Things 3

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Build me a task manager that replaces Things — and be honest about the verdict.

It is bought once, for a small amount, and what you get is **a decade of refinement**: an interaction where nothing is in the way and every gesture is where you expect it. That polish is not a feature list, it is a thousand small decisions, and it is the reason this is ALMOST. Build it if you want your tasks in a database you own; do not expect to match the feel quickly.

STACK
- A native application for the platform you live on, or a PWA that works entirely offline
- SQLite on device
- An optional sync server: Node 20+ with Fastify, storing ciphertext
- Caddy in front

THE MODEL, WHICH IS THE PART WORTH COPYING
- Five places, and no more: Inbox, Today, Upcoming, Anytime, Someday. Everything a person does is deciding which of those a task is in
- Projects contain tasks and can have headings; areas contain projects. Two levels, fixed
- A task has a **when** — today, a date, someday, or nothing — and separately a **deadline**. Those are different things, and conflating them is the most common mistake in this category. When is a plan; a deadline is a fact
- Today shows what you planned for today plus anything overdue, and nothing else. That restraint is the product
- Everything else is a filter over those fields

THE DATA MODEL
- areas: id, title, position, archived_at
- projects: id, area_id, title, notes_md, when_kind, when_date, deadline, position, completed_at, cancelled_at
- headings: id, project_id, title, position
- tasks: id, project_id, heading_id, title, notes_md, when_kind, when_date, reminder_at, deadline, position, completed_at, cancelled_at, created_at, repeat_json
- checklist_items: id, task_id, title, position, completed_at
- tags, task_tags — a flat list, not a hierarchy
- activity: id, entity_kind, entity_id, field, old, new, at — append-only, which makes undo and history possible
- Ordering by fractional positions, not floats, or tasks will swap places after enough drags

THE INTERACTION, WHICH IS WHERE THE TIME GOES
- Adding a task from anywhere with one shortcut, into the Inbox, with nothing to decide. That is the single most important interaction
- A date typed in natural language, parsed on the device instantly, shown as a correctable chip before saving. Never applied silently
- Completing a task with a satisfying, immediate gesture and an undo that is easy to reach. People complete a lot of tasks, and this is felt every time
- Drag to reorder, and keyboard for everything on a desktop
- Nothing waits. Every action applies locally first; sync is invisible

REPEATING TASKS
- Two kinds, and they differ: every Monday, and N days after completion. The second reschedules from when you actually did it
- Completing a repeat creates the next occurrence and keeps the record of the completion
- Daylight saving handled by storing the intent with a named zone and recomputing, never by shifting an offset

SYNC
- End-to-end encrypted, with the server storing ciphertext and able to read nothing
- A change feed ordered by a server counter, never a device clock
- Conflicts resolved per field with last-write-wins, except completion, which is sticky — a task completed on one device must never be resurrected by a stale edit from another
- Works entirely without it

WHAT NOT TO ADD
- Priorities, sub-projects, custom fields, collaboration. Each one is a request you will receive and should decline
- The product being replaced is loved because of what it refuses. Copy the refusals, not just the features

ESCAPE
- Export everything, including completed history, as JSON in two taps
- Import from the common formats
- No analytics. Not one event

WHAT MATTERS MOST
Quick entry, the when-versus-deadline distinction, and completion that feels good. Build those three, use it for a month, and change nothing else until they are right.