Usage

After installation, an icon should have been added to the applications menu. Alternatively, Outspline can be launched from the command line.

Command options

Outspline can be executed with:

$ outspline

This is the command used by the icon in the applications menu.

By default, Outspline uses a configuration file located in ~/.config/outspline/outspline.conf; if it does not exist, it creates it with the default values. The -c option allows using a specific configuration file:

$ outspline -c /path/to/config_file

For a full list of the supported options, run:

$ outspline --help

Interface

User input

The user can interact with the database in several ways:

• The main menu at the top gives access to almost all the actions that can be done. It can be browsed with the mouse, or it can be opened with F10. The underlined letters can be used to rapidly select the entries with the keyboard.
• The tabs in the left and right notebooks have context menus that can be opened with a right click: they mirror specific actions from the main menu.
• The database tree and the various lists like logs, schedule etc. have their own context menus that can be opened with right clicks.
• Some actions can be executed through buttons and other controls. The buttons that have an underlined character can be also activated by pressing Alt plus the underlined character.
• Almost every action can be executed with global keyboard shortcuts that are shown next to the respective items in the main menu, and can be customized.
• Many actions can also be executed through special contextual keyboard shortcuts, disabled by default, that are available depending on what element of the interface is focused, and can be customized.

Throughout this guide, only one of these methods will be used in examples, usually the main menu action, for simplicity and conciseness.

Overview

In the simplest case, the main window will only show the database tree, and by default the logs right below.

screenshots/unsplit-0.8.1.png

If more than one log is installed, their associated icons will appear in a vertical toolbar on the left. The logs panel can be hidden if needed from the main menu or the associated keyboard shortcut.

If there are item editors or plugin interfaces open, they will appear in a pane tiled next to the database tree.

screenshots/split-0.8.1.png

Creating a new database

Once Outspline is started for the first time, a blank window will appear. In order to start working on a database, a new one must be created by selecting "New..." from the "File" menu.

screenshots/nodb-0.8.1.png

To create an item, select the dedicated action from the "Database" menu.

screenshots/firstitem-0.8.1.png

Undo and redo

The log that displays the history of the database is associated to a small notebook icon with a pencil.

screenshots/history-0.8.1.png

Entries with a blue rectangle at the left are actions that are done and saved in the database; entries with an amber rectangle are actions that are done but have not been saved yet; entries without a colored rectangle are actions that have been undone. These colors can be customized in the configuration file.

Editing an item

In order to edit an item, select the dedicated action from the menu.

screenshots/edit-0.8.1.png

An editor tab will be opened in the right notebook.

screenshots/editor-0.8.1.png

Here it is possible to change its text.

If some editor plugins are installed, they will appear above the text area: to access them, expand the respective bar by clicking on it or highlighting it with Tab and pressing Enter or Space.

Scheduling events

The scheduler plugin allows setting events associated to an item.

screenshots/scheduler-0.8.1.png

Multiple event rules can be associated to the same item, allowing to create complex scenarios. The rules here defined are computed from top to bottom, so that any except rules can be used to filter the rules above, but not those put below.

In order to add a new rule, select the "Add..." button: the rules list panel will be replaced by the rule editor.

screenshots/scheduler_edit-0.8.1.png

Several rule types can be selected with the choice widget. Each rule type has various controls to set. Each of them also has a "Time standard" option: "local" means that the selected dates and times will be based on the system local time, i.e. if the same database was opened in different terminals located in different time zones, the various events would always happen at the same local time; "UTC" means that the selected dates and times will be based on the UTC time, and will always happen at the set time wherever the system that opened the database is located.

Database tree icons

You may have noticed that some icons can appear next to database items.

screenshots/tree_icons-0.8.1.png

A + means that the item has multiline text. A @ means that the item has some event rules set. The characters used by these icons can be set or even disabled in the configuration file.

Schedule view

TODO: Describe the schedule view and the navigator

screenshots/schedule-0.8.1.png

screenshots/schedule_columns-0.8.1.png

screenshots/schedule_alarm-0.8.1.png

screenshots/schedule_colors-0.8.1.png

screenshots/schedule_snooze-0.8.1.png

Alarms log

When active alarms are snoozed, dismissed or their associated items deleted, the action will be added to the alarms log, which is identified by a bell icon.

screenshots/alarms-0.8.1.png

Note that action on alarms are treated separately from the other database actions, so undoing the last database action will not restore any closed alarms. Nonetheless, it is easy to find the item associated to an alarm in the log by right-clicking on it or using the keyboard shortcut shown next to the same action under the "View" menu.

Database search

Items in the open databases can be searched with the dedicated search interface.

screenshots/search-0.8.1.png