Mobile Task Manager

Cross-platform mobile application for team task management with real-time collaboration and offline synchronization

Mobile Task Manager

A feature-rich cross-platform mobile application designed for team task management, featuring real-time collaboration, offline synchronization, and intuitive user experience across iOS and Android devices.

Overview

This project addresses the need for a comprehensive mobile task management solution that works seamlessly across platforms while maintaining high performance and user experience standards. The app supports both individual productivity and team collaboration with advanced features for project management.

Key Features

Task Management

  • Task Creation & Editing - Rich text descriptions with file attachments and due dates
  • Priority Levels - Visual priority indicators with customizable importance levels
  • Task Categories - Organize tasks with custom tags and project categories
  • Subtask Support - Break down complex tasks into manageable subtasks
  • Task Templates - Reusable task templates for common workflows
  • Bulk Operations - Select and modify multiple tasks simultaneously

Team Collaboration

  • Real-time Updates - Instant synchronization across all team members’ devices
  • Task Assignment - Assign tasks to team members with notification system
  • Comments & Discussion - Threaded comments on tasks with @mentions
  • Activity Timeline - Complete audit trail of task changes and interactions
  • Team Workspaces - Separate workspaces for different projects and teams
  • Permission Management - Role-based access control for team members

Project Management

  • Project Dashboards - Visual overview of project progress and deadlines
  • Kanban Boards - Drag-and-drop task management with customizable columns
  • Gantt Charts - Timeline view for project planning and dependency tracking
  • Progress Tracking - Automatic progress calculation based on completed tasks
  • Milestone Management - Set and track important project milestones
  • Report Generation - Automated progress reports and analytics

Mobile-First Features

  • Offline Support - Full functionality without internet connection
  • Push Notifications - Smart notifications for task updates and deadlines
  • Biometric Authentication - Fingerprint and face recognition login
  • Dark Mode - Automatic dark/light theme switching
  • Widget Support - Home screen widgets for quick task access
  • Voice Commands - Voice-to-text for quick task creation

Technical Architecture

Frontend (React Native)

  • Framework - React Native with Expo for rapid development and deployment
  • Navigation - React Navigation 6 with stack and tab navigation
  • State Management - Redux Toolkit with RTK Query for efficient data management
  • UI Components - Custom component library with consistent design system
  • Animations - Reanimated 3 for smooth, performant animations
  • Local Storage - AsyncStorage with encryption for sensitive data

Backend Services

  • Authentication - Firebase Authentication with multi-provider support
  • Database - Firestore for real-time data synchronization
  • File Storage - Firebase Storage for task attachments and media
  • Cloud Functions - Serverless functions for business logic and notifications
  • Analytics - Firebase Analytics for user behavior tracking
  • Crash Reporting - Firebase Crashlytics for error monitoring

Real-time Features

  • Data Synchronization - Firestore real-time listeners for instant updates
  • Conflict Resolution - Automatic conflict resolution for offline changes
  • Push Notifications - Firebase Cloud Messaging for cross-platform notifications
  • Presence System - Real-time user presence and typing indicators
  • WebSocket Fallback - Custom WebSocket implementation for enhanced reliability

Offline Capabilities

  • Local Database - SQLite with Watermelon DB for offline data storage
  • Sync Queue - Queued actions for when connection is restored
  • Conflict Resolution - Intelligent merging of offline and online changes
  • Cache Management - Efficient caching strategy for images and data
  • Network Detection - Automatic online/offline state management

Development Challenges & Solutions

Challenge 1: Cross-Platform Consistency

Problem: Maintaining consistent user experience across iOS and Android platforms Solution: Created a comprehensive design system with platform-specific adaptations and extensive testing on multiple devices

Challenge 2: Offline Synchronization

Problem: Managing data consistency when users work offline and sync later Solution: Implemented a robust conflict resolution system with last-write-wins and user-driven conflict resolution options

Challenge 3: Performance Optimization

Problem: Large task lists causing performance issues on older devices Solution: Implemented virtualized lists, lazy loading, and efficient data structures to maintain 60fps performance

