What is the function of the clock icon? | Help Center

What is the function of the clock icon?

PRO

Festus 08/26/2014 17:03

Platform:All

Hi,

Firstly all praises due to you guys for making this app. It is slowly changing the quality of my life for the better- especially in a world where android apps seem to be poor relatives of their apple equivalents in design stakes.

I have a few things to ask:

When you open a new task the window features a small clock. I don't understand what it does and would like a clear explanation.

Why is it not possibly to manually reorder my starred list like my next lists?

The same goes for projects on the left of the screen. I'd like to be able physically reorder these but it's not possible. Why?

Best regards

Folke post on 08/26/2014 20:57#1

PRO

@Festus

As for reordering the projects, you can do this :-) First you click PROJECTS in the left menu, and thereby get the full list of projects visible in the main pane, where you are allowed to reorder them. This is how I did it. It is very useful!

As for reordering the "starred" list, I agree with you. A manual reordering capability is probably never more relevant than on that list.

As for the little clock, I think I know the answer, and I agree that your question is very legitimate indeed. I think it is because the Doit team have chosen to regard their GTD lists ("boxes" as they also call them) as differing from each other primarily in terms of Start Time. They actually even use the expression Start Time here and there. This interpretation unfortunately is not a correct interpretation of GTD. The difference (in GTD) is not primarily related to when it will be done but IF and BY WHOM (me or someone else) it will be done and WHETHER OR NOT A SPECIFIC TIME has been agreed/stipulated (usually no specific time is decided in GTD until it is decided dynamically to do it right now).

- Next: Will be done by me personally at a time not yet decided
- Waiting For: Will be done by someone else at a time not yet decided
- Someday/Maybe: Will perhaps need to be done (not even decided if it will be done)
- Calendar: Will be done by me (often together with others) at a specific date/time (e.g. appointments)
- Tickler: Cannot even be analyzed and classified ("processed" in GTD lingo) until a certain future date

(I personally use Doit's Scheduled feature as a Tickler file, and use an external calendar for appointments)
Festus post on 09/10/2014 11:13#2

PRO

Thanks for coming back to me, Folke. I'm not sure sure I followed your last response. Exactly what will happen if I click the clock? What happens in the background?

I get the project reordering thing. Thanks

Are there plans to add this functionality to the starred list??
Folke post on 09/10/2014 13:48#3

PRO

@Festus - nothing will happen if you click the clock icon except you get those choices I mentioned (Next, Waiting etc), i.e. what Doit calls "boxes" or "start time".

These options are not really time related at all, which I tried to explain, which is why the clock icon and the term "Start Time" are both quite inaccurate. For example, the difference between Next and Waiting is not in WHEN the task will be done (both are to be done ASAP) but BY WHOM (me or someone else).