I don't know what I did wrong in my original posting but I cannot see the text when I click on the topic. So I add it here again in the hope it will be visible:
After looking through all discussion on the Todo feature in Joplin, I did not find a starter tutorial on how best to get going and make use of the feature. Also there is nothing that really tells you what it cannot do.
So with a bit of discovery learning I finally arrived at a very useable straightforward Todo regime that emulates much of Apple Reminders or Microsoft Todo functionality. This uses the Agenda plugin and the Repeating Todos plugin. Admittedly these are not available for the mobile app, but I can live with or work around that limitation using the editing feature in Agenda which can write its current list to a preidentified note anytime any change is made in todos.
If anyone needs more sophisticated features like calendar sync then Todoist is the best bet. I haven't yet explored whether Joplin Todos could link to a calendar app as yet.
These are the steps to take to make one version of a useful Task Manager in Joplin:
First install the Agenda and the Repeating Todos plugins in your Joplin client. This is straightforward (Preferences/Plugins on a mac e.g.).
Create a Master Todos Notebook. You may call it what you want, but "Todos" would suffice.
Create subnotebooks within the master to segregate todos by project or category to suit you. For example I used 6 for my requirements. They were "Appointments", "Assistance to 3rd parties", "Bridge Club", "Completed Todos", "Home", and "Personal".
Now create individual Todos in the normal Joplin way. Assign an alarm time and date for the first event and then use the Recurring Todo plugin to define the characteristics if repetition is required.
Move the individual Todos to the appropriate notebook created earlier. This will make them easier for you to find and manage.
Open the Agenda view (Top toolbar in the Todo note). You will now see all Todos listed in date order with Today at the top. Undated Todos will be listed at the bottom.
Tick in the box to mark a Todo as complete. It will disappear from the Agenda view and you will find it in its assigned Todo subnotebook.
Move the completed Todos from there into the "Completed" Notebook to keep things tidy and uncluttered, if that is your preference.
Recurring Todos marked complete will disappear from the Agenda view but will be ticked completed in the relevant subnotebook. I think the tick disappears after a short time. This is entirely logical as they can only be complete when all recurrences are complete (which will be never when that recurrence choice was made).
So basically that is it. I will be trialling this regime over the next few weeks to determine if it actually does meet my needs.
You wrote within the <----> tags which mark html comments so it is all hidden.
I guess there isn't really a "right" way to do todo's, as you found there are plugins to make certain methods work but the base todo options are pretty basic.
Thanks for sharing yours.
In addition there's the Note Overview Plugin, which can also be set to collect all todos. You're absolutely right in that mobile support is lacking, and IMO that's a major problem as quick task management with swiping gestures is what most people are accustomed to. I successfully managed to ditch Evernote in favour of open source software like Joplin, but unfortunately I can't get rid of MS Todo with the "pretty basic todo options" that @Daeraxa has described.
You are of course correct in what you say, but there is here the basis of something that could evolve into a very workable tool. The idea of having task management side by side with very capable note taking is compelling. Switching between different apps is neither efficient nor effective, disturbing workflow and concentration.
For this reason, I would encourage the community to develop task management capability in Joplin so it becomes the go-to app instead of Evernote, OneNote, etc.
The danger though is trying to be all things to all people. That is the path to bloatware. The way to square the circle (Iām mixing too many metaphors here ā apologies) is careful development of plugins whilst keeping Joplin core lean and efficient.
There's a good point, and I find myself using references pointing from tasks in Microsoft Todo to notes in Joplin which is not a good idea (technically and ergonomically). So let's hope that they're bringing plugins to work on mobile, too (as discussed on this forum on several occasions).
It was the first entry on this year's GSoC ideas list but with no accepted proposals.
Like note taking methodologies, task management is so personal and varied that I think it is important that the core app provides the necessary tools (via plugin api etc.) to allow a comprehensive system of plugins or other tools that can work with eachother or standalone to create the experience somebody wants.
The very basic task management built into Joplin is still ideal for people who just want something very simple and doesn't overwhelm them with complexity whilst people who want or need that can get it by extending the base application.
Obviously for this to be fully viable it needs to work between the various clients and mobile would be an important one for this.