3. Removing Tasks and Items from Task Lists
When you complete a task or follow up on a flagged item, you
have three options for managing its presence on your task list:
marking the task or flagged item as complete, removing
the flag from a flagged item, or deleting the task or flagged item
entirely.
Marking a task or flagged item as complete retains a
record of the item on your task list. Completed tasks are visible only
in certain task list views.
To mark a task as complete:
-
In the Tasks module, click the task to make it active, and
then on the Home tab, in the Manage Task group, click the
Mark Complete button. -
In views that include a check box preceding the task subject
(most list views), select the check box to delete the task. -
In views that include a colored flag, click the flag
once. -
In any view, right-click the task, and then click Mark
Complete. -
In the task window, change the Status to Completed or the %
Complete setting to 100%.
Whichever method you use, in your task list, the completed task
is crossed through, the Complete check box is selected, and the flag
changes to a check mark. In the task window for the completed task,
Status is set to Completed and % Complete is set to 100%. (In other
words, doing any one thing accomplishes all the others.)
After you mark an instance of a recurring task as complete, Outlook generates a new
instance of the task at whatever interval you specified when creating
the task.
Removing the flag from a flagged item such as a message or
contact record retains the item in its original location but removes
it from your task list entirely.
To remove the flag from an item:
-
Display the Tasks module, click the flagged item to select it,
and then click the Remove From List button in the Manage
Tasks group on the Home tab. -
Click the flagged item in the To-Do Bar Task List and then
click the Remove From List button in the Manage Tasks group on the
Task List contextual tab. -
Right-click the flagged item, click Follow-up, and then click Clear Flag.
Deleting a task or flagged item moves the task or the
original item to the Deleted Items folder; it is permanently deleted
when you empty that folder. No record of it remains on your task list
or in its original location (such as your Inbox).
To delete a task or flagged item:
-
In the Tasks module, click the task to make it active and
then on the Home tab, in the Delete group, click the Delete
button. -
In any view, right-click the task, and then click
Delete.
4. Managing Task Assignments
You can assign tasks from your Outlook task list to other people
within your organization and outside of your organization (and other
people can assign tasks to you). Outlook indicates assigned tasks in
your task list by adding blue arrow pointing to a person on the task
icon, similar to that of a shared folder in Windows Explorer.
Tasks You Assign to Others
You can assign tasks to people on your Microsoft Exchange
Server network, to people on other Exchange Server networks, and to
people running e-mail programs other than Outlook.
-
When you assign a task to a person on your Exchange Server
network, Outlook sends a task request, similar to a meeting
request, to the person you designated. The assignee can accept
or decline the task assignment by clicking the corres-ponding
button in the Reading Pane or in the task window header. Outlook
indicates the status of the task in your task list as
Assigned. -
When you assign a task to a person who is on another
Exchange Server network or is using an e-mail program other than
Outlook, Outlook sends a message that the assignee can respond
to manually. Until you change the task status, it is Waiting For
Response From Recipient, rather than Assigned.
When you assign a task, you can choose whether to keep a copy
of the task on your own task list or transfer it entirely to the
assignee's task list. Either way, the task remains on your own task
list until accepted, so you won't lose track of it. (If the
recipient declines the task, you can return it to your task list or
reassign it.)
Tip
You can assign only actual task items; you can't assign
flagged messages that appear in your task list.
After you assign a task to someone else, ownership of the task
transfers to that person, and you can no longer update the
information in the task window. (The assignee becomes the task owner
and you become the task originator.) If you keep a copy of the task
on your task list, you can follow the progress as the assignee
updates the task status and details, and you can communicate
information about the task to the owner by sending status reports.
Unless you choose otherwise, Outlook automatically sends you a
status report on an assigned task when the assignee marks the task
as complete.
To delegate a task to another Outlook user:
-
In the task window, on the Task tab, in the Manage Task
group, click the Assign Task button. -
In the To box that appears in the task header, enter the
e-mail address of the person you want to assign the task
to. -
In the task header, click the Send button. If a message
box notifies you that the task reminder has been turned off,
click OK.
Outlook sends the task request, and notifies you when the
assignee accepts or declines the task.
You can view the status of tasks you have assigned to other people by displaying
your task list in Assignment view.
If you assign a task and the assignee declines the assignment,
the task doesn't automatically return to your task list; you need to
either reclaim it (return it to your own task list) or reassign
it.
To reclaim or reassign a declined task:
-
Open the declined task assignment (indicated in your Inbox
by a task icon with a red X).
The Manage Task group on the Task tab of the ribbon
includes commands specific to managing the declined task.
-
In the Manage Task group, click the Return To Task List button to reclaim the task, or
the Assign Task button to reassign it.
Tasks Other People Assign to You
When another person assigns a task to you, you receive a task
assignment request.
To accept, decline, respond to, or reassign a task assignment
request:
-
Open the task assignment request (indicated in your Inbox
by a task icon with an outstretched hand).
The Task tab of the ribbon includes commands specific to
managing the task assignment request.
-
Take one of the following actions:
-
In the Respond group, click the Accept button to accept the task or the Decline button to decline the task, and send
the associated response to the task owner. -
In the Respond group, click Reply to send a message to the task owner
without accepting or declining the task, or the Forward button to forward the task content to
another person without reassigning the task. -
In the Manage Task group, click the Assign Task button, and follow the process
described earlier in this topic to assign the task to
another person.
You can update the details of a task assigned to you by
someone else in the same way that you do tasks that you create.
To send a status report about a task assigned to you by someone
else:
-
Open the task window. -
On the Task tab, in the Manage Task group, click the
Send Status Report button.
Outlook generates an e-mail message with the task
information in the Subject field and message body. -
Address the message to the people you want to send the
report to, and then send the message.
In this exercise, you'll assign a task to another
person.
Note
If you didn't create that task, you can do
so now, or you can substitute any task in your default task list.
Choose a co-worker or other e-mail contact to practice assigning tasks to, and let him or her know to
expect a task assignment. Then display your To-Do List in the
Tasks module, and follow the steps.
-
In the Tasks
pane, double-click the SBS
Send Dinner Invitations task.
The task opens in a task window. -
In the Manage
Task group, click the Assign
Task button.
A To box and Send button appear in the task header, and
the Manage Task group changes to display only the Cancel Assignment button. -
In the To box, enter the
e-mail address of the person to whom you want to assign the
task.
Note that the Keep An Updated Copy Of This Task On My Task
List and Send Me A Status Report When This Task Is Complete
check boxes are selected by default.
-
In the task header, click the Send button.
A message box notifies you that the task reminder
previously set for this task will be turned off when you assign
it to another person.
-
In the Microsoft Outlook
message box, click OK.
Outlook sends the task request. Your co-worker or contact
receives a task assignment request. -
Ask your co-worker or contact to accept the task.
Outlook notifies you when the assignee accepts or declines
the task.
Note
CLEAN UP Retain the SBS Send
Dinner Invitations task for use in later exercises.
|