Challenge 4: Real-time Collaboration

Problem: Ensuring real-time updates without overwhelming the UI or battery Solution: Optimized listener patterns and implemented smart batching of updates with user presence awareness

Key Metrics & Results

  • Performance - 60fps animations and <100ms interaction response times
  • Battery Life - Less than 3% battery usage per hour of active use
  • User Engagement - 78% daily active user retention rate
  • Cross-Platform - 99.8% feature parity between iOS and Android
  • Offline Usage - 40% of interactions work seamlessly offline
  • Crash Rate - <0.1% crash rate across all platforms and devices

Code Examples

Real-time Task Synchronization

// taskSync.service.ts
import firestore from '@react-native-firebase/firestore';
import { Task } from '../types/Task';

class TaskSyncService {
  private listeners: Map<string, () => void> = new Map();

  subscribeToProject(projectId: string, callback: (tasks: Task[]) => void) {
    const unsubscribe = firestore()
      .collection('tasks')
      .where('projectId', '==', projectId)
      .orderBy('updatedAt', 'desc')
      .onSnapshot(
        snapshot => {
          const tasks = snapshot.docs.map(doc => ({
            id: doc.id,
            ...doc.data()
          })) as Task[];
          
          callback(tasks);
        },
        error => {
          console.error('Task sync error:', error);
          // Handle error with retry logic
          this.handleSyncError(projectId, callback);
        }
      );

    this.listeners.set(projectId, unsubscribe);
    return unsubscribe;
  }

  private async handleSyncError(projectId: string, callback: (tasks: Task[]) => void) {
    // Retry with exponential backoff
    await new Promise(resolve => setTimeout(resolve, 1000));
    this.subscribeToProject(projectId, callback);
  }
}

Offline Queue Management

// offlineQueue.service.ts
import AsyncStorage from '@react-native-async-storage/async-storage';
import NetInfo from '@react-native-netinfo/netinfo';

interface QueuedAction {
  id: string;
  type: 'CREATE' | 'UPDATE' | 'DELETE';
  collection: string;
  data: any;
  timestamp: number;
}

class OfflineQueueService {
  private queue: QueuedAction[] = [];
  private isProcessing = false;

  async addToQueue(action: Omit<QueuedAction, 'id' | 'timestamp'>) {
    const queuedAction: QueuedAction = {
      ...action,
      id: generateId(),
      timestamp: Date.now()
    };

    this.queue.push(queuedAction);
    await this.saveQueueToStorage();

    // Try to process immediately if online
    const netInfo = await NetInfo.fetch();
    if (netInfo.isConnected) {
      this.processQueue();
    }
  }

  async processQueue() {
    if (this.isProcessing || this.queue.length === 0) return;

    this.isProcessing = true;

    while (this.queue.length > 0) {
      const action = this.queue[0];
      
      try {
        await this.executeAction(action);
        this.queue.shift(); // Remove successful action
        await this.saveQueueToStorage();
      } catch (error) {
        console.error('Failed to process queued action:', error);
        break; // Stop processing on error
      }
    }

    this.isProcessing = false;
  }

  private async executeAction(action: QueuedAction) {
    switch (action.type) {
      case 'CREATE':
        return firestore().collection(action.collection).add(action.data);
      case 'UPDATE':
        return firestore().doc(`${action.collection}/${action.data.id}`).update(action.data);
      case 'DELETE':
        return firestore().doc(`${action.collection}/${action.data.id}`).delete();
    }
  }
}

Task Component with Animations

// TaskItem.component.tsx
import React from 'react';
import { View, Text, TouchableOpacity } from 'react-native';
import Animated, { 
  useSharedValue, 
  useAnimatedStyle, 
  withSpring,
  runOnJS
} from 'react-native-reanimated';
import { Task } from '../types/Task';

interface Props {
  task: Task;
  onComplete: (taskId: string) => void;
  onPress: () => void;
}

export const TaskItem: React.FC<Props> = ({ task, onComplete, onPress }) => {
  const scale = useSharedValue(1);
  const opacity = useSharedValue(1);

  const animatedStyle = useAnimatedStyle(() => ({
    transform: [{ scale: scale.value }],
    opacity: opacity.value,
  }));

  const handleComplete = () => {
    scale.value = withSpring(0.8);
    opacity.value = withSpring(0.5);
    
