Hi,
I love the new Now View but think it could also be so much more.
For some time now I have wanted GoodTask to handle time blocking better and when I saw you had introduced a view that split the day out into timed sections I thought it might be able to function as an effective time blocker. In some ways it does. But when I want to order and rearrange the day’s tasks the only way to do so is to go into each task and edit the due date and start date. It would be so much better to be able to just shift the time by dragging dropping tasks onto the timeline to rearrange. Also if the duration changes I need to go back to edit due and start times. A long press to alter duration might work well here.
It would also be great if there were a line, like in the Calendar app, which progresses through the day to show where tasks are in relation to the current time.
Are there any plans to improve and enhance Now View functionality? And in the mean time do you have any suggestions about how I can edit tasks more efficiently, with quick actions, to alter durations and start and due dates and times?
An app like Structured caught my attention some time ago. And while I appreciate you probably wouldn’t be rebuilding your app to totally mimic its core functionality, it serves as a good example of how popular daily visual time planning is.
Thank you for your excellent app and continued hard work developing it.
Andrew
Hi @ajph1970 , thanks for the feedback.
Yes, I have plans to improve Now view. You can freely give suggestions. I'll consider it all. About red time line, Now view keeps current time on top so it may not be need on current form.
Currently using Quick actions by editing it with your needs would be the best way to adjust the tasks.
Thanks!
Hi,
Sorry for the late reply. I am away on holiday and haven’t been able to find time, until this morning, to formulate some ideas about how I would like to see this feature implemented and improved. Please bear in mind I am not a software designer and I realise that the ideas below may be unachievable technically, but I have given this quite a lot of thought, especially concerning how any improvements could fit into the current design ethic of GoodTask, as well as build on the existing Now View.
I had hoped to include some mock-ups of my suggestions. But being away means I have limited access to graphic editing software, so I will attempt to describe my ideas.
Anyway, here goes:
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Tapping into the spaces between current tasks on the Now View screen should create a task with a start and end time placeholder equal to the time gap being tapped into. Which could then be adjusted as per below mechanics.
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A start time should be displayed at the top of each task and an end time at the bottom. Both displayed in slightly larger, and perhaps bolder, text than the task details. These could be offset to the left or right, or even centred. Dragging the top of a task up or down should adjust the start time (maybe in 5 or 10 minute intervals). Dragging the bottom up or down, should do the same with the end time. With both actions updating the times displayed, ideally, in real time.
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Dragging and dropping the task should update both the task’s start and end time, as currently set and maintain the previously set duration and move the task’s position on the timeline.
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The depth of the task displayed can’t be used to represent relative duration of the task because of the variable level of detail of each task (number of sub tasks etc affect how deep a displayed task could be). But the start and end time being prominently displayed should deal with this issue.
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A task’s start time can’t be dragged or set to before the current time displayed at the top of the screen.
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Tasks probably shouldn’t overlap on the Now View timeline as this view is for focussing on work being done Now. But if there is a way of displaying overlapping tasks (perhaps side by side, or tasks with times that fall within the current time being shaded differently to tasks that don’t) then that might also work. They could also be grouped under the heading called Now. Although only one task can be focussed on at a time, see point 8.
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Tapping on a start or end time for a task would also enable manual entry for these times by opening a dialog to directly edit that time.
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A larger, full screen timer and focus window (larger and more prominent than the current next focus window) would open up by long pressing and selecting Focus from the context menu, to show that the user is focussing on the task. This could be a direct link to the next timer window. I would like to see total time spent focussing on a task, until it is marked as complete, recorded somewhere in the reports and task details.
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Focussing on a task planned for later in the day would move that task’s start time to Now but keep the duration of the task the same as previously set. This would also update the position of the task on the timeline.
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Overdue tasks could be treated in the same way as they are currently. Either shown at the top or bottom of the Now View. But could also be chosen to be worked on Now (as in point 9).
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When in other views a context menu item called Now could move the start time of the task to the current time and open up the Now view for the task’s list. There the start and end times could be adjusted and the task focussed on, as above.
I hope the above makes sense and hopefully my plans aren’t too ambitious. Clearly though these are just my own thoughts. Hope you like them.
Regards
Andrew
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Thanks for detail suggestion. I'll read it carefully and will consider it. Thanks!
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Okay. Great. Just a collection of my thoughts, really. As I say it may not work and may not fit with your overall plans for GoodTask. But I still think a quick and easy way for users to time block and hyper schedule in GoodTask would be of huge benefit.
Many thanks for your consideration.
Regards
Andrew