Forums/Announcements
Where is the Add Task button?
Kanbanery Support
posted this on June 03, 2011 11:42
We might have made a mistake removing the Add Task button from the upper-right corner of the screen and we'd like to know what you think about it. We did it, because there are two add task buttons on the page, and one takes up a whole line of the screen. By removing the big button on the right, we were able to move the whole board up and better use space on the screen. There remain two ways to add a new task.
1) Click the add task icon at the top of the first column.
2) Use the keyboard command accesskey+T where the accesskey depends on your browser (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Access_key)
What do you think? Should we put the Add Task button back?
Comments
I like the additional real estate. Leave as-is.
I like, although it took me a few minutes to find it! I always clicked the Add Column instead of the Add Task.
However, when you minimize a column, please can you show these icons before the name of the column? So for the New column, you'd have the Add Task icon and for the Done column you'd have the Archive icon.
put it back. having 'add column' there is an extreme POLS violation since one rarely adds columns - use that space for add task and hide add columns in settings. also, each column (new, working, etc) should have an 'add task' button that adds it to *that column*.
Ara,
Only board managers can add columns, so most users don't see the "add column" link and gain the screen real estate. We know we need to move the "add column" button, but we haven't decided the best way to do that yet. Putting it in settings is one option, but we might have a better idea...
There's an important reason why we don't have an "add task to column" feature. Kanban is all about managing flow. Tasks should flow through a system, from start to finish. Given a particular class of service, a team might choose to skip steps, but even so, tasks should start at the start of the process and end at the end of the process, not appear suddenly in the middle. That, we think, would be a real POLS violation, if a task could suddenly be in progress without ever having been started. Could you give us an example of a situation in which you'd want to add a task to a column in the middle of the board?
I almost decided NOT to use kanbanery because of the lack of Add Task button on middle columns. For personal action, I have a long list of stuff to do at the left, often collapsed, with "This Week" and "Today" in the middle- your Advanced personal kanban. But something comes up today that I need to focus on today, I want to add it to today.
When you hide the left-most column, the add Task button disappears altogether. I guess I'll get used to the keyboard shortcut but hiding that button seems like a huge usability issue for new users.
I think I may have been too dogmatic about my interpretation of kanban. We are going to be revisiting the usability and performance of the board in the coming weeks, and one thing I expect to come out of it is an easy way to add a task to any column. I don't think it's my place to force anyone to use Kanbanery the way I think it ought to be used.
I definitely agree you need an 'add task to column' feature... or at least a drop down in the 'add task' modal that lets you choose a column.
For the most part I have my backlog 'hidden' - every time I want to add a task I have to go and open it up and drag it around. I'm using it as a personal kanban - backlog, this week, today, doing, delegated, done - things popup all the time that I want to add in... can't do it easily and definitely doesn't 'flow' in the current process.
I love the software, but do find the implementation a little slow.
One other thing... if you set a capacity constraint you shouldn't be able to drag tasks into columns... that's definitely a feature you shouldn't make malleable.
Dear Ed,
Until we finish the improvements to the board, you can add a task using the keyboard command (or by email or using the Chrome plugin) without expanding the backlog column.
I don't agree that the WIP constraint should be imposed by the software. People use physical boards with no physical constraints to their behavior other than the ones they impose on themselves all the time; it just takes a bit of discipline. If a team (or person) lacks discipline, then forcing them to behave a certain way doesn't build discipline, it builds dependance. If you don't want a column to be overloaded, just don't do it. There are some occasions when a team might agree to overload a column (an emergency, a visiting partner expands their capacity, a task is blocked without any immediate solution, etc.). That team should have the right to take that decision if they want to. Kanban is not prescriptive that way.
Best regards,
Paul