Item types

There are several types of items in etm. Each item begins with a type character such as an asterisk (event) and continues on one or more lines either until the end of the file is reached or another line is found that begins with a type character. The type character for each item is followed by the item summary and then, perhaps, by one or more @key value pairs - see @-Keys for details. The order in which such pairs are entered does not matter.

~ Action

A record of the expenditure of time (@e) and/or money (@x). Actions are not reminders, they are instead records of how time and/or money was actually spent. Action lines begin with a tilde, ~.

~ picked up lumber and paint @s mon 3p @e 1h15m @x 127.32

Entries such as @s mon 3p, @e 1h15m and @x 127.32 are discussed below under Item details. Action entries form the basis for time and expense billing using action type custom views - see Custom view for details.

Tip: You can use either path or keyword or a combination of the two to organize your actions.

* Event

Something that will happen on particular day(s) and time(s). Event lines begin with an asterick, *.

* dinner with Karen and Al @s sat 7p @e 3h

Events have a starting datetime, @s and an extent, @e. The ending datetime is given implicitly as the sum of the starting datetime and the extent. Events that span more than one day are possible, e.g.,

* Sales conference @s 9a wed @e 2d8h

begins at 9am on Wednesday and ends at 5pm on Friday.

An event without an @e entry or with @e 0 is regarded as a reminder and, since there is no extent, will not be displayed in busy times.

^ Occasion

Holidays, anniversaries, birthdays and such. Similar to an event with a date but no starting time and no extent. Occasions begin with a caret sign, ^.

^ The !1776! Independence Day @s 2010-07-04 @r y &M 7 &m 4

On July 4, 2013, this would appear as The 237th Independence Day. Here !1776!` is an example of an anniversary substitution - see Dates for details.

! Note

A record of some useful information. Note lines begin with an exclamation point, !.

! xyz software @k software:passwords @d user: dnlg, pw: abc123def

Tip: Since both the GUI and CLI note views group and sort by keyword, it is a good idea to use keywords to organize your notes.

-, % and + Tasks

Tasks are reminders of something that needs to be done. There are three possible type characters for tasks: -, % and +; these are discussed below. Each of these can be further distinguished by whether or not the task has entries for @e and/or @s.

When an @e (extent) is provided for any type of task, it is regarded as an estimate of the time required to complete the task.

  • Tasks without an @s entry have no due date and are to be done whenever convenient.
  • Tasks with an @s entry that specifies 12am (or 0h) as the starting time are to be completed on or before the date specified.
  • Tasks with an @s entry that specifies a starting time other than 12am (or 0h) but without an @e entry are to be completed on or before the date and time specified. These will be displayed in etm Agenda and Day views before other tasks, sorted by and displaying the starting time.
  • Tasks with an @s entry that specifies a starting time other than 12am (or 0h) and with an @e entry are to be completed during the period that extends from the starting time until @e after the starting time. These will be displayed in etm Agenda and Day views before other tasks, sorted by and displaying the time period in the same manner as events. This period will be regarded as busy time and treated as such by etm in, e.g., Week view. [Tip: Use a non-midnight starting time and an extent when you want to block off a specific period to complete a task.]
  • Task

This is the basic task and begins with a minus sign, -.

- pay bills @s Oct 25

A task with an @s entry becomes due on that date and time and past due when that date has passed. If the task also has an @b begin-by entry, then advance warnings of the task will begin appearing the specified number of days before the task is due.

% Delegated task

A task that is assigned to someone else, usually the person designated in an @u entry. Delegated tasks begin with a percent sign, %.

% make reservations for trip @u joe @s fri
  • Task group

A collection of related tasks, some of which may be prerequisite for others. Task groups begin with a plus sign, +.

+ dog house
  @j pickup lumber and paint      &q 1
  @j cut pieces                   &q 2
  @j assemble                     &q 3
  @j paint                        &q 4

Note that a task group is a single item and is treated as such. E.g., if any job is selected for editing then the entire group is displayed.

Individual jobs are given by the @j entries. The queue entries, &q, set the order — tasks with smaller &q values are prerequisites for subsequent tasks with larger &q values. In the example above “pickup lumber and paint” does not have any prerequisites. “Pickup lumber and paint”, however, is a prerequisite for “cut pieces” which, in turn, is a prerequisite for “assemble”. “Assemble”, “cut pieces” and “pickup lumber and paint” are all prerequisites for “paint”.

$ In basket

A quick, don’t worry about the details item to be edited later when you have the time. In basket entries begin with a dollar sign, $.

$ joe 919 123-4567

If you create an item using etm and forget to provide a type character, an $ will automatically be inserted.

? Someday maybe

Something you don’t want to forget about altogether but don’t want to appear on your next or scheduled lists. Someday maybe items begin with a question mark, ?. They are displayed under the heading Someday in Agenda view so that you can easily review them whenever you like.

? lose weight and exercise more

# Comment

Comments begin with a hash mark, #. Such items are ignored by etm save for appearing in the path view. Stick a hash mark in front of any item that you don’t want to delete but don’t want to see in your other views.

= Defaults

Default entries begin with an equal sign, =. These entries consist of @key value pairs which then become the defaults for subsequent entries in the same file until another = entry is reached.

Suppose, for example, that a particular file contains items relating to “project_a” for “client_1”. Then entering

= @k client_1:project_a

on the first line of the file and

=

on the twentieth line of the file would set the default keyword for entries between the first and twentieth line in the file.