Guides
Quick add: dates, priorities, tags
A task is one line. Whatever is not the title you write as a token, anywhere in the line:
Cut the hedge fri $family #garden @anna !p1
becomes the task “Cut the hedge” in the family workspace, tagged “garden”, assigned to Anna, priority 1, due on
Friday.
The same quick add works everywhere: in the web app, in tsk add, in the iPhone shortcut, over
MCP and in the subject line of forwarded mail.
The tokens
| Token | Meaning | Examples |
|---|---|---|
$name | workspace, one at most | $family, $company |
#name | tag, as many as you like; must start with a letter, new ones are created | #garden, #client |
@name | assignee, one at most; members of the destination workspace, @me is you | @me, @anna, @anna-meier |
!p0 to !p3 | priority, !p0 is the highest | !p1, !P2 |
| Day | today, tomorrow or the next weekday | today, tomorrow, fri, monday |
| Date | Swiss or ISO notation | 3.10., 3.10.2027, 2027-10-03 |
| Offset | in days, weeks or months | in 3d, in 2w, in 1m |
| Time | hours and minutes | 9:30, 14:00 |
Without $name the task goes to your Inbox, which only you can see.
Dates and times
- Days:
today,tomorrowand the weekdays work in English and German:mon,tue,wed,thu,fri,sat,sun, spelled outmondaytosunday, and the Germanmo,di,fr,morgen,heuteand so on. A weekday means the next one, today included. - Date:
3.10.is the next 3 October. With a year, write3.10.2027or2027-10-03. - Offset:
in 3dis in three days,in 2win two weeks,in 1min a month. Theinis part of it. - Time:
14:00or9:30. A time without a day means today.
Call the dentist tomorrow 9:30
File the tax return 31.3. !p0 $company
Follow up on the quote in 2w #client
Each task takes one priority, one date and one time. A second date stays in the title.
When a word should stay in the title
Because the German weekdays count too, “do the dishes” becomes “the dishes”, due on Thursday
(do is German for Thursday). A leading backslash keeps a word in the title:
\do the dishes
In the same way, write \#garden for a # at the start of a word or \fri for the abbreviation. The
Understood as preview shows you what tasks recognised before you add the task.
Typing #, @, $ or !p opens a menu of suggestions. Esc closes it and keeps your text as
written.
What tasks tells you
- Unknown
$nameor@name: you are not a member of a workspace with that name, or nobody in the destination workspace matches. The word stays in the title and the task goes to your Inbox. Check the name. - Two workspaces or two people: one
$nameand one@nameper task. The task is not added until you remove the second one. #42,$50: a sigil followed by a digit stays text.+wordis not a token.!p4,32.1.,25:00: no priority, no date, no time. The word stays in the title.
Frequently asked questions
How does `tsk` work in the terminal?
tsk is a single program for Linux, macOS and Windows, with no dependencies. Download it, check the checksum and sign in with tsk login and an access token. After that, tsk add 'Send quote $client-a tomorrow !p1' adds a task in one line.
ls, show, edit, mv, done, reopen, rm and restore list, edit, move and complete tasks. tsk add -p '#34' --item 'A' --item 'B' adds several subtasks under #34, tsk mv re-parents them. Every command gives machine-readable output with --json for scripts.
How do I add tasks on my iPhone?
With the “New task” shortcut. Dictate the task with Siri, start the shortcut with the Action Button or take text from the share sheet. The shortcut sends the text through quick add and answers with the number of the new task, for example #128. It needs an access token that may only create tasks.
The web app also runs on the iPhone and can be added to your Home Screen.