The Asynchronous 'Scheduler' is an desktop based offline App designed to
help manage roleplaying (or non-combat) 'Tasks' performed by player or
non-player characters in table-top roleplaying games. Unlike typical
round-based combat which is often intended to occur roughly at the same
time—with each 'Actor' performing one or more actions within their
alotted turn—the Schedler is intended to manage 'Tasks' that take
disproportional amounts of time. With many 'Actors' potentially
performing disparate 'Tasks' that put their end-time at increasingly
difficult to keep track times, the App will manage that for you.
Overview
The primary view of the 'Scheduler' contains a digital readout of the
current time, as well as an analog clock displaying the current time and
the forecasted End Time for the 'Actors' based on their colors. Below
the Clock, and interfaces that will be covered below, is a
chronologically sorted timetable based on projected End Times. The
tables also includes information on whether the 'Task' can be
'Interrupted', 'Recovered' after Interruption, and whether it is
'Exclusive' to the 'Actor' or not. Lastly, if the End Time of the 'Task'
carries over past midnight, it will indicate that it finishes in the
'Next Day.'
Overview screen of the Asynchronous Scheduler
Clock Advance
The main operation of the 'Clock' and 'Scheduler' is the 'Advance Clock'
function. When pressing the associated button, the 'Master Clock'
representing the current "real" in-game time will advance to the
earliest 'Task' in the 'Scheduler.' The earliest 'Actor' and any of
those that share the same End Time, will transition to the 'Ready'
stage, indicated by the white background. This unlocks the ability to
assign them a new 'Task,' be it preconfigured or custom. Currently, the
'Actor Type' is only serves to indicate the user whether the 'Actor' is
a player, NPC, event, or any other custom label.
The Actor has completed their Task and is ready for a new one.
Update Actor
When one or more 'Actors' becomes Ready a new menu will open up above
the 'Scheduler' Table, allowing the user to select the 'Actor' and the
designated 'Task'. Pre-defined 'Tasks' contain a number of components
such as: duration, whether they can be Interrupted, and if Interrupted
whether it is Recoverable and if it is, whether it is Exclusive to the
original 'Actor.'
Once an 'Actor' and a 'Task' are selected, the user can proceed to
Update the 'Actor.' At that point they will be sorted into the
'Scheduler' based on the (current) time that they began the 'Task' and
its inherent duration. If no other 'Actors' are Ready at this moment,
the Update menu dissapears.
