| 1.8 Tasks | ||
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Every single day, we complete various tasks — at work, at home or anywhere else. Those of us equipped with an excellent memory can remember them, others use various tools such as little notepapers and check them off when the items are completed. Task folder play the role of these notepapers in the electronic environment. Advantages of electronic tasks involve especially central storage of all tasks and automatic alerts, informing of upcoming events. Tasks in folders are organized in a table where each line stands for one task including task name and other information available, such as priority level, etc. Task folders are equivalent to other folders. They can be shared, set as public or attached. For more information on shared and public folders, see chapter 1.10 Folder Administration. The tasks folder toolbar contains the following options:
In Kerio WebMail, the tasks are shown in a simple list that contains data such as the name of the task, scheduled deadline and the status of the task (percentage as well as description). By default, up to 20 tasks are listed on one page. To change number of tasks displayed on a single page, use the Settings section in Kerio WebMail (see chapter 1.11.1 User settings). The detailed information on individual tasks is displayed in the columns. The tasks can be sorted by the details listed in individual columns. Click the column heading to sort tasks in the ascending or descending order (see the arrow next to the column name) by alphabet, numbers or time (depending on the column contents). Note: For listing by subject, items are sorted by the alphabet of the language set in Settings as preferred (the General tab) — for details, see chapter 1.11.1 User settings. In result, if for example English is set as preferred and subject are in German, subjects will be ordered by English alphabet and some specific national characters may also cause problems in sorting. Users can customize the appearance of the table and the information shown. The columns can be added or deleted. Right-click the table header and specify the column settings in the Select fields window. The pop-up menu contains the Change columns option. Checked columns will be shown in the dialog box, unchecked columns will be hidden. The width of the task list can be adjusted. To change the column width, click between two columns in the table header and drag the cursor right or left as needed. To create a new task, use the task edit window. To open the dialog, use the New task option available on the toolbar. The edit dialog box includes two tabs where the following parameters can be set: In the General tab, the following task details can be defined:
When a task is created, it can be sent to other people. This feature can be used for several purposes. For example, it might be desired to inform a superior about a task. Use the Co-workers tab in the task's edit dialog box to send the task information to other people (see figure 1.83 Co-workers). The Co-workers allows creating of a list of persons to whom an informative email including the task details will be sent when the task is created. The task is sent when created and then again whenever it is updated by the task owner (the initiator). The message is set so that if the co-worker to whom the task was sent uses Kerio WebMail, the task can be saved in the task folder and send a confirmative/rejection message at once. Co-workers and their addresses can be added to the list by the following methods:
Once addresses are filled in and the task definition is completed, the task can be either saved or sent to co-workers. Co-workers can accept or reject it. Acceptance or rejection status is shown on the Co-workers tab (see figure 1.85 Task acceptance/rejection) Click The dialog where recurrence can be set is opened by the Recurrence icon provided in the upper part of the task edit window.
Private tasks are helpful especially for sharing of folders. If the folder is shared with other users, tasks set as private can be viewed only by the folder's owner. Private tasks can be created as follows:
Warning: Private tasks are treated as private only if the client where private task folders are viewed supports this feature. In other client applications, it is possible to view and edit tasks without any restrictions by users with appropriate access rights. This also implies that information included in private tasks are not well secured. Tasks can be moved or copied between folders as follows: Drag & Drop is a simple method for moving and copying items by using only the mouse:
Note: Unless the task is dragged over a folder where it can be moved (i.e. any task folder with appropriate access rights in the folder tree), a red icon is displayed meaning it is impossible to move the message to the particular location. The Move or copy toolbar button can be used to move or copy the item, as follows:
The pop-up menu can also be used to move or copy tasks:
Kerio WebMail allows forwarding of tasks in such a format so that it is possible to save it to a task folder. Thanks to this feature we can avoid copying of task data to an email message and to a new task edit dialog box on the addressee's side. Kerio WebMail also supports another option. When a message with an task in the attachment is received, the recipient can simply click on the attachment to open the task in the standard task edit dialog box. Click on Save and Close to confirm settings and save the task to the Tasks folder. Note: To save a task or open it as an attachment, right-click on it and use one of the options available, Open or Save. To forward a task, select it by the mouse pointer and click on the Forward button on the task folder's toolbar (it is also possible to use the corresponding option in the pop-up context menu). Select a task and click on a corresponding icon to open a message editor where the task is included as an attachment.[4] At this point, simply send the email message. Warning: Do not forget to enter the recipient's email address in the To: textfield. | ||