![[IMG_1827.jpeg|Nothing is simple]] Nothing is a task manager whose UI is your filesystem. It's great for tech professionals who want an under-engineered solution to their productivity without compromising on core features. ![[Nothing Documentation#Quick Start]] _From the [[Nothing Documentation|documentation]]_ # Nothing is Simple. Nothing is a script that runs quickly and often to automatically manage your to do lists as a file system. Every task is just a file. The title of the file is the task's name and optional metadata. The file's contents are whatever you want. The simplest way to use it is to just make a .txt file for each task. ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 9.38.53 AM.png|All tasks are just files|300]] ## Tasks can be scheduled with specific dates Tasks for today automatically show in the root view. To schedule tasks for later, you can add a simple date in front of the task like `<YYYY-MM-DD>.my task.txt` and it will automatically hide in the `_later` folder until it's time to be shown. `_done` is where you drag your completed tasks. `_nothing` is for extensions and under-the-hood stuff. ![[ezgif-5-eb8045a777-1.gif|Nothing automatically sorts dated tasks into the right place. In this example, one task is in later, but it's for today. The other is in today, but it's scheduled for later.]] ### Optionally add a time with `+HHMM` ![[ezgif-4-a641240a1a.gif|Tasks can also be defined for a time of day]] ## Sync tasks with your existing service You can sync tasks between devices by just keeping your tasks in the cloud storage you're already paying for. Anywhere you've installed Nothing can be its own separate instance. _See [[Nothing - Mobile Recommendations]]_ for apps and shortcuts I recommend. ![[IMG_1816.jpg|Use Nothing anywhere the filesystem exists, even the files app on iPhone|600]] > [!warn] Syncing advice > Sync conflicts can happen when you're editing a file that Nothing hasn't yet transformed. For example, If you edit `today.Get grocieres.txt` before it has been transformed into `YYYY-MM-DD.Get groceries.txt`, you're likely to get a sync conflict. > > You may want to use the [[Nothing - Sync Safe Extension|Sync Safe]] extension to avoid this. ## Any file can be a task Because it doesn't matter what the file is, you can get as creative as you want here. Maybe there's a PDF you need to spend time filling out. Put it in your Nothing directory with a date of next week and nothing will move it to the root. ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.04.34 AM.png|If it's a file, it can be a task|400]] ## Use the apps you already like Because Nothing is app-less, you can use whatever the hell app you want to work on your tasks. This could be macOS Finder, iA Writer, Obsidian, Atom, Sublime Text, etc. ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.10.14 PM.png|Sublime Text|600]] ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.11.03 PM.png|Visual Studio Code|600]] ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.12.21 PM.png|iA Writer|600]] ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.19.07 PM.png|Terminal (vim)|600]] # Human-Readable Dates Instead of hammering out dates like "2024-01-01" you can type simple english like "tomorrow," "tuesday," or "3d" for 3 days from now. [[Nothing - NLP Extension|See the documentation]] to understand what formatting is available. E.g. `1w.Water Garden.txt`. ![[NLP Video to GIF.gif|Easily use shorthand to set a date]] # Projects Sometimes, you need to group a bunch of your tasks together. Nothing makes this incredibly simple. Any folder not beginning with an underscore will automatically be instantiated as its own instance of Nothing. So just create a folder to make a project. ![[ezgif-5-a0ecd7a187.gif]] It really is its own Nothing instance, so anything that works at the root works in a folder and yes, you can create projects inside projects. The folders themselves can also be tasks! ![[IMG_1891.jpeg]] Each folder's contents will be made into a new Nothing instance and the folder itself will operate like a task alongside files at the same level. Because Nothing is designed to be extensible, you can write simple Ruby scripts to add more features. I've included some extensions I wrote and really like. To enable an extension, you can move it out of the `inactive` directory. ![[Screenshot 2024-12-23 at 10.21.34 PM.png|Extensions directory]] Let's talk about those extensions. ![[Nothing Documentation#Extensions]] _See more [[Nothing Documentation#More Extensions|extensions]]_ # Inherently Better Because Nothing is just scripts and your file system, it's simply the inherently better option. - No subscriptions. Free forever. - No lock-in. Stop using Nothing at any time. At the end of the day, it's just files, man! - Unlimited storage/Attachment size - Hackable - Extensible - Supports all file types - Works on all platforms - Synchronizes with the service you're already paying for - As private and offline as you want it to be - Inherently supports any kind of integration you can think of (e.g. Zapier). _[[Nothing Documentation]]_ ![[Partials#^eaec46]]