Things 4
Your favorite task manager for Mac, improved
Details
I started this project to learn the new additions Figma had made to their Auto-layout and Design Systems features. To do this, I recreated one of my favorite productivity tools, Things 3, by using Apple's Human Interaction Guidelines (Design System) and made it responsive (Auto-layout).
But once I had done that, I couldn't help but start thinking of ideas I would want in in the next version of Things. This led me down the rabbit hole of researching what people want in the next version of Things.
Role
Product Design (Personal Project)
Team
Solo
Timeline
2022 - 1 month
Goal
1
Look for user feedback on Appstore and Twitter.
2
Understand the problems and requests users had regarding Things.
3
Design these into a concept for the new version: Things 4.
Results
I learned a lot about how to operate Figma, but I also gained insights on how to take user feedback and turn it into product features while still maintaining the simplicity everyone loves and expects from Things.
I shared my project with some of the users on Twitter, and they loved it:
Because why not? For the love of great software and improving my craft.
As a maker of things (pun intended), my role was of a designer. Thinking of what is required, what problems exist in the current product offering and coming up with ingenious designs to solve those.
Take Location for example, giving the ability to add geo-fenced remider trigger is a given, letting them save locations is good, but using “Smart locations”, such as “While driving” is understanding the problem to the core and solving for it.
It started off as a practice in learning Autolayout. I designed this in figma making it 100% responsive using Apple HIG Design system components. But once this goal was fulfilled. I started exploring what I would make different? What capability would I add? How will I make things even more powerful while remaining similarly simple to use.
What process did I follow?
Nothing specific, over the years my process has boiled down to two simple steps.
1. Collect: Problems, ideas, user feedback, internet browsing, inspiration, thoughts.
2. Create: Wireframes, sketchnotes, instant ramen, interfaces, prototypes, visuals.
This runs in a cyclic manner until the result is desirable or I run out of caffeine.
This project is perpetually incomplete. I delibrately skipped out on many things to cut short the scope of this practice project. I did it to learn stuff and enjoy while doing that.
But of course, I am always open to suggestions, ideas and collaborations. If you feel this is something you like/want to do along with me. Get in touch.
