Commentarii Roamani

In this issue, we look at Better Tasks, a Roam Depot extension by Mark Lavercombe that brings structured, repeatable task logic directly into your graph. It treats each TODO as a block with clear attributes: repeat, start, defer, due so you can manage tasks without leaving Roam or maintaining a second system.

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💎 Roam Depot Gems: Better Tasks 💎

Better Tasks works quietly: when you complete a repeating task, the extension can generate the next instance on the correct day based on your settings. One-off tasks use the same attributes without a repeat rule. Everything is stored directly in Roam blocks, so the system stays transparent and easy to inspect.

The Core Mechanism

A Better Task is a TODO with child blocks that hold its data. You create one by opening Roam’s Command Palette and selecting Create a Better Task (or by converting an existing TODO using Convert TODO to Better Task):

Completing the task writes a completed attribute and, if a repeat rule is present, creates the next occurrence according to your settings. You can add optional attributes for availability and resurfacing:

• BT_attrStart -- when the task becomes available
• BT_attrDefer -- when it should reappear
• BT_attrDue -- when it is due
• and more...

Leaving the repeat field blank produces a scheduled one-off task. It behaves the same way, just without generating a successor.

Inline Pills

When a Better Task is collapsed, the extension shows a pill beside the checkbox. The pill summarizes the task’s attributes:

• ↻ the repeat rule
• ⏱ / ⏳ / 📅 start, defer, and due dates
• "⋯" menu for task actions: skipping, ending recurrence, generating the next instance, and adjusting metadata (snooze applies to the due date when no start date is set)

Pills hide automatically when the block is expanded so you can edit the child blocks directly. Date formatting is optimized for scanning: items due within seven days show the weekday name; anything further out uses a short date.

Pill interactions match the extension’s interface:

• click a date pill to open that Daily Note
• Shift+Click opens it in the sidebar
• Alt+Cmd/Ctrl+Click snoozes the due date one day forward
• Alt/Ctrl/Meta+Click opens a date picker
• metadata pills cycle their values or open the related pages
• Alt+Click on the repeat pill copies the rule text

Completed tasks hide their pill until the next occurrence is created.

Better Tasks supports optional child-block fields for project, waiting-for, context, priority, and energy. These values are not required, but when present, they appear as pill segments and become filterable in the dashboard

Dashboard

The dashboard is a floating, draggable panel that lists all Better Tasks. From the dashboard you can snooze or skip tasks, open their source blocks, adjust metadata, and edit repeat or date values through the same pill interactions used inline. A quick-add bar at the top lets you create new tasks, with AI parsing applied when enabled.

It updates automatically as attributes change and gives you filters for recurrence, start/defer status, due buckets, and completion state:

Settings

In the Roam Depot extension settings, you can choose where the next occurrence appears (Daily Notes Page, same page, or under a DNP heading) and rename all attribute labels to match your graph.

You can also enable confirmation before spawning the next task, set the first day of the week, turn on AI parsing with your own API key, and adjust the checkbox threshold for pill rendering:

There’s much more than we can cover here in Better Tasks, and the extension rewards exploration. Try the menu, adjust the settings, experiment with the dashboard filters, and see how different repeat rules shape your workflow. If you want to capture tasks faster, you can also enable the optional AI parsing mode with your own API key. Read the full documentation here​

see you next time!!!