# How to add tasks fast with Quick Capture

> Select **+ New task**, type what needs doing and press Enter. Words like "tomorrow 2pm 45m" fill the **Date**, **Time** and **Duration** chips as you type, and you can select any chip to change it. If a date sends the task to another day, the **Added to …** notice has **Show** and **Undo**.

Quick Capture is the small card that opens when you select **+ New task**. You type a task in plain words, and Dayplan picks out the details, such as when, how long and which area, so you can add a complete task without filling in a form.

## Add a task

1. Select **+ New task** at the top of **Today**, **Inbox** or **All tasks**. A card opens in the middle of the screen with the prompt **What needs doing?**
2. Type the task. For example: `review deck tomorrow 2pm 45m`.
3. Press <kbd>Enter</kbd>, or select the arrow button.

The card closes and the task is saved. <kbd>Escape</kbd> or clicking outside the card throws the draft away.

For the first few tasks you add, the card suggests an example under the empty field, such as **Try "send invoices friday !must"**. Select it to fill it in and watch the chips change.

## Where a new task goes

The **Date** chip shows where the task will land before you save it:

- From **Today** or **All tasks**, it reads **Today**.
- From **Inbox**, it reads **Inbox**.
- If you type or pick a date, it shows that day, such as **Tomorrow** or **Fri, Oct 23**.
- If you choose **Move to the next week or two** or **Move to Someday**, it reads **Backlog**.

To understand the difference between these places, see [Understand Inbox, Today and Backlog](https://dayplan.do/docs/tasks-and-inbox).

## Set details with the chips

Under the text, a row of chips holds the task's details:

| Chip | What it sets |
| --- | --- |
| **Date** | The day, or Inbox or Backlog. You can also type a date, such as "next friday", in its search field. |
| **Time** | A start time. A task with a time also appears in your calendar. |
| **Duration** | How long you expect it to take. |
| **Area** | Which area it belongs to. |
| **Priority** | **Must do**, **High**, **Medium** or **Low**. See Priorities and Must do. |
| **More options** (**…**) | **Add note**, **Energy** and **Repeat**. See Repeating tasks. |

A chip fills with colour once it holds a value. You'll notice that once you set a chip by hand, your typing no longer changes it. That's because a choice you made yourself wins, so a date you picked won't be replaced by a word you type afterwards.

If your text makes the task a break, such as "coffee break 15m", a **Break** chip appears and the **Area** and **Priority** chips go away.

## Type details instead of clicking

While you type, Dayplan highlights the words it understands, such as dates (`friday`), times (`2pm`), durations (`45m`), areas (`#work`) and priorities (`!must`), and fills the matching chips. You'll notice that highlighted words are missing from the saved title. That's because they've become the task's details, so `review deck tomorrow 2pm 45m #work !must` saves as "review deck".

The full list, including what stays in the title, is in the Quick Capture cheat sheet. To keep a word that Dayplan would read, wrap it in quotes: `read "next monday" newsletter`.

## Check where the task went

If a date in your text puts the task somewhere other than the page you're on, a notice tells you, so a task never vanishes from view without a word. For example: **Added to Fri, Oct 23** or **Added to Fri, Oct 23 at 2:00 PM**. It has two buttons:

- **Show** opens the task on its day.
- **Undo** puts the date words back into the title and moves the task back to where you added it.

## Add tasks from a list or day column

Lists and day columns, including the day columns on Horizon, Dayplan's home view, end with an **Add task** row. In Inbox it reads **Add to Inbox - anything, triage later**. It understands the same words as the Quick Capture card, with a few differences:

- A time without a date goes on that column's day.
- When you type a date or time, a small chip next to your text shows where the task will land. Select its **✕** to keep those words as plain text instead.
- Pasting a list with one task per line creates one task per line. Bullets and numbers at the start of lines are removed.
- Clicking away saves what you typed. <kbd>Escape</kbd> discards it.

## If something goes wrong

**You reloaded the page while typing.** The Quick Capture card reopens with your text in the same browser tab, for up to an hour. Chips you set by hand aren't kept, but anything you typed is read again.

**A task couldn't be saved.** Dayplan keeps it and shows **Some tasks weren't added. Your drafts are kept here — retry when you're ready.** Select **Retry** or **Dismiss**.

**Nothing happened when you pressed Enter.** Look for a message about the Must do limit or the Free task limit.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is there a keyboard shortcut for Quick Capture?

No. Select **+ New task** instead. See Keyboard shortcuts for the shortcuts Dayplan has.

### Why isn't there a + New task button on Horizon or the Backlog?

Those pages add tasks where you're looking instead. Use the **Add task** row under a day on Horizon, or under a horizon on the Backlog page. The Backlog's **+ Add task** button adds to **Someday**.

### Can I add a deadline from Quick Capture?

No. Words like "by friday" set the task's date. Add the task, then open it and set **Deadline**. See Deadlines vs scheduled dates.

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Source: https://dayplan.do/docs/quick-capture