A terminal task manager with keyboard and mouse controls.

dtask keeps your tasks in a local JSON file and stays out of your way. Add a task, give it a priority and a due date, and drag it onto another day when plans change. It is a single native program written in D; there is no account, service, or runtime to install.

Features

• Keyboard and mouse. Navigate and edit from the keyboard, or click and drag: a due date opens its calendar, tasks drop onto a day, and the wheel moves one task at a time.
• Natural dates. Type tomorrow, fri, next week, or +7d, or pick a day from the calendar.
• Notes. Descriptions open in a scrollable reader and a multiline editor, and drafts are saved only when you choose.
• Search and views. Search titles and notes, and switch between the Open, Today, All, and Done views.
• Themes. Choose a built-in palette or configure your own in JSON, with live reload.
• Safe storage. Atomic saves, a single-writer lock, and editing that keeps accents, emoji, and CJK text intact.

Installation

Prebuilt binaries

Download the archive for your system from Releases: Linux x86_64, macOS Apple Silicon, or FreeBSD x86_64. Each archive contains the executable, license, and example themes. Check the release notes for OS requirements and verify your download against SHA256SUMS.

For example, on Linux:

tar -xzf dtask-v1.0.0-linux-x86_64.tar.gz
mkdir -p ~/.local/bin
install -m 755 dtask-v1.0.0-linux-x86_64/dtask ~/.local/bin/dtask
dtask

Use the matching archive and extracted directory on macOS or FreeBSD. Add ~/.local/bin to your PATH if needed. No compiler is required.

From source

dtask needs LDC 1.43.0 or newer and GNU Make.

git clone https://github.com/GuestAUser/dtask.git
cd dtask
./install.sh

The installer builds dtask and copies it to ~/.local/bin without sudo. It never edits your shell profile; if that directory is not on your PATH, it prints the command to add it. Use --prefix PATH to install elsewhere and DC=/path/to/ldc2 to choose a compiler. On FreeBSD, run MAKE=gmake ./install.sh and use gmake for the commands below.

To build without installing, run make and start ./bin/dtask. DUB works too: dub build --compiler=ldc2.

dtask runs on Linux (including WSL), macOS, and FreeBSD. It needs a UTF-8 locale and an ANSI/VT-compatible terminal of at least 48 columns by 20 rows; truecolor is recommended, and joined emoji need a terminal with grapheme-aware cell widths. CI tests Linux x86_64, macOS arm64, and FreeBSD 14.4 x86_64; see the compatibility notes. Native Windows consoles are not supported.

Usage

Run dtask to open the workspace, and press ? for the full shortcut reference.

Key	Action
j / k, arrows	Move the selection
n	New task
e, Enter	Edit the selected task
v	Read the full description
Space	Complete or reopen
p	Cycle priority
d	Delete, after confirmation
/	Search titles and notes
1 2 3 4	Open, Today, All, Done
m / r	Toggle effects / reload the theme
Esc	Cancel, or clear the search
q, Ctrl-C	Quit

Click a task to select it and its checkbox to complete it. Clicking a due date opens the calendar, and clicking a priority opens the editor on that field. To reschedule, drag a task onto Today, Tomorrow, Weekend, Next week, or No date; Esc, a resize, or a drop outside the targets cancels the drag.

In the editor, Tab moves between fields and Edit description opens a multiline draft. Save applies your changes and Cancel discards them. Pasted text is never treated as shortcuts.

Dates accept YYYY-MM-DD, today, tomorrow, weekdays such as fri or next monday, next week (the next Monday), weekend (the nearest Saturday), +7d, and in 7 days. Use none to clear a date. The Today view also lists overdue tasks.

A slow glint marks focus, drop-target, and status changes, then settles. It never delays input and stays off while you edit, search, or read help. Press m to toggle it, or set DTASK_REDUCED_MOTION=1 to start without it.

Command line

dtask add "Prepare the release" --priority high --due tomorrow
dtask add "Review proposal" --notes "Check the migration section"
dtask list --all --json
dtask done 1
dtask delete 1

done is idempotent, and deleting from the command line is immediate; the workspace asks first. Use --data PATH for a separate task file, --theme PATH for a theme, and --help for every option.

Configuration

File	Default location
Tasks	~/.local/share/dtask/tasks.json
Theme	~/.config/dtask/theme.json

XDG_DATA_HOME and XDG_CONFIG_HOME override the base directories. Changes are saved atomically, and each open task file has a single writer, so close the workspace before running the CLI on the same file.

The default theme is Gruvbox Hard. Copy it, Midnight, or Ember to the theme location, or override only the colors you want:

{
  "name": "Custom",
  "accent": "#83A598",
  "selected": "#504945"
}

Colors use #RRGGBB. Press r to reload the theme; an invalid file keeps the current palette. A theme file created while dtask is running is picked up on the next start.

Development

make test

The suite covers the model and storage, input decoding, rendering helpers, and real terminal sessions. Integration tests need Python 3.10 or newer and use temporary task files. See CONTRIBUTING.md for build options and conventions.

License

MIT