Snowball the Task Manager – User Guide

About

Snowball is a Task Manager which helps to keep track of all the things you have to do. Snowball communicates using a chat interface, so all you have to do is to type in your commands, and Snowball will handle the rest!

Hello! My name is Snowball. I’m here to help you organise your tasks!

Features

Basic Search Function

Ever had trouble trying to scan through a long list of tasks to find the one that you were looking for? Snowball eliminates this problem by looking up tasks for you. Simply use the find command to search for any part of the task’s details that is visible when tasks are displayed.

Different Types of Tasks

Snowball organises three types of tasks: To-Dos, Deadlines, and Events.

1. To-Do

   A To-Do is a generic task that consists of a description and completion status.

   To-Dos are denoted by [T] in the displayed task list.

2. Deadline

   A Deadline is similar to a To-Do, but it also contains a due date/time which is displayed along with the Deadline.

   Deadlines are marked with [D] in the task list.

3. Event

   An Event is a task which consists of a description and an event time. It differs from a Deadline in that Deadlines must be completed by a certain time, whereas events happen at their given time.

   Events are denoted by [E] in the task list.

Task Priority Levels

All tasks can be marked with a priority level that is either None, Low, Medium, or High (increasing order of importance). When tasks are displayed, priority levels that are higher than None are also displayed before the task that they are attached to.

Example:

1. [T][-] Say hello to Snowball!
2. [T][-] [Not so important] Bake muffins
3. [D][-] [Quite important] Read lecture notes (by: Thu, 12 Sep 19, 22:00)
4. [D][-] [Important!!] Write presentation script (by: Fri, 13 Sep 19, 14:00)

Usage

Command Format

• Words in UPPER-CASE are the parameters to be supplied by the user.
• Items in [square brackets] are optional.
• Main commands are case insensitive. LIST and liSt will work, but not /AT.
• Parameters must be given in the specified order unless otherwise stated.

Displaying Tasks

list

• Displays the list of tasks that Snowball is currently managing.
• Tasks types and completion status are shown along with the task description and time (if any). Priority levels that are higher than None are also displayed.
• For example: list

  1. [E][+] Project meeting (at: Tue, 10 Sep 19, 12:00)
  2. [D][-] Submit presentation slides (by: Wed, 11 Sep 19, 23:59)
  3. [T][-] Go to sleep

find PHRASE

• Displays all tasks that contain PHRASE in their description, priority level, index number, or time.
• Can be used to search for specific task numbers or priority levels.
• find is case sensitive, i.e. find meeting will not find a task with the description “Meeting with project group”.
• For example: find Sun

  1. [D][-] Read lecture notes (by: Sun, 18 Aug 19, 12:00)
  3. [T][-] Go out on Sunday!

• Example #2: find 1 displays all tasks that contain the number 1. However, it also shows tasks which have the number 1 in their descriptions.

  2. [T][-] Read books
  10. [T][-] Draft interview questions
  22. [D][-] Submit report (by: Mon, 11 Nov 19, 12:00)

• Example #3: find Important! displays all tasks that are marked as Important.

  5. [T][-] [Important!!] Message group about project deadline
  22. [D][-] [Important!!] Submit report (by: Mon, 11 Nov 19, 12:00)
  

Adding New Tasks

todo DESCRIPTION

• Adds a new To-Do task with the given description.
• Example: todo Read textbook

  Got it. I’ve added this task:
  [T][-] Read textbook
  Now you have 5 tasks in the list.

deadline DESCRIPTION /by TIME

• Adds a new Deadline task with the given description and due time.
• TIME must be given in one of the following formats:
  • DOW, DD-MM-YY, hh:mm
  • DD-MM-YYYY hh:mm
  • DDMMYY hhmm
    • Note: no punctuation
  • ISO date time, i.e. YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss
    • Note the ‘T’ between date and time
• If TIME does not match any valid format, the due date and time will be set to the current date and time.
• For example, you could type: deadline Write project completion report /by 200919 1800

  Got it. I’ve added this task:
  [D][-] Write project completion report (by: Fri, 20 Sep 2019, 18:00)
  Now you have 6 tasks in the list.

• Example #2 - Snowball responds with an error message if TIME is not specified: deadline Write project completion report

  Sorry, what’s the deadline for this?

event DESCRIPTION /at TIME

• Adds a new Event task with the given description and event time.
• TIME must be given in one of the following formats:
  • DOW, DD-MM-YY, hh:mm
  • DD-MM-YYYY hh:mm
  • DDMMYY hhmm
    • Note: no punctuation
  • ISO date time, i.e. YYYY-MM-DDThh:mm:ss
    • Note the ‘T’ between date and time
• If TIME does not match any valid format, the event date and time will be set to the current date and time.
• For example: event Internship interview /at 270819 1500

  Got it. I’ve added this task:
  [E][-] Internship interview (at: Tue, 27 Aug 2019, 15:00)
  Now you have 7 tasks in the list.

• Again, an error message is shown if TIME is missing: event Internship

  Sorry, I need to know when your event is!

Completing Tasks

done INDEX

• Marks the task with the given index number as done.
• INDEX should be the list index number of the task with no other symbols or punctuation.
• For example: done 1

  Nice! I’ve marked this task as done:
  [T][+] Make user guide

• Invalid usage for a list with 2 tasks: done 1. or done 5

  Sorry, I couldn’t find the task you requested!

undone INDEX

• Marks the task with the given index number as undone.
• INDEX should be the list index number of the task with no other symbols or punctuation.
• For example: undone 1

  Oh dear. I’ve marked this task as undone:
  [T][-] Make user guide

• Invalid usage for a list with 2 tasks: undone 1. or undone 5

  Sorry, I couldn’t find the task you requested!

Changing Task Priority Levels

priority INDEX PRIORITY-LEVEL

• Changes the priority of the task with the given INDEX to PRIORITY-LEVEL.
• INDEX should be the list index number of the task with no other symbols or punctuation. Same as for the done and undone commands.
• PRIORITY-LEVEL should be one of the following:
  • High priority (Important!!): high
  • Medium priority (Quite important): medium, mid, or quite
  • Low priority (Not so important): low
  • No priority: none or no
• For example: priority 1 high

  Okay! I’ve set this task’s priority to Important!!:
  [T][-] [Important!!] Make user guide

Removing Tasks

delete INDEX

• Deletes the task with the given index number.
• Use with caution: deleted tasks cannot be recovered.
• INDEX should be the list index number of the task with no other symbols or punctuation, as in the done, undone, and priority commands.
• Example usage: delete 1

  Noted. I’ve deleted this task:
  [D][-] Submit presentation slides (by: Wed, 11 Sep 19, 23:59)
  Now you have 6 tasks in the list.

Saying Bye

bye

• Closes the application after displaying a goodbye message from Snowball.
• There should be no text after the command bye.
• Example: bye

  Bye. Hope to see you again soon!

• Invalid example - extra input after the command word: bye bye

  Sorry, did you mean to type another command?

Command Summary

• list - Display all tasks.
• find PHRASE - Display tasks that contain PHRASE.
• todo DESCRIPTION - Add a To-Do with the given description.
• deadline DESCRIPTION /by TIME - Add a Deadline with the given description and due time.
• event DESCRIPTION /at TIME - Add an Event with the given description and event time.
• done INDEX - Mark the task with the given index number as done.
• undone INDEX - Mark the task with the given index number as undone.
• priority INDEX PRIORITY-LEVEL - Mark the given task with the given priority level.
• delete INDEX - Delete the task with the given index number.
• bye - Close the application.