like Omni tried to reproduce the Mail interface...but failed very miserably. Pinstripes on the bar at the bottom of the interface and on top of the +, -, and Action button when the window doesn't have focus? Yeeeesh.

Looks like a nice app but needs a lot of polish.

Pinstripes are standard for inactive unified windows. That is the same for any app that uses a unified window, Camino etc. Omni didn't do anything special, they're just using standard unified windows.

Landos Mustache · Jul 25, 2006, 02:19 PM

Ya that interface is rather lame. What is up with everything being so damn small and pin-stripey?

Horsepoo!!! · 10:50 PM

Originally Posted by monkeybrain

Pinstripes are standard for inactive unified windows. That is the same for any app that uses a unified window, Camino etc. Omni didn't do anything special, they're just using standard unified windows.

It certainly isn't the standard for the bar at the bottom of the window. Open up Mail and make the window inactive...you'll notice no pinstripes across the bar down there.

But, whatever, it's not exactly the same type of bar that we see in Mail so I won't be too picky.

...

So...how do all of you like OmniPlan so far...I've only really used MS Project (and hate it so anything is better than Project) but I want to know how it compares to, say, Merlin?

Horsepoo!!! · 10:44 PM

A lot of time and effort went into this app if you ask me. Other than the minor niggling UI issues I mentioned and a few annoyances growing tasks by clicking and dragging the right end of a task and bringing it to the edge of the window, this app is looking pretty good...and it's only a beta of a 1.0 app.

I take back the comment about the polish...the icons need a bit of polish but the interface is pleasant. Things like holding down the option key switches the 'Connection' icon to a 'Disconnect' icon...same with 'Assignment' to remove assignments.

I wouldn't want this app to have everything but the kitchen sink in a 1.0 package. I want all of the current base features to be solid first...then other features can be added.

edit: Merlin 2 looks pretty neat too though.

Nice to see so many interesting project planning apps for OS X.

OreoCookie · Jul 27, 2006, 07:42 AM

Can anyone tell me where I can find the manual (on the website, they said there is something like a mini manual pdf, but I can't find it in the resources).

Gee4orce · Jul 27, 2006, 08:30 AM

The link to the mini manual is right next to the link to download the app

OreoCookie · Jul 27, 2006, 08:39 AM

Ay, caramba.
In German, there's a saying: you can't see the forest since all those trees are blocking your view

Thanks, my bad.

- - e r i k - - · Jul 28, 2006, 01:50 AM

Actually that's a saying in english too.

- also a non-native English speaker

OreoCookie · Jul 28, 2006, 03:12 AM

Originally Posted by - - e r i k - -

Actually that's a saying in english too.

- also a non-native English speaker

Oh, ok, then it's the same one. I was wondering whether to this translation was wishful thinking on my part of genuine English

But thanks

El Gato · Jul 28, 2006, 02:18 PM

I've been using Merlin and, for a version 1, it's nothing short of ass-kickingly great. They have a free demo, so you can try out OmniPlan alongside of Merlin to compare.

My thoughts on OmniPlan after playing around with it for a bit: it still feels a bit clunky (obviously, as a beta) and I'd like to see the UI cleaned up a bit. Using it in a professional setting, where everyone else are on PC's and using MS Project, I don't want to print out Gantt charts and project timelines that look too cartoony in comparison (if that makes sense). For me, Merlin has a much more refined look as opposed to xTime or the current incarnation of OmniPlan.