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This initiative brings core Playbooks functionality—such as viewing active runs, checking tasks, posting updates, and finishing runs—to mobile devices (phones and tablets). By providing a streamlined interface for essential features, we reduce friction for users who are frequently away from a desktop environment.
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Scope
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Phase 1
Accessing Runs:
Channel banner header icon button indicating active runs
Channel info menu item to view runs
Channel bottom sheet menu item to view runs
Runs list tied to each channel
In progress/Finished filter
Run Detail
View run name, summary, owner, participants
Check/Uncheck tasks
View task details and attributes
Tablets & iPad
Same functionality, optimized for a larger screen
Link Handling for Playbook Runs
Phase 2
View run details when offline
Post status updates
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Tasks
View task details and attributes
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Skip task
Edit task attributes
Run slash commands
Finish a Run
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Option to close out a run from the mobile run details screen
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Tablets & iPad
Same functionality, optimized for a larger screen
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Run details
Edit owner
Edit run name and summary
Interact with runs when offline
Phase 1
Accessing a run
Runs will be accessible from within the channel linked to that run. There are a few different places where Runs linked to a channel will be surfaced.
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Highlighting new runs We can optionally show an unread indicator on the runs icon button whenever there is a new run that the user has not seen yet.  There might be technical complexities in defining and tracking when a run should be marked as ‘viewed’. From a UX perspective, here’s what it can mean to mark a run as viewed:
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The menu item also shows the number of runs in progress. Tapping on the `Playbook runs` menu item navigates the user to the same Runs list screen for that channel, even if there is just 1 active run in the channel.
When there arr no in-progress runs, the menu item will be there without a number on the right. Tapping on it will navigate the user to the list of Finished runs for the channel.
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Channel ••• bottom sheet
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Once the user selects “Playbook runs” (via bannerthe header icon button, modal, or bottom sheet), they arrive at a screen listing all runs tied to that channel.
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For the MVP, we can sort runs by recently updated.
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Too many runs (Nice to have) For finished runs, the list will keep growing over time as there is usage. We should consider a lazy loading mechanism here and only load ~20 runs at a time, and then load more as the user scrolls. There can be a loading indicator added at the bottom when the user scrolls down to the end.  |
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Run name
Run summary
Owner and Participants (read-only for MVPPhase 1)
Update due in …XX min/hour/days
Post Update buttonChecklists and tasks
Tasks & Checklists
The lower portion of the Run Details screen shows tasks
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Finish run button
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, grouped by checklists. This section will show all tasks in the run for the MVP, irrespective of whether they are unchecked, checked, or skipped.
The only action possible on a Checklist group will be to expand or collapse it. Tapping anywhere on the checklist title row should toggle this.
Check Off a Task
The user can tap the checkbox in the Run Details view to mark it as complete.
If a task is in the skipped state, tapping on the checkbox should take it to the unchecked state.
Task Details
The entire task title should be visible up front in the Run Details view for Phase 1.
Task description should be visible but truncated after 2 lines.
Tapping on the task name, description, or attribute area will not trigger any action.
Known limitation: There will be no way for the user to view the entire task description in Phase 1.
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Note: For Phase 1, the user cannot take any action on a task apart from checking or unchecking it. Viewing task details in a bottom sheet, ability to skip tasks, and the ability to edit task attributes will be added in Phase 2. Adding or reordering tasks and checklists, editing task title and description, and task actions will be added in subsequent phases |
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Tablet and iPad Support
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It is essential for all these features to work as well on Tablets and iPads.
Note: Test on iPad with Split view as well.
Link Handling for Playbook Runs
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When a run is linked in the channel(e.g., a run link posted in the channel, custom playbooks bot messages mentioned above), tapping the link should bring up the Run Details modal in the mobile app.
If the user lacks permission to view the run, show an error alert.
Edge Cases
No Connectivity:
If the user attempts to view the runs list, run details, or check off a task while offline, there should be a clear error message shown to the user asking them to check their connection and trying again.
No In-Progress Runs:
The runs icon button is hidden in the channel header. The “Playbook runs” menu item is still present, but filters default to Finished runs.
