Building for myself (Timeless Update)
TL; DR I will use FileMaker to create a project for myself, with a tagging system, floating windows, scripts, and keyboard shortcuts to make the project simpler to use.
FileMaker can be so much fun
When I began this project, I thought I might use Timeless as an opportunity to construct new strong systems in FileMaker. After all, I mainly work in FileMaker for other people, many of whom require some rules to be put in place for their workflow.
However, after working on this project for a few hours, I’m now headed in another direction. Building in FileMaker only for myself.
FileMaker can be so enjoyable to use when you are familiar with it. If I’m the only one using this app, do I require robust error handling? Do I need a complex navigation system? Do I even need navigation at all?
I can’t say at the moment what the future of Timeless will be, but for today I’m building it just for myself. Everything I did today was in line with this. Simply completing my tasks in a state of flow with one thought in the back of my mind: It only needs to work for me.
Tagging
I implemented a tagging system for activities. Every activity can be assigned one or multiple tags. I can use the tags to categorize activities based on similarities or types of tasks. I can use this data in the future to create reports. For instance:
- How many hours did I log for all WordPress projects in the first quarter of this year?
- How many hours did I log for Client A’s tasks in all categories in 2023?
I created a “Manage Tags” list view to quickly add or edit tags. I added an archive field to exclude tags from the value list while configuring activities.
The tagging schema consists of two tables: TL_TAG (to store the tag names) and TL_ACTIVITY_TAGGING (a join table between Activity and Tag). As my list of tags does not change often, I have not spent a lot of time on the UI.
I added a portal to the join table and a value list. This is not a good user interface, so I will not dedicate much time to it. My intention is to build a tagging user interface in a web viewer in the future.
Manage Activity
I created a floating window for creating and managing activity records. I rarely edit activities other than rearranging them on the workbench, so I did not invest much time in this task.
Making it quick to use
I added scripts and keyboard shortcuts for common actions. I used the default script shortcut keys (command + 1 to 9) for certain scripts.
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| command + 1 | Find focused activities |
| command + 2 | Find background activities |
| command + 3 | Find archived activities |
I created a Timeless menu to assign keyboard shortcuts to several scripts.
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| command + shift + , | Back one day |
| command + shift + . | Foward one day |
| command + option + a | Manage Activity |
| command + option + t | Manage Tags |
I also plan to add keyboard shortcuts to the Timeless buttons, but I will do this later.
Summary
I’ve been using FileMaker since 2011, and the two hours I spent today reminded me why I love it so much. I’ve come to realize that I don’t need to spend so much time building and maintaining overly complex systems when I can use FileMaker as a power-user to achieve the same results with far less time and effort.
You can follow the Timeless project from the top-level page in Notion.