Real Tasks

An Obsidian plugin that deletes task lines shortly after their checkbox is ticked. Your notes keep only the tasks that still need doing — no graveyard of strikethroughs, no manual cleanup.

Why

Most task workflows leave completed tasks in the file as - [x] lines. That's great if you want a historical log; it's noise if you want your notes to function like a todo app. Real Tasks removes that noise automatically while preserving undo.

How it works

• When you check off a task in the editor, Real Tasks waits 800 ms, then removes the whole line via the editor API. Undo (Cmd/Ctrl-Z) restores it.
• When a task gets completed programmatically — for example by Dataview checkbox clicks in an embedded query, or by a sync client — Real Tasks catches the vault.modify event, waits 400 ms, and rewrites the file with the completed lines stripped out.
• A ribbon button and command insert a new - [ ] task line at the cursor, ready to type.

Features

• Auto-delete completed task lines (- [x], - [X], * [x], + [x]).
• Short delay after completion to allow for accidental clicks (Cmd/Ctrl-Z to recover).
• Works from both the editor and external writes (Dataview, sync, external tools).
• Ribbon icon and command Insert new task for quick task creation.
• Command Sweep completed tasks in this note now for ad-hoc cleanup.
• Desktop and mobile support.

Usage

1. Install and enable the plugin.
2. Write tasks as normal: - [ ] something to do.
3. Check the box. ~1 second later the line vanishes.
4. Accidentally checked? Press Cmd/Ctrl-Z within the delay window, or immediately after, to restore the line.
5. Tap the ribbon icon (a check-square) to insert a new task at your cursor. Optionally bind Insert new task to a hotkey in Settings → Hotkeys.

Commands

Compatibility

• Tested on Obsidian 1.4.0 and above.
• Desktop and mobile (iOS, Android).
• Compatible with Dataview TASK queries — checking a task in an embedded Dataview result triggers the auto-delete.

Installation

Community plugins (once published)

1. Open Settings → Community plugins.
2. Search for Real Tasks.
3. Install and enable.

Manual install

1. Download main.js and manifest.json from the latest release.
2. Create a folder <VAULT>/.obsidian/plugins/real-tasks/.
3. Drop both files inside.
4. Enable the plugin in Settings → Community plugins.

Settings

No settings page in this release. Everything runs on sensible defaults. Future versions may expose the delete delay and checkbox filters.

Development

• main.js is hand-written plain JavaScript — no build step, no bundler, no TypeScript.
• To modify locally, edit main.js then reload the plugin via Settings → Community plugins toggle, or restart Obsidian.

License

MIT