No runs at all in a channel (In-progress and Finished)
The runs icon button in the channel header and the “Playbook runs” menu items are hidden for the channel. This is because we don’t have the ability to start a run, hence leaving nothing for users to view or an action to take once they go to Playbook runs.
Permissions:
If a user is not a participant in a run, they should not see that run in the channel header icon button or in the playbook runs list. The run should not be counted while displaying the number of in-progress runs for that user.
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Phase 2
Post Status Updates
The user can tap the “Post update” button on the Run Details screen.
Behavior:
A modal appears similar to what happens in the webapp. It should have text at the top informing the user where this update will be posted. There should be a text field for adding in the status update. This field should be focused by default and be pre-populated with the template or the last update, as it works in the web app.
There should be another field for the
Timer for next updateand it should have a default value selected as per the playbook configuration. The user can edit this value by selecting any of the other options in the dropdown menu.Note: the user will not be able to set a custom timer for the next update in this MVP.
Finally, there should be a checkbox to
Also mark the run as finishedsimilar to the webapp.Once the user is done typing the update, they can tap on the
Postbutton in the top right to post the update.
Result: The update is broadcast to the relevant channels as configured in the playbook.
Edge
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cases
Empty update: If the user taps the
Postbutton with no text in the status update, there should be an error and the field should be highlighted.
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Tasks & Checklists
The lower portion of the Run Details screen shows tasks, grouped by checklists. This section will show all tasks in the run for the MVP, irrespective of whether they are unchecked, checked, or skipped.
The only action possible on a Checklist will be to expand or collapse it. Tapping anywhere on the checklist title row should toggle this.
For every task, the title will be shown in 1 line and and the description can be shown in upto 2 lines. Any overflow will be truncated.
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No Connectivity:
If the user attempts to post an update while offline, there should be a clear error message shown to the user. Any data entered should not be lost and the user should stay on the post update screen so that they can copy the entered text before closing the modal or as they regain connectivity.
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Tasks
Check Off a Task
The user can tap the checkbox in the Run Details view to mark it as complete.
If a task is in the skipped state, tapping on the checkbox should take it to the unchecked state.
For every task, the title will be shown in 1 line and the description can be shown in upto 2 lines. Any overflow will be truncated. The full title and description can be seen in the bottom sheet when the user taps on the task details.
View Task Details
Tapping on the task name, description, or attribute area will open a bottom sheet with details:
Task checkbox
Task title (read-only)
Full description (read-only)
Actions - Check task, Skip task
Assignee (read-only in MVP; next iteration will allow editingEditable)
Due date (read-only in MVP; next iteration will allow editingEditable)
Slash command (read-only but clickable)
Clicking on a slash command should navigate the user back to the channel with the message input box in focus and the slash command already typed in. The user can send it as is or make changes if needed.
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Once confirmed, the run is marked as finished, an update is posted to the relevant channels, and the run is no longer displayed in the In Progress runs screen.
Tablet and iPad Support
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It is essential for all these features to work as well on Tablets and iPads.
Note: Test on iPad with Split view as well.
Link Handling for Playbook Runs
Status
When a run is linked in the channel(e.g., a run link posted in the channel, custom playbooks bot messages mentioned above), tapping the link should bring up the Run Details modal in the mobile app.
If the user lacks permission to view the run, show an error toast.
Custom bot messages
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Since the functionality to add a retrospective is not available on mobile, this custom attachment for filling out the retrospective report should not show on mobile. The message to notify users that the run as ended should only contain the text “@user marked Run Name as finished.
Edge Cases
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No Connectivity:
If the user attempts to take an action like post an update or check off a task while offline, there should be a clear error message shown to the user. In case of posting an update, any data entered should not be lost and the user should stay on that screen and be allowed to copy the entered text before closing it or regaining connectivity.
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No In-Progress Runs:
The runs banner is hidden in the channel. The “Playbook runs” menu item is still present, but filters default to Finished runs.
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No runs at all in a channel (In-progress and Finished)
The runs banner and the “Playbook runs” menu items are hidden for the channel. This is because we don’t have the ability to start a run, hence leaving nothing for users to view or an action to take once they go to Playbook runs.
Permission Issues:
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