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Capturing Tasks

Add tasks to the system — both direct /add-task capture and the inbox-based triage flow.

Overview

agentic-gtd offers two capture paths: /add-task for immediate, well-specified tasks and tasks/inbox.md for raw, unrefined thoughts that need clarification before becoming plan-eligible.

Direct Capture with /add-task

Use /add-task when you already know the domain, description, and at least a rough priority.

Source of truth: ../../commands/add-task.md

Usage

/add-task fulltime Write onboarding doc for new team member  prio:long  effort:2h  context:@computer
/add-task side Publish blog post announcing v1.0  prio:side  project:saas-app  effort:1h  due:2026-06-20
/add-task knowledge Read "Shape Up" chapter 2  prio:long  effort:1h

Arguments

Argument Required Description
domain Yes (first token) Any domain registered in tasks/domains.md; aliases come from the registry's aliases column. Use /add-domain to register a new one. Built-in examples: fulltime, parttime, side / side-projects, oss / open-source, knowledge
task description Yes Free-form text before any key:value tags
prio:, project:, effort:, due:, context: No Optional tags

/add-task appends exactly one - [ ] ... line to the correct domain file. It never reorders or rewrites existing lines.

Inbox Capture

For raw thoughts, dump them directly into tasks/inbox.md. The Triage agent will clarify and file them later. The Obsidian dashboard also provides a Quick capture form.

tasks/inbox.md is never read by planning or sync commands — items there are invisible until triaged.

Capture-to-Domain Flow

The diagram below shows both capture paths and how items reach a domain file.

flowchart TD
    A["Raw thought / task"] --> B{Known domain\nand priority?}
    B -- Yes --> C["/add-task domain title tags"]
    B -- No --> D["Dump into tasks/inbox.md\n(or Obsidian Quick Capture)"]
    C --> E["Appended directly to\ndomain file (e.g. fulltime.md)"]
    D --> F["/triage-inbox\n(Triage agent)"]
    F --> G{"Enough info\nto classify?"}
    G -- Yes --> H["Propose well-formed task line\nwith prio/effort/context tags"]
    G -- No --> I["Flag in 'Needs human decision'\nsection — awaits your input"]
    H --> J["You confirm proposals"]
    J --> K["Appended to correct domain file\nInbox line marked [x]"]
    K --> L["Task visible to planning commands"]
    E --> L

Triage with /triage-inbox

/triage-inbox reads every open item in tasks/inbox.md, delegates each to the Triage agent for clarification, batches the proposals, and — after you confirm — appends the well-formed task lines to the correct domain files and marks the corresponding inbox lines [x] in place.

Source of truth: ../../commands/triage-inbox.md

Usage

/triage-inbox

Triage Agent Behavior

The Triage agent (see Triage Agent):

  • Converts raw notes into concrete next-action task lines
  • Assigns prio: by reasoning about the priority ladder
  • Infers domain and appends clarified tasks to the appropriate domain file
  • Flags ambiguous items in a ## Needs human decision section rather than guessing
  • Never invents due dates

Invariants

  • tasks/inbox.md is append-only — inbox lines are marked [x], never deleted
  • The append-only audit trail is always preserved
  • Markdown stays the single source of truth throughout

Obsidian Quick Capture

The Obsidian dashboard includes a Quick capture form at the top. Type any raw thought and click "Add to inbox" (or press Enter) — the item is appended to tasks/inbox.md immediately. The Inbox needs triage section lists all open inbox items.

To run triage from the dashboard: click "Copy triage command" — it copies /triage-inbox to your clipboard. Paste and run it in Claude Code.