5. Displaying Different Views of Tasks
Outlook 2010 makes it simple to keep your task list at your
fingertips. You can view tasks in several different locations,
including the following:
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In the Tasks module, you can display either the To-Do List,
which includes both tasks and flagged messages, or the Tasks List,
which includes only tasks. There are many options for viewing and arranging each list.
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In any module, the expanded To-Do Bar displays the
To-Do Bar Task List, where tasks are grouped and
sorted under due date headings. (You can also sort this list by
category, start date, folder, type, or importance, or you can
create a custom arrangement.) You can scroll through the list to
display all your tasks or collapse the groups you don't want to
view. To increase the space available for your task list, you can
close the Date Navigator or show fewer or no appointments.
The minimized To-Do Bar displays only your next appointment
(if you choose to display appointments) and the number of
incomplete tasks due today (if you choose to display tasks). You
switch between views of the To-Do Bar by clicking the Minimize or
Expand button on its header.
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In the Calendar module, the Daily Task List appears at the bottom of the
Calendar pane in Day, Work Week, or Week view. When expanded, the
Daily Task List at displays the tasks due, including the category
and task type, during the displayed time period. In Day view, the
start date, due date, and reminder time also appear.
Tip
If you don't see the Daily Task List in Day, Work Week, or
Week view, click the Daily Task List button in the Layout group
on the View tab, and then click Normal.
Like the Navigation Pane and the To-Do Bar, you can minimize
the Daily Task List so that it displays only the number of active
and completed tasks and provides more space for you to work. You
can switch between views of the Daily Task List by clicking the
Minimize or Expand button on its header.
You can schedule a specific block of time to complete a task
by dragging it from the Daily Task List to your calendar. When you
mark the task complete, Outlook removes it from your
calendar.
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On the Outlook Today page, the tasks due today are listed
in the Tasks area. (This page was previously the "home page" of
Outlook. You display the Outlook Today page by clicking your
top-level account in the Navigation Pane.)
We've been working in your To-Do
List, which is the default Tasks module view and displays both tasks
and flagged messages. You can display more comprehensive information
about the tasks on a task list by clicking the Tasks entry for that
account in the Tasks module Navigation Pane. As you can with your
calendar, you can display different views of your Tasks List and within each view, different
arrangements of the tasks.
You can change the view from the Change View gallery in the Current View group on the
Home tab, or from the Change View gallery in the Current View group on
the View tab. Tasks List views include:
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Active
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Assigned
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Completed
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Detailed
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Next 7 Days
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Overdue
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Prioritized
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Server Tasks
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Simple List
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Today
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To-Do List
The default view for the Tasks List is Simple List view,
with tasks arranged by due date. Not surprisingly, the default view
for the To-Do List is To-Do List.
From the Arrangements gallery in the Arrangement group on the
View tab, you can select from the following standard arrangements of
items within the To-Do List or a Tasks List view:
You can reorder the tasks in any list view by clicking the
heading of the field you want to sort on. You can add and remove
fields from the list view by using the Field Chooser, in the same way
that you would from the list view of contact records.
Completed tasks remain in the Tasks List until you actually
delete them, so they are available there if you want to view
them.
Tip
The Tasks List views don't by default display the Reading
Pane. If you want, you can display it at the bottom of the Tasks
pane so that you don't lose horizontal screen space and obscure task
details. Click the Reading Pane button in the Layout group on the
View tab, and then click Bottom.
In this exercise, you'll look at different views of tasks and
flagged messages within the Tasks module.
Note
If you didn't create those tasks and messages, you can do
so now, or you can substitute any tasks and flagged messages in your
task list. Display the To-Do List in the Tasks module, in the
default To-Do List view, and then follow the steps.
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With the To-Do
List displayed in the Tasks pane, click the Change View
button in the Current
View group on the Home
tab.
The Change View gallery expands. The To-Do List button
is selected to indicate the current view.
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In the Change View gallery,
click Detailed.
The To-Do List changes to a list view displaying many
different task fields. The Reading Pane, which by default is open
to the right of the Tasks pane in To-Do List view, closes.
In this view, the To-Do List resembles the Tasks
List.
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In the Navigation Pane, click
Tasks.
The Tasks List appears in the Tasks pane. Only the tasks
appear in the list; the flagged messages are absent.
The Tasks List displays its default Simple List view rather
than the Detailed view you chose for the To-Do List. The arrow in
the Due Date header indicates the current arrangement.
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On the View
tab, in the Arrangement gallery,
click the More button.
The gallery expands to display additional
arrangements.
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In the Arrangement gallery,
click Assignment.
The order of the tasks changes slightly, although it's not
entirely obvious how or why.
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In the Arrangement gallery,
click Show in Groups.
The list changes to clearly distinguish tasks that you've
assigned to other people from tasks that you own. If you have
assigned tasks to multiple people, each assignee has a
group.
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In the Current View
group, in the Change
View gallery, click Assigned.
The list changes to display only the task that you assigned
in a previous exercise. Although only one task is visible in the
Tasks List, the To-Do Bar Task List still displays all the tasks
and flagged messages, so you can feel confident that you're
looking at a filtered view and haven't accidentally deleted the
other tasks.
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In the Change View gallery,
click To-Do List.
The Tasks pane displays all the active tasks in the same
format as the default To-Do List. The arrangement changes to Due
Date.
Note, however, that this is not the real To-Do List—it
doesn't include the flagged messages.
-
In the Navigation Pane, click
To-Do List.
The flagged messages reappear in the Tasks pane.
Note
CLEAN UP Return to the Tasks
List, and change the view back to the default Simple List view.
Retain the SBS Order Brochures, SBS Dinner Reservations, and SBS
Send Dinner Invitations tasks, and the flagged SBS Tradeshow
Schedule and SBS First Draft messages, for use in later
exercises.
