Search and Jump Bars

Most apps have one find field. 2Do has five, each tuned for a different kind of "find me this" moment. There's no single right one; knowing what each is for lets you find things whichever way fits how you work.

Surface	Shortcut	Purpose
Global Search Bar	⌘F	Filter the task list by Smart Filter syntax, and save the filter as a Smart List.
Task Find Bar	F (bare)	Find a task by title or note within the current list, without filtering it.
List Jump Bar	J (bare)	Jump to a list in the Lists Panel by name.
Tag Search Bar	/ (bare)	Find a tag in the Tags panel by name.
Quick Open	⇧⌘O	Jump to any task, list, project, or sub-task anywhere in the app.

The bare keys work from anywhere in the main window, as long as you aren't typing in a text field. You don't even need the target panel open: press J with the sidebar hidden, or / with the Tags panel closed, and 2Do reveals the panel for the search and puts things back the way they were when you're done.

tip

Three bare-letter shortcuts cover most "find me X" moments: F for tasks, J for lists, / for tags. They work from anywhere in the main window; if one isn't responding, you're probably typing in a text field, so press Esc or click out first.

The three in-place bars share one behavior model, so learning one teaches all three:

• Type and matching items highlight as you go; the first match is focused right away.
• ↑ / ↓ move between matches, wrapping at the ends.
• Return commits the focused match and closes the bar.
• Esc cancels.
• An exact-match toggle on the bar switches between loose and exact word matching; each bar remembers its own setting.

tip

The Global Search Bar lives in the toolbar; the three jump bars appear in-place over the area they search. The visual difference is intentional: the toolbar one is "filter and save", the in-place ones are "jump and go".

Global Search Bar: Filter and Save

The Global Search Bar is the magnifying-glass field in the toolbar. It's the entry point to Smart Filters: anything you can describe in the search syntax can be applied as a one-off filter or saved as a permanent Smart List.

• ⌘F: open the Global Search Bar. Clicking the magnifying glass expands and collapses it too.
• The search bar auto-collapses when you click away; it stays out of your face when you're not searching.
• Click the filter button in the bar (or press ⌥⇧⌘F) for Find Options: Search Presets, date filters (a fixed range, a rolling range, or tasks without a due date), the Soundex switch, whether Scheduled tasks are included, and the search scope.
• Click the + button at the end of the field to save the current filter as a Smart List. When you're viewing a Smart List and refining its filter, the same button becomes an update button instead.
• ⌥⌘F toggles the Search Scope between the current list and All Lists.

With Soundex on, 2Do can find tasks even when the spelling is not exact. For example, plumver can find plumber, Steven can find Stephen, and alexnder can find Alexander.

With Soundex off, the same field supports Full Text Search. You can require words with new job, exclude words with new job -find, match either word with Call OR new, or use wildcards such as new* (prefix), *book (suffix), and *ject* (contains).

Beyond free text, the bar understands nine reserved keywords that filter by a specific task property: type:, tags:, taggroups:, locations:, lists:, groups:, modified:, created:, and completed:. Combine them freely; sections are AND-ed by default, and a standalone OR before a keyword branches the query. For example:

type: hiprio AND duethisweek
lists: Work, Home type: duetoday
type: overdue OR tags: urgent

For the complete keyword reference, the type: preset catalogue, the AND/OR model, and dozens of copy-pasteable recipes, see Smart Lists, Smart Filters, and Search.

To include both tasks due today and overdue tasks, use type: duetoday OR overdue, or combine the two Due Date rules with Any. See Combine Today and Overdue for the full steps and how to check for a date range that could still exclude older tasks.

Task Find Bar: Find a Task by Title or Note

Use the Task Find Bar, also called Quick Find, to find a task within your current list or search results. Matching rows stay highlighted while other tasks remain visible, and your sort order stays the same.

1. Press F while you are not typing in a text field, or choose View > Task Find Bar.... The Go to... field opens at the bottom of the Task List.
2. Type part of the task's title. To search notes too, turn on the Search task notes button beside the equals button. Its filled state means notes are included. 2Do remembers this choice.
3. Use the equals button to choose how text matches. When it is on, the text must appear together in the title or note. When it is off, the letters can appear with other characters between them, in the same order. Both modes ignore capitalization.
4. Press ↑ or ↓ to move between matches. If a match is a subtask, 2Do expands its project or checklist to reveal it.
5. Press Return to select the focused task and close the bar, or Esc to close the bar and leave the selection where it is.

Note matching searches the full note, including text beyond the preview or when previews are hidden. A match in a note highlights the task row. If the matching text is also visible in the note preview, it is highlighted there too. The full note stays closed. In the example below, renewal finds Review the pricing page through its note.

Quick Find searches tasks in the current view. Use Quick Open to jump to a task elsewhere, or Global Search to change which tasks the list displays.

Task Find vs. Global Search

A small but important distinction:

• Global Search (⌘F) filters: the list collapses to just the matching tasks, hiding everything else.
• Task Find (F) jumps: the list keeps everything visible, the selection moves to the first match.

Use Search when you want to work on a subset. Use Find when you want to go to one specific task.

List Jump Bar: Jump to a List by Name

Got a sidebar with dozens of lists tucked into groups? The List Jump Bar lets you skip the scrolling and pick a list by name.

• Bare J: opens the List Jump Bar at the bottom of the Lists Panel. Or View > List Jump Bar... from the menu. If the sidebar is hidden, 2Do reveals it for the search and hides it again afterwards.
• Type any part of the list name. Matching lists highlight in place, and collapsed groups holding a match expand temporarily so nothing stays out of sight.
• ↑ / ↓ move between matches; press Return to switch to the focused one.
• Esc cancels, and any group expanded just for the search folds back.

Regular lists, Smart Lists, built-in Focus lists, and even the projects and checklists shown under a list's disclosure triangle all match by name. Groups themselves aren't jump targets; they simply open up to reveal the matches inside.

tip

The List Jump Bar keeps you in the sidebar, where you can land on a list and keep exploring its neighbors. When you already know exactly which list, task, or sub-task you're after, Quick Open takes you straight there from anywhere. Neither is the "right" way; 2Do simply lets you find things however suits the moment.

A Companion to the Disclosure Triangle

If you frequently jump into a project or checklist rather than just to its parent list, pair the List Jump Bar with the disclosure triangle that appears next to any list containing projects/checklists. See Lists and List Groups: Disclosure Triangle.

Tag Search Bar: Find a Tag by Name

Long tag library? The Tag Search Bar finds a tag in the Tags panel by name, which is useful when you want to filter by a tag or apply one but can't see it in the list.

• Bare /: opens the Tag Search Bar in the Tags panel. Or View > Tag Search Bar... from the menu. If the Tags panel is closed, 2Do opens it for the search.
• Type any part of the tag name. Matching tags highlight as you type, with the first match focused.
• ↑ / ↓ move between matches; press Return to select the focused tag.
• Or work with a match directly: click a tag to filter the Task List by it, or drag it onto a task (or a selection of tasks) to apply it.
• Esc closes the bar and clears the highlights.

Quick Open: Jump Anywhere

The four bars above each live inside a specific panel. Quick Open (⇧⌘O) floats above them all: type a few letters and jump to any task, list, project, or sub-task anywhere in the app, with your recently used tasks and lists offered the moment it opens.

It has a page of its own: Quick Open.