Test build of Tasks with custom status support - for testing and feedback

[claremacrae]

Hi @siddhantac and anyone else who is interested.

FYI I have a build which is pretty close to the final release.

---

Update 2023-01-16: Below are links to a new build, Build 2

• Much better status editing experience and error-checking
• Added 5 status types: TODO, IN_PROGRESS, DONE, CANCELLED, NON_TASK
• Changed how done and not done work, to give logical behaviour for the above types

---

Getting the builds

Build 1: https://github.com/obsidian-tasks-group/obsidian-tasks/actions/runs/3914021716
Build 2: https://github.com/obsidian-tasks-group/obsidian-tasks/actions/runs/3934459840

You can download the Tasks-Demo... zip file, expand it, and then open the folder in Obsidian.
Or you can get the dist-verified zip file, and overwrite the Tasks plugin files in your vault.

Update:

The files are also attached here, to preserve them after the artefacts are deleted from the action run:

Build 1:

• Tasks-Demo-VerifyCommit-Build2001-Run1.zip
• dist-verified.zip

Build 2:

• Tasks-Demo-VerifyCommit-Build2038-Run1.zip
• dist-verified.zip

Not yet tested - and known limitations

• When you change the status of a task using the Add/edit task modal:
  • It does not update the Done Date
  • If the task is recurring, it does not create the next task
  • So for now you should complete tasks by clicking on them, or running the Tasks command to toggle them.
• Not yet tested the impact of the different current statuses on recurring tasks
  • That is, what the status will be of the the next task instance.

Documentation - Build 1

I need to work on the docs more, including the out-of-date screenshots - and there is no easy way for you to see the docs with all the images added, unfortunately.

So here are PDFs of the current docs:

• Style custom statuses | Obsidian Tasks.pdf
• Set up custom statuses | Obsidian Tasks.pdf
• Statuses | Obsidian Tasks.pdf
• Filters | Obsidian Tasks.pdf

Documentation - Build 2

GitHub view of the docs. Links to other pages won't work, but the images will be fine...

• Style custom statases
• Set up custom statuses
• Statuses
• Filters

What's still planned

I've got a Project: Custom Statuses for Tasks Plugin Dashboard

Please review it before giving any feedback, to save your time...

In particular, note the 'Features - Later release' column. There is a lot of obvious functionality still to do. But I think it's close to the stage where it will be useful for a lot of people.

Feedback here please

Any comments or questions, please pop them here. Many thanks!

[ScottKillen]

Thanks to all for the work here--I never realized the size of this task!

[claremacrae]

I think I've found a bug.
It looks I may have accidentally changed the meaning of not done.
It used to match tasks like this:
- [!] important thing
And now I think that task does not match not done.
Am doing more testing.

(I had intended the behaviour to be unchanged...)

[claremacrae]

Now I understand my confusion.

• In Obsidian Tasks 1.22.0 and the latest code on main, not done only matches - [ ]
  • That behaviour has not changed
• In my own fork, I have been running for about 6 weeks with my own earlier implementation of custom statuses. This evening I switched my main vault from that fork to this test build - and I had forgotten that I had allowed the code to control which custom statuses count as DONE and which TODO:

        // To do - alphabetical by displayName
        new TaskState('d', Status.TODO, 'Doing'),
        new TaskState('/', Status.TODO, 'Half Done'),
        new TaskState('>', Status.TODO, 'Forwarded'), // Forward
        new TaskState('!', Status.TODO, 'Important'),
        new TaskState(' ', Status.TODO, 'Unchecked'),

        // Done - alphabetical by displayName
        new TaskState('-', Status.DONE, 'Cancelled'), // Dropped
        new TaskState('X', Status.DONE, 'Checked'),
        new TaskState('x', Status.DONE, 'Regular'),

So the change in behaviour is that ! counted as TODO in my fork, and DONE in the latest Tasks build.

[sytone]

Ill pull the build and try it out over the weekend.

[claremacrae]

From this Discord post - lightly formatted:

just downloaded and tried. like this.

i think it would be useful to have an option to define done either the new or old way. it allows a user to try this without changing templates. and if they like, great, and if they don't they can just switch the option off.

otherwise you have to change templates for the new way (use status.name does not include done) and then switch back (not done).

Since a user would not have been using the alternative statuses, any existing queries which were not done would not have alternative statuses and so will still give the expected result.

[claremacrae]

My reply on Discord:

Thank you for a very insightful comment!!

I will definitely think about adding control over this. I like the idea of not requiring users to update all their queries (and I had not thought about templates too) in order to try this new feature out...

Since a user would not have been using the alternative statuses, any existing queries which were not done would not have alternative statuses and so will still give the expected result.

I'm unsure about that, since quite a lot of people are already using various custom CSS snippets or themes, based on the number of requests received for this feature.

[claremacrae]

This feedback resulted in a new Status Type facility, and changed the way that backwards compatibility of statuses searches behaved.

[siddhantac]

Thank you so much @claremacrae . Work commitments are keeping me busy at the moment, but I will try out the test version as soon as possible. Thanks again for taking up this project so promptly!

[ycbrd]

Thank you so much for your work. I can't wait to have a try.

[pcause]

just tried the capability. i also installed task collector. I re3gistered the right clicks inn task collector. I have a tasks query that shows "status.name does not include done". in the results shown using live preview mode, when I right click to set a '/' status, nothing happens. IThe "/" status is not set. If I open the tasks model I can use the drop down and set to "/".

