Put an email on a desk or turn it into a task

Most email is about some piece of work. Mail gives you two ways to move a message from the inbox to where that work happens:

• Send to desk puts the email, or its whole thread, on a desk as an Email widget. It stays there, readable like a document, even after you archive the message.
• Make a task turns the email into a task with a due date and an urgency, in the folder or desk you choose.

Both buttons sit in the reading pane, beside Reply, Reply all and Forward.

Before you start

• Connect your mailbox. See Connect your email account.
• Plans. Both are part of every plan.
• Have a desk. To send an email to a desk, make the desk first. See Create a desk.

Send an email to a desk

1. In the side menu, open Apps and click Mail under Tools.
2. Open the email.
3. Click Send to desk. Its tooltip reads Keep this email on a desk, read like a document. A list of your desks opens.
4. Under the desk you want, click one of:
   • This email to keep just this message.
   • Whole thread to keep this message with the rest of its conversation.
5. A notice confirms it, for example Email sent to Q4 launch plan, or Thread sent to Q4 launch plan for a whole thread. Click Open in the notice to go to the desk.

If you have no desks yet, the list says No desks yet — make one and this email can live on it.

On the desk, the email appears as an Email widget. You can check a thread for new replies, switch between the one email and the whole thread, and open it back in Mail from there. See Email widget: keep an email on a desk.

Make a task from an email

1. Open the email in Mail.
2. Click Make a task. The Make a task from this email window opens.
3. Check the Task name. It starts as the email's subject.
4. Under Place it in, choose where the task goes:
   • All Tasks (top level), the starting choice, for a task on its own.
   • A folder, desk or task from the list, which is laid out like your folders, to put the task inside it.
5. Or, to file it somewhere new, type a name under …or new folder. PlexiDesk makes the folder and puts the task in it. While this box has a name in it, Place it in is set aside.
6. Pick a Due date if it has one.
7. Choose an Urgency: Low, Minor, Normal, High or Urgent. It starts at Normal.
8. Click Create task.

The button in the reading pane changes to Task created. Click Cancel, or outside the window, to close it without making a task.

What the task holds

• The task's name, from Task.
• A description with who the email was from, such as "From Sam Lee [email protected]", followed by the start of the email's text, so you know what it was about without going back to Mail.
• The due date and urgency you chose.

The task appears in the place you chose and in All Tasks, like any other task. See See every task in All Tasks.

Which one to use

Tips

• Archive after you act. Once the email is on a desk or is a task, press a to archive it. The Email widget keeps it readable, and the task keeps its sender and text.
• Do both for the important ones. Send the client's request to their desk so everyone can read it, and make a task for your part of it.
• Name the task as an action. Change Task from the subject line to what you need to do, such as "Send revised quote to Sam".

Common questions

I archived the email. Is it still on the desk? Yes. The Email widget reads the copy PlexiDesk keeps on this computer, so it stays readable after the message leaves your inbox. See Email widget: keep an email on a desk.

Can I find the email again from the task? The task's description names the sender and starts with the email's text. Search Mail for the sender or a phrase from it. See Search your mail.

Why is a desk missing from the Send to desk list? Archived desks are not listed, and the list shows up to 40 desks.

A notice says Could not send that email to the desk. Try again. If it keeps happening, check that the desk still exists.

Related tasks

• Email widget: keep an email on a desk
• Read, reply and send email
• See every task in All Tasks
• Keep a client's people, mail and chat on their desk
• Organise mail with tags