3.2 Issue List View

The primary point of navigation in AgileTrack is the issue list found in the Issues tab. The issue list can present various trees for navigation issue classification. It can be filtered in various ways. Issues in the list can also be edited. The details of the capabilities of the issue list are described in detail below.

Lists

Issues lists can be found in the views for releases, projects, and iterations. Issues have lists of sub-tasks. There is also the main issue list found in the Issues tab, which is the primary view and means of navigating tasks in the system. From the main issue list, a number of views are available.

• Issue Tree - The default issue list is a flat list of issues. Sub-tasks are included in the list and can be viewed by expanding the issues which contain the sub-tasks. The list automatically excludes issues which were completed more than a couple weeks earlier.
• Current Iteration - The current iteration list shows all issues assigned to the current iteration — the current iteration being the iteration whose time range overlaps the current date. Beyond that, it is essentially the same as the default issue tree.
• Defect List - The defect list view is slightly different than the other views. It is not a tree view and does not show sub-tasks, no projects. It list only defects, and only defects that have not been completed in the last couple weeks.
• Project List - The project list is another unique view. It lists all "Project" records, and it excludes "Component" and "Product" records. It does not construct a tree the follows the tree structure defined in the Projects tab. Rather it flattens the list of projects and shows the issues in each project. This view is intended to summarize projects in a simple view.
• Iteration Tree - The iteration tree lists all iterations and allows each iteration to be expanded to see the issues that are/were assigned to the iteration.
• Component Tree - The component tree builds a tree of "Project"/"Component"/"Product" records and lists the issues assigned to each as the tree is expanded.
• User Tree - The user tree lists all of the users and allows each user to be expanded to show the issues that are assigned to the user.
• Release Tree - The release tree build a tree of each release, as well as each iteration contained in the release. Expanding the release and individual iteration reveals the issues assigned to the iteration.

Issues trees can be viewed based on projects, iterations, releases, and user assignments. Also, special defect, iteration, and flat project views are available. To change the issue list tree, select the list from the left-most combo box at the bottom of the Issues tab.

Filter Options

The tree of issues being displayed can be filtered in various ways. Selecting filter options causes the current issue tree to be reconstructed with the filter rules in place. Filter rules are additive — for example, if an issue list is currently filtered by a selected iteration "Iteration 10", and then a specific user is selected "Bob Jones", the issue list will refresh to show all issues in "Iteration 10" assigned to "Bob Jones". Using the filter options effectively allows desired issue lists to be configured with ease.

When no search query is selected to filter issues, issues which have been marked "Closed" and have not been modified for at least a week are automatically excluded from the list. The way to view those old issues is to go to the Search tab and create a query to find the past issues, return to the Issues tab, click on the "Refresh" to activate the new query, and then select the query from the "Query" combo box.

There are several issue filtering options which are fairly straight-forward, but described below.

• Query - Users can create personal queries and use them in the issue panel. When a query is saved, it becomes available in the query combo box. Selected the query from the list will execute the query in conjunction with the other filter options. Any other selected filter in the issue view will take precedence over the options selected in the search. For example, if the search specifies "Iteration 10", but the issue view has "Iteration 11" selected, the search query will execute, but will use "Iteration 11" in the search.
• User - The user filter option finds only issues that are assigned to the selected user. If the user tree is being viewed, only the selected user will be displayed in the tree.
• Iteration - The iteration filter combo box offers all unfinished iterations as options for filtering. Issues currently assigned to the selected iteration will be listed. If the iteration tree view is active, only the selected iteration will be visible.
• Project - The project filter list provides a list of components that are currently in an "Open" state. Selecting a project will filter list all issues belong to the selected project or any of its sub-projects. When in the project list or component tree views, the projects displayed are only those which are decendants of the selected project filter.
• Search Field - The text field at the end of the list of filter items can be used to find issues based on a quick search string. The search looks at issue titles and descriptions for the keywords provided. The search field can also be used to lookup a specific issue number. If a number is typed into the search box, that particular issue will be listed.

Issues can be filtered using any of the available combo box options. Issues can also be searched using the text field. If an issue number is typed into the search box, it will be found directly.

Edit Mode

The main issue view has a special mode that allows issue properties to be edited in the table. The "Edit" toggle button in the bottom right corner of the view puts the list in edit mode. When in edit mode, the various issue properties can be edited directly by clicking on the field to be modified, e.g. the issue urgency, project, etc. After changing the selection, the change is saved immediately. Also, when in edit mode, a text field appears for creating new issues. Issues created when in edit mode are created as tasks. Because of the volitility of the issue list being in edit mode, all issue filtering and reloading is disabled until edit mode is closed.

Clicking on the pencil button in the Issues tab places the issue list into edit mode. While in edit mode, issue classification properies can be edited directly. New tasks can also be created quickly using the text field. The issue list cannot be refiltered or reloaded until edit mode is toggled off by clicking on the pencil button again.

Release, Project, Iteration Issues

Releases, projects, and iterations all have an Issues tab which displays the issues related to the record. The Issues tab also sometimes displays a number in the tab. The blue number indicates theeditmode number of tasks remaining in the list which are not marked completed. Notice that the issue list also has an input box for creating new stories. Any story created using the input box found in the Issues tab will be automatically assigned to the open project or iteration.

When viewing projects, releases, and iterations the Issues tab for the record lists all of the related issues, and highlights in blue the number incomplete issues. New issues for projects and iterations can be created using the input box provided at the bottom of the list.

Next Section: 3.3 Creating Stories/Tasks/Defects