[claremacrae]

@siddhantac Have a look at the settings, for the names of the statuses.
If you're using the built-in IN_PROGRESS then:

• The Status Type is IN_PROGRESS (not yet directly searchable)
• The status.name is 'In Progress'.

So try status.name includes in progress.

I can see I will have to explain this in the docs. Thank you for the feedback.

[siddhantac]

Thank you, that worked. I was trying status.name includes "in progress". The C programmer in me wanted to wrap the string in double-quotes 😄

[pcause]

clare i wonder if the problem i am having with TC is that for the query results in live preview the only part of the todo that is editable" is the checkbox. does the tasks plugin catch that and then take action on the real/original todo? could that be the issue, that they try to change that checkbox but it isn't the "real" todo.

[claremacrae]

Hi @pcause - sorry but without the info I requested in #1530 (reply in thread) there isn't anything useful that I have the knowledge or capacity to do right now...

If you have shown to yourself that it is a change in the behaviour between Tasks 1.22.0 and this test build, then please create a Tasks bug report with full steps to reproduce - and so that we can track it and investigate. (Do not assume any knowledge of Tasks Collector)

If, as I suspect, the behaviour is unchanged since Tasks 1.22.0, then please log an issue with Tasks Collector- feel free to CC me on that ticket.

Thanks in advance.

[claremacrae]

Thank you, that worked. I was trying status.name includes "in progress". The C programmer in me wanted to wrap the string in double-quotes 😄

@siddhantac Thanks to your feedback, I reworked the 'status.type' instruction, and converted its error message to something rather more helpful, built in to the code:

[claremacrae]

Hi all, I've updated the first post here with links to a second build, and updated documentation - and a brief list of the main changes.

The main blocker to the first release is now making the docs good enough.

[macbikegeek]

Thanks for all of this!!

I just reviewed the docs. They look great. A couple of comments:

• The styling document references SirVB's custom snippet while the set up document references the Minimal and ITS theme statuses. It would be nice if both documents referenced all three. And if there is a CSS snippet from either Minimal or ITS themes, that would be a great callout in the styling document
• I found the comparison chart to the Tasks SQL Powered plugin and associated explanation very confusing. It seems like the custom statuses in the new Tasks release will made the done, not done table entry for Tasks incomplete or wrong. N.B. I'm very confused, so there may be nothing wrong in the table entry.

[claremacrae]

Hi @macbikegeek,

Thanks!

• The styling document references SirVB's custom snippet while the set up document references the Minimal and ITS theme statuses. It would be nice if both documents referenced all three. And if there is a CSS snippet from either Minimal or ITS themes, that would be a great callout in the styling document

Yes, I agree. There's a bunch of work needed there.

• I found the comparison chart to the Tasks SQL Powered plugin and associated explanation very confusing. It seems like the custom statuses in the new Tasks release will made the done, not done table entry for Tasks incomplete or wrong. N.B. I'm very confused, so there may be nothing wrong in the table entry.

I wonder if you were reading the PDF?

The build-2 version has the Tasks SQL Powered comparison table dropped, so I didn't have to update it - and because the backwards compatibility statement was no longer quite true:

• https://github.com/obsidian-tasks-group/obsidian-tasks/blob/511e49eae07803566434fbed8d5e7255468f75cd/docs/getting-started/statuses.md#credit-sytone-and-the-tasks-sql-powered-plugin

[macbikegeek]

Oops. You're right. I reread all of the build-2 versions except that one for some reason.

[claremacrae]

The styling document references SirVB's custom snippet while the set up document references the Minimal and ITS theme statuses. It would be nice if both documents referenced all three. And if there is a CSS snippet from either Minimal or ITS themes, that would be a great callout in the styling document

I have attempted to do that. I'm pretty tired, so it may not be perfect, but it is an improvement, thanks to your feedback @macbikegeek.

[macbikegeek]

Thanks! Get some rest! 💤

[claremacrae]

Hahah. I feel oddly relaxed now, will do!

[pcause]

I like the change that now makes old task queries work by having the states.; I think the "confusing" part is the difference between state and name especially for done and cancelled. I do understand that as cancelled is different than done but both are "completed" and the old state done should be preserved. But the docs sort of brush past done / not done. I would make a section on done / not done and then a separate section for status names with examples of each plus examples of combining. Also show a multiple names filter that matches 2 statues.

In the filter examples, you have a :

state.name includes unknown

and unknown isn't mentioned anywhere. I assume this matches a character that isn't defined in settings, but neither the statuses or filters docs say what that is.

[claremacrae]

Excellent point. Thank you. Done:

[claremacrae]

A quick note for anyone who has set up custom statuses from test builds 1 or 2.

Apologies but I have changed some names in the settings to hide implementation details. So in the final release if you statuses you created with the test builds, they will look like this - note the undefineds:

I recommend taking a screenshot of your custom statuses now, so that you have a record when you install the released version.

Background: #1558

Apologies for the inconvenience.

[claremacrae]

In further testing, it will now in fact look like this:

So all symbols will be space and all next symbols will be x. It will be possible to edit these values and apply your previous choices.

The original format was:

     {
        "indicator": "!",
        "name": "Imp",
        "nextStatusIndicator": "D",
        "availableAsCommand": false,
        "type": "TODO"
      },

The new format is:

      {
        "symbol": " ",
        "name": "Imp",
        "nextStatusSymbol": "x",
        "availableAsCommand": false,
        "type": "TODO"
      },

So having backed up your original settings you could do a case-sensitive find-and-replace to update your settings before running Obsidian with the final release:

• nextStatusIndicator -> nextStatusSymbol
• indicator -> symbol

Hope this helps!