Tasks and projects

Tasks add completion and scheduling to the same material you use on the canvas. Projects give a group of nodes its own named canvas. You can build a project first, or turn an existing branch into one when it needs a separate place.

For example, keep “Prepare the workshop” as a task, add subtasks for the handout and slides, then put the supporting research in a project with its own canvas.

Create and complete a task#

Use Create a task… in the Tasks view of the list panel, choose Create task on empty canvas, or switch the canvas toolbar to New nodes are tasks before creating there. To convert an existing node, use Task in its context menu; the node then appears in the Tasks list and stays on its canvas. The same action turns an existing task back into a note.

The task’s completion control appears beside the title in both its compact list editor and full canvas editor. It is labelled Complete task or Mark task incomplete. Click it to toggle completion. You can also use the task list’s circle or the node menu’s Complete and Uncomplete actions.

A completed subtask remains available to reopen. Its checkbox and crossed-out title show the state.

Set a due date#

Open the task and expand DUE, or right-click the task and choose Due.

1. Use Previous month and Next month to find the month.
2. Choose a day. The picker moves to the time choices.
3. Choose one of the hourly times from 8:00 AM through 7:00 PM. Choosing the time applies the due date and closes that picker.

Back to calendar returns from the time choices without finishing. Clear due date removes an existing date and time. Selecting a day alone does not apply a new due date; finish by choosing a time.

The chosen date and time use your device’s local time when you set them. The picker shows the task’s existing value while you choose a replacement.

Break work into subtasks#

Expand SUBTASKS in a task editor, or press Add subtask beside its heading. Type a Subtask title and press Enter. The input stays open, so you can type the next one straight away. Blank titles do nothing. Escape cancels the input without closing the task editor. Leaving the input without pressing Enter does not create a subtask.

Each subtask is a task you can open and complete separately. Click its title to open its editor, or its circle to toggle completion. Open a subtask’s own editor to add another level. Use the section heading to collapse the list again.

To put an existing task under another task, use Make Subtask in its node menu. Type into Filter tasks to narrow the choices, then choose a parent. The current parent is marked and cannot be selected again. The task itself and its descendants are excluded, so you cannot put a task under itself. If there are no candidates, the panel says No other tasks to go under. A filter with no result says No task matches.

On a private canvas, dropping a node inside another node’s visible disc also creates a parent relationship. For task-specific work, Create Subtask and Make Subtask make the intention clearer. See the canvas for drop targets and zones.

Shared tasks#

Shared tasks can have an assignee. Assign appears on eligible shared task menus and opens Assign task. It is absent from private tasks. You need the owner or editor role to change assignment.

Wait for Loading members…, then choose a member. You identifies your own account and a tick marks the current assignee. Choose Unassigned to clear the assignment. The picker closes after a successful change. If loading or saving fails, it shows the error so you can check access and try again.

Tasks assigned to you can appear alongside your private tasks without becoming private copies. Open the shared task to work in its project. See sharing for member controls and shared editing states.

Choose a project#

The project chooser above the Nodes view selects the canvas you are working in. When its default title is hidden, the downward chevron still has the Choose project tooltip.

Open it to see Private projects and Shared with me. Each private row has a count; shared rows also show your role. Choose a project to open it. Invitations & shared projects opens the account’s invitation area.

Right-click a project row, hold it on touch, or focus it and press the context-menu key or Shift+F10 to open its actions. This does not first switch into that project.

The note and task list destinations are separate from the canvas project selection. Selecting another project does not mean every note or task list changes destination. See capture and lists for choosing those lists.

Create a project#

Open the project chooser and select Create project. In Local projects, enter a Project name and choose Create. A non-empty name is required. The new project opens after it is created.

The project panel has three views:

Use the icons to switch views. With a view icon focused, left and right arrow move between them. Escape, Close, or a click on the backdrop closes the panel.

Start from an existing branch#

Right-click a private node and choose Make Project. Enter a Project title and choose Make project. This moves that node and its parentage subtree into a newly named project. A node’s existing title does not fill the project name automatically. The action stays disabled until you supply a name.

The operation can refuse a branch that cannot be moved in its current structure. The panel shows the reason. It stays open so you can read the problem. If you are inside a node, leave through the breadcrumb before trying to make a project from it.

For an arbitrary group, select several canvas nodes, return to navigation, then right-click the selection and choose New project from nodes. Enter a name at the prompt. This creates another canvas placement for the selected nodes; their current canvas placements remain.

Rename, download or share#

Open a private project row’s context menu for Rename, Share…, Download and Delete project.

Rename starts with the current name. Edit it and choose Save, or choose Cancel. Whitespace alone is not a valid name. Escape from the rename field returns to the project actions. Duplicate project names are allowed, so choose names you can distinguish.

Share… opens that project’s sharing controls. Download starts the project download. Read import and export before using a download as a transfer file; the app has different import and download formats.

Shared project rows offer Download. A shared owner also has Delete project. Shared project renaming is not offered here.

Delete a project#

Deleting a whole private project also sends its member notes to the trash. It is broader than removing a node’s placement from one canvas.

In the Local projects panel, the trash button asks Delete “…”? Its … notes go to the trash with it. In the project chooser’s context menu, Delete project performs the action directly; its accompanying text states the same consequence. Check which route you are using before choosing it.

A shared project’s owner sees a separate confirmation: Delete shared project “…” for all members? This cannot be undone. See sharing before deleting a project other people use.

If creation, deletion or renaming fails, read the message shown in the project panel or menu. A message such as Sign in again to save project changes. requires signing in again before retrying.