    // Complete the task after animation
    setTimeout(() => {
      runOnJS(onComplete)(task.id);
    }, 200);
  };

  const handlePress = () => {
    scale.value = withSpring(0.95, {}, () => {
      scale.value = withSpring(1);
    });
    
    runOnJS(onPress)();
  };

  return (
    <Animated.View style={[styles.container, animatedStyle]}>
      <TouchableOpacity
        style={styles.taskContent}
        onPress={handlePress}
        activeOpacity={0.8}
      >
        <View style={styles.taskInfo}>
          <Text style={styles.title}>{task.title}</Text>
          <Text style={styles.description}>{task.description}</Text>
          
          {task.dueDate && (
            <Text style={[
              styles.dueDate,
              { color: task.isOverdue ? '#FF6B6B' : '#666' }
            ]}>
              Due: {formatDate(task.dueDate)}
            </Text>
          )}
        </View>
        
        <TouchableOpacity
          style={[
            styles.checkbox,
            { backgroundColor: task.completed ? '#4ECDC4' : '#E0E0E0' }
          ]}
          onPress={handleComplete}
        >
          {task.completed && <CheckIcon />}
        </TouchableOpacity>
      </TouchableOpacity>
    </Animated.View>
  );
};

Testing Strategy

Unit Testing

  • Jest with React Native Testing Library for component testing
  • Mock Services for Firebase and third-party integrations
  • Snapshot Testing for UI component consistency

Integration Testing

  • Detox for end-to-end testing on real devices
  • Firebase Emulator for backend integration testing
  • Device Testing across multiple iOS and Android devices

Performance Testing

  • Flipper for performance profiling and debugging
  • Maestro for UI performance testing
  • Firebase Performance for production monitoring

Deployment & Distribution

Build Pipeline

# .github/workflows/mobile-deploy.yml
name: Mobile App Deployment

on:
  push:
    branches: [main]
    tags: ['v*']

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Setup Node.js
        uses: actions/setup-node@v3
        with:
          node-version: '18'
      - name: Install dependencies
        run: npm ci
      - name: Run tests
        run: npm test -- --coverage

  build-ios:
    needs: test
    runs-on: macos-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Setup Expo
        uses: expo/expo-github-action@v7
        with:
          expo-version: latest
          token: ${{ secrets.EXPO_TOKEN }}
      - name: Build iOS
        run: expo build:ios --release-channel production

  build-android:
    needs: test
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v3
      - name: Setup Expo
        uses: expo/expo-github-action@v7
        with:
          expo-version: latest
          token: ${{ secrets.EXPO_TOKEN }}
      - name: Build Android
        run: expo build:android --release-channel production

App Store Distribution

  • Expo Application Services for automated builds and submissions
  • Fastlane for iOS App Store deployment automation
  • Google Play Console for Android distribution
  • Beta Testing with TestFlight and Google Play Internal Testing

Lessons Learned

  1. Platform Differences - Understanding platform-specific UX patterns is crucial for user adoption
  2. Offline First - Designing for offline scenarios from the beginning simplifies architecture
  3. Performance Optimization - Mobile performance requires constant attention to memory and battery usage
  4. User Testing - Regular testing with real users revealed usability issues not apparent in development

Future Enhancements

  • AI Integration - Smart task prioritization and scheduling suggestions
  • Voice Interface - Full voice control for hands-free task management
  • Wearable Support - Apple Watch and Android Wear companion apps
  • Advanced Analytics - Productivity insights and team performance metrics
  • Integration Platform - Connect with popular productivity tools and calendars

Links & Resources

This project showcases my expertise in mobile app development with modern technologies and best practices. The combination of cross-platform development, real-time features, and offline capabilities demonstrates my ability to build complex mobile applications.