Plan views: Overview, Board, Grid, Calendar, Workload and Files

A plan has seven views, each a different way of looking at the same tasks. Overview sums the plan up, Timeline lays the tasks out across the calendar, Board shows what is in flight, Grid lists every task in a sortable sheet, Calendar puts tasks on a month, Workload shows who has what, and Files lists the documents and files kept with the plan.

A change in one view shows in all of them, because they all read the same tasks.

Before you start

• You need a plan. See Plans: timelines for your rooms.
• Every view is available on every plan.
• The task views (Timeline, Board, Grid, Calendar and Workload) need at least one task. Until the plan has one, they say This plan has no tasks yet.

Switch views

1. Open the plan from the Plans page.
2. Click a view in the row of buttons at the top: Overview, Timeline, Board, Grid, Calendar, Workload or Files.

A plan always opens on Overview.

In the Timeline, Board, Grid, Calendar and Workload views, clicking a task opens its details in a panel on the right. See Edit a plan task and its dependencies.

Overview

The Overview is a plain summary of where the plan stands.

• Progress: how many tasks are done out of the total, with the percentage and a bar, such as 6 of 10 tasks done · 60%.
• Four totals:
  • Tasks done: finished tasks out of all tasks.
  • Milestones: how many tasks are marked as milestones.
  • Missed deadlines: tasks scheduled to finish after their deadline. Shown in red when there are any.
  • Running late: unfinished tasks whose scheduled finish has passed. Shown in amber when there are any.
• Starts and Finishes: the first scheduled start and the plan's scheduled finish.
• Critical path: how many tasks are on it, or None.
• The next milestone: its name and the date it is scheduled for. If there is none ahead, the Overview says so, or suggests marking a task as a milestone.

A plan with no tasks shows Nothing planned yet with every total at zero, and fills in as soon as you add tasks.

Timeline

A chart of bars across the calendar, with dependency arrows, the critical path, a line for today and markers for late work. You can drag a bar to move a task. See Use the plan timeline.

Board

The Board sorts tasks into four columns by status: To do, In progress, Parked and Done. Each column shows how many tasks it holds.

Each card shows:

• the task's name, with a flag if it is a milestone or a red dot if it is on the critical path
• a progress bar and percentage (not for milestones)
• who it is assigned to, or Unassigned

To change a task's status, drag its card to another column. Dropping it on Done marks the task finished. An empty column says Drop tasks here.

Moving a card changes only the task's status. Its dates and place on the timeline stay as they are.

Grid

The Grid lists every task in a sheet:

• Sort by clicking a column heading. Click it again to reverse the order. The Grid starts sorted by Start. Cost does not sort.
• Total: when any task has a cost, a Total row at the bottom adds them up. Costs have no currency, so use the same one throughout a plan.

Calendar

The Calendar shows one month at a time, Sunday to Saturday, with each task on every day from its scheduled start to its finish.

• Use the arrows beside the month's name to go back or forward a month. Today jumps to the current month. The calendar opens on the month the plan starts in.
• Today's date is circled.
• Each task is coloured like the timeline: red for the critical path, green for finished, and your accent colour for the rest. A ◆ marks a milestone and a ⚠ a task that is running late.
• A day shows up to three tasks. When there are more, it says how many, such as +2 more.

Workload

Workload shows each person and what is on their plate, busiest first.

For each person you see:

• their initials and name
• how many tasks they have, how many are still open, and the total working days, such as 4 tasks · 3 open · 9 working days
• a bar comparing their load with the busiest person's
• each of their tasks with its length in days. Finished tasks are struck through.

Tasks nobody is assigned to are gathered under Unassigned, so unowned work does not get lost. Milestones are left out, because they take no time.

If no task in the plan takes time yet, the view says No tasks to schedule across people yet.

To assign a task, open it and fill in Assigned to. See Edit a plan task and its dependencies. To stop one person's tasks overlapping, see Level in Baselines, working days, levelling and export.

Files

Files lists the documents and files kept in the plan, newest first, with each one's Name, Type (such as Document, Spreadsheet, Slides or PDF file) and Modified date.

• Click a document to open it.
• Click a file to open it in the app your computer uses for that kind of file.

If nothing is kept with the plan yet, the view says No files in this plan yet.

Good ways to use the views

• Stand-up: open Board and walk the In progress column.
• Status report: start from Overview for the numbers, then Grid sorted by Finish for the detail.
• Planning a month: check Calendar for busy days and Workload for anyone who has too much.

Common questions

A finished task shows 100%

A finished task always reads 100%, whatever its Progress was set to. A plan's own percentage counts finished tasks, not the Progress of each one.

Can I change dates from the Board or Calendar?

Not there. Drag a bar on the Timeline, or open the task and change its dates. See Edit a plan task and its dependencies.

Why is someone missing from Workload?

Workload lists only the people tasks are assigned to. Assign them a task and they appear.

Does the view I choose stay picked?

No. A plan opens on Overview each time.

Related tasks

• Plans: timelines for your rooms
• Use the plan timeline
• Edit a plan task and its dependencies
• Baselines, working days, levelling and export
• Tasks, desks and subtasks