C++ Task Tracker CLI

Task Tracker is a simple command-line interface (CLI) application built entirely in C++ (using C++20 standards) to help you manage your tasks. It allows you to add new tasks, update existing ones, mark their progress (todo, in-progress, done), delete tasks, and list them based on their status.

This project serves as a practical exercise in C++ programming, covering:

• Command-line argument parsing (argc, argv)
• File I/O using standard C++ libraries (<fstream>)
• Basic manual JSON parsing and serialization (without external libraries)
• Object-Oriented Programming principles (using a Task class)
• Working with standard containers (std::vector) and algorithms (<algorithm>)
• Date and time handling (<chrono>)

Features

• Add Tasks: Add new tasks with a description.
• Update Tasks: Modify the description of an existing task.
• Delete Tasks: Remove tasks by their unique ID.
• Track Status: Mark tasks as todo, in-progress, or done.
• List Tasks:
  • List all tasks.
  • List tasks filtered by status (todo, in-progress, done).
• Data Persistence: Tasks are saved to a tasks.json file in the current directory.
• No Dependencies: Uses only standard C++ libraries.

Prerequisites

• A C++ compiler supporting C++11 or later (e.g., g++, Clang).
• A command-line terminal or shell (Linux, macOS, Windows with MinGW/WSL/Developer Command Prompt).

Building the Application

To Compile the program: Open your terminal, navigate to the directory containing task-cli.cpp, and run the command:

 g++ task-cli.cpp -o task-cli -std=c++20

If successful, you will find an executable file named task-cli (or task-cli.exe) in the same directory.

Usage

Run the application from your terminal using the compiled executable (./task-cli on Linux/macOS, task-cli.exe or .\task-cli.exe on Windows).

Command Line Syntax:

./task-cli <command> [arguments...]

Available Commands

• add <"description">

  • Adds a new task with the given description.
  • Important: Enclose the description in double quotes (") if it contains spaces.
  • Example: ./task-cli add "Buy groceries and cook dinner"

• update <id> <"description">

  • Updates the description of the task with the specified <id>.
  • Important: Enclose the new description in double quotes (") if it contains spaces.
  • Example: ./task-cli update 1 "Buy groceries only"

• delete <id>

  • Deletes the task with the specified <id>.
  • Example: ./task-cli delete 3

• mark-in-progress <id>

  • Marks the task with the specified <id> as 'in-progress'.
  • Example: ./task-cli mark-in-progress 2

• mark-done <id>

  • Marks the task with the specified <id> as 'done'.
  • Example: ./task-cli mark-done 1

• mark-todo <id>

  • Marks the task with the specified <id> as 'todo'.
  • Example: ./task-cli mark-todo 2

• list [filter]

  • Lists tasks.
  • If no [filter] is provided or all is used, lists all tasks.
  • Optional [filter] can be one of: todo, in-progress, done.
  • Examples:
    • ./task-cli list (Lists all tasks)
    • ./task-cli list done (Lists only completed tasks)
    • ./task-cli list todo (Lists only tasks yet to be started)

• help or --help

  • Displays the usage instructions and available commands.
  • Example: ./task-cli help

Data Storage

• Tasks are stored in a JSON file named tasks.json.
• This file is created automatically in the same directory where you run the task-cli executable if it doesn't already exist.
• The file contains a JSON array of task objects, each having id, description, status, createdAt, and updatedAt fields.

Limitations

• Basic JSON Handling: The JSON parsing and serialization are implemented manually without external libraries. This makes the handling less robust than using a dedicated library. It may fail if the tasks.json file is manually edited incorrectly or contains complex escaped characters not handled by the basic escaping/unescaping logic.
• Error Handling: Basic error handling is implemented, but more complex edge cases might not be covered.
• Concurrency: This application is not designed for simultaneous use by multiple processes or users modifying the same tasks.json file.

Project Page URL

• Project hosted at: https://roadmap.sh/projects/task-tracker