Capture work from external sources and transform it to Timebook Work Items.
Inboxes in Timebook
You can enable Inboxes in to receive work from external apps and communication channels. We will then "translate" the contents of your Inboxes into Timebook Work Items so that you can manage all your work using one system.
The Inbox feature lets you configure a dedicated email address, create an online form to capture feedback, or connect with external apps. This ensures you can track and manage all Work Items regardless of their source. See the section below for specific information on settings available in particular subtabs of the [Inbox] tab.
After you enable Inboxes in the Team settings, you will notice a new [Inbox] tab in your Team. This is where you can manage work coming from external sources.
Below is the list of available subtabs in the [Inbox] tab of Team settings. Expand the sections to learn more about the options and features available in each subtab:
Statuses
This subtab helps you manage the [Status] field of the Work Items captured with your Inbox. You can create custom statuses for specific stages of Work Item progression.
Unlike predefined statuses, such as "To do," "In progress," and "Done", custom statuses are user-defined, and you can align them more closely with your project's unique workflow.
To turn on custom statuses in your Inbox:
In the Navigator, select a Team and press the [Team settings] icon next to it.
Select the [Inbox] tab and then the [Statuses] subtab.
Press [Turn on statuses]. You can now edit status types for all Work Items captured with this Inbox.
Once you enable custom statuses in your Inbox, you can start managing them:
Press anywhere on the status tile to change its name.
You can have multiple statuses for each progress stage, for example, two different "To do" statuses, four "In progress" statuses, and two "Done" statuses. But you must have at least one status in each of these stages.
You can create as many as eight "In progress" statuses. They should represent different stages in your workflow, like "Design, "Review", or "Testing". You can also rename any of them.
Optionally, you can use the "Draft" and "Canceled" stages and have multiple statuses there, too.
You can drag and drop statuses within one stage to change their order. You can also use the [Trash bin] icon on the right side of a status tile to remove it from the list.
You can also [Turn off statuses] using the dedicated button at the bottom. This changes the statuses of all Work Items across the Inbox to the default ones.
Automation
Use this subtab to enable automated processes in your Inbox. This feature reduces manual effort and allows you to focus more on the actual work.
The [Automation] subtab in the [Inbox] tab helps you manage the integration between your Work Items and Git code repositories. In short, the statuses of your Work Items in Timebook can change automatically after certain events in Git. And this subtab is where you can define these relationships.
To use the Git automation features, the integration between Git and Timebook must first be configured for . For more information, see Workplace integrations
To turn on automation in your Inbox:
In the Navigator, select a Team and press the [Team settings] icon next to it.
Select the [Inbox] tab and then the [Automation] subtab.
Press [Turn on automation]. You can now configure the automation of Work Items in this Inbox.
Once you enable automation, you can define how the Work Items captured with this Inbox should react to changes in Git.
Use the dropdowns to select different statuses for different scenarios. For example, you can decide that a Work Item should change its status to "Done" whenever a related Git pull request is merged.
Email
You can use the Inbox feature to capture feedback from emails. We will then "translate" every email sent to a dedicated address into a Timebook Work Item. In short, you can set up a mailbox and automatically turn all incoming messages into actionable Work Items.
With email-driven Timebook Inbox, you can collect feedback and turn communication into work with minimal effort.
To turn on the email feature in your Inbox:
In the Navigator, select a Team and press the [Team settings] icon next to it.
Select the [Inbox] tab and then the [Email] subtab.
Press [Turn on emails].
Configure your Inbox address at the bottom of the screen. The address is pre-configured with the Timebook domain, but you can modify (add) the first part.
Press [Save] to confirm.
You can share the newly created email address with others. For every incoming message, you will see a new Work Item in the [Inbox] tab of your Team. For more information on how to manage your work there, see Inbox (in Teams)
Form
You can use the Inbox feature to build an online form v. We will then "translate" every response submitted via your form into a Timebook Work Item. In short, you can set up an online form with a dedicated address and automatically turn all responses into actionable Work Items.
With form-driven Timebook Inbox, you can collect feedback and turn communication into work with minimal effort.
To turn on the form feature in your Inbox:
In the Navigator, select a Team and press the [Team settings] icon next to it.
Select the [Inbox] tab and then the [Form] subtab.
Press [Turn on forms].
You can now edit the preview of your form. You can change section headings, replace default hints, or hide sections. Customize text and messages to guide responders and ensure they provide the necessary information.
In the dedicated space below, create a custom address for your form. You can modify the last part of the address, while the first part relates to your Timebook Workplace.
Press [Save] to confirm. Others can now find your form using the address you created.
When editing a form, you can generate code to embed the form on other websites. Turn on the [Generate embed code for this Inbox] toggle, copy the generated code, and paste it on different sites to display your form.
Slack
You can enable Slack integration to capture feedback from a dedicated Slack channel. We will then convert each message posted in this channel into a Ticket and send it directly to your Team's Inbox. Additionally, replies to these Slack messages will show as comments to their corresponding Tickets.
With Slack-powered Timebook Inbox, you can collect feedback and turn communication into work with minimal effort.
NOTE: This will only work if your entire Timebook Workplace is integrated with Slack. For more information, see Workplace integrations
To turn on the Slack feature in your Inbox:
In the Navigator, select a Team and press the [Team settings] icon next to it.
Select the [Inbox] tab and then the [Slack] subtab.
Set the [Enable Slack integration for this Inbox] to ON.
Press the [Choose a Slack channel] button and use the dropdown menu to select the channel that will be used to feed your Inbox.
Press [Connect] to confirm your selection. We will create an Inbox Ticket for each message sent to the selected Slack channel.
