Queues, closing verbs and grouping

Attention files every item by what it is asking you to do. That is its queue. There are eight, and each one closes with its own word: you do a to-do, you review a review, you reply to someone who is waiting. Closing an item with the right word keeps an honest record of what happened to it.

This article explains the queues, the tabs that show one queue at a time, how items from the same desk are grouped, and the three ways to group the list: by Queue, by Due date or by Origin.

Before you start

• Queues and grouping are available on every plan.
• You choose an item's queue when you file it, on the CATEGORY pill. See Check and file a captured item.

The eight queues and their closing words

Each queue has its own colour. It shows as the stripe down the left of an item, the icon on the queue's tab, and the dashed line beside grouped items.

To close an item, click the empty circle at the left of its row. Rest the pointer on the circle first to see the word it will use, such as Responded — close this item. You can also pick the word from the end of the item's status menu. See Close, snooze, archive and edit an item.

Remember fades on its own

Remember is for loose thoughts. An item in Remember that nobody touches for 14 days is dismissed quietly, so idle notes do not pile up. Any change to the item, such as editing its title, starts the 14 days again. If a thought turns out to matter, move it to To Do or another queue, where it does not fade.

Meet items can be invitations

When a Meet item knows when or where a meeting is, its row shows the time, a button to join the call, the place, how many others are coming, and RSVP with Yes, Maybe and No. After you answer, the row shows your reply instead.

Show one queue at a time

Above the list is a row of tabs: All, then one per queue. A queue's tab shows how many open items it holds, when it holds any.

1. Click a queue's tab, for example Respond. The list shows only that queue.
2. Click All to see every queue again, one section after another.

The page remembers the tab you chose on this computer.

The tabs apply while the list is grouped by Queue. When it is grouped by Due or Origin, the list always shows every item.

Group the list

Next to Group by, click one of the three choices. The items are the same; only the grouping changes. The page remembers your choice on this computer.

Queue

One section per queue, in the order of the table above. Within a section, unless you have dragged items into your own order, the most pressing come first: overdue items, then items due soonest, then items that have waited longest without a change. In this grouping you can drag items to reorder them, nest them under one another, or move them to another queue. See Reorder, nest and bulk-close items.

Due

One section per due date band:

Use it to plan by time rather than by kind of work.

Origin

One section per source:

Use it to check what Plexii has added, or to see your own captures on their own.

In the Due and Origin groupings, items stay in ranked order and cannot be dragged.

Desk groups

In the Queue grouping, when a queue holds two or more items from the same desk, they are gathered under a header for that desk. The header shows:

• the desk's name
• its status, such as Desk: to do, Desk: in progress, Desk: done or Desk: parked
• its due date, if it has one
• how many items are in the group

Click the header to fold the group away or open it again. To open the desk itself, click the desk icon at the start of the header. A desk with only one item in a queue is not given a header; the item's desk chip names it instead.

Folding is for now only: the groups are open again the next time you come to the Attention page.

What leaves the queues

The queues show open items only. An item leaves them when you:

• close it with its queue's word. It moves to Recently closed for seven days.
• snooze it. It comes back when the snooze ends.
• archive it. It moves to Archived, where Unarchive puts it back.
• dismiss it, for example with Dismiss all in select mode.

Items whose desk was removed or moved leave the queues for the Detached section until you give them a new desk.

Tips

• Pick the queue by what you owe, not by topic. An email you must answer is Respond, even if it is about a review.
• Work one tab at a time. Clear Respond in one sitting, then Review.
• Use Due on a Monday. Group by Due to see the week, then switch back to Queue to work.

Common questions

Why does the circle say Scheduled and not Done? Every queue closes with its own word. A Meet item is closed by scheduling it. To close it differently, change its queue first.

I cannot drag items. Dragging works only when the list is grouped by Queue. Click Queue next to Group by.

A queue tab shows a number but the list is empty. The tab counts every open item in that queue, but a selected tag or Analytics tile can hide some of them. Click Clear beside it and look again.

Where did my Remember item go? It was probably untouched for 14 days and faded out. Next time, move anything you need to keep to another queue.

Can I add my own queues? No. The eight queues are fixed. Use tags to group items your own way. See Filter Attention.

Related tasks

• Attention: everything that needs you
• Filter Attention: due today, overdue, waiting and more
• Close, snooze, archive and edit an item
• Reorder, nest and bulk-close items
• Check and file a captured item