# Gemini Consultation: Task Management System Consolidation

**Date:** April 8, 2026  
**Consulted By:** Chronicler #69 (The Surveyor) + Michael  
**Topic:** Unifying 4 fragmented task tracking systems into one mobile-friendly solution

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## CONTEXT

We're Firefrost Gaming, a subscription-based Minecraft server community. We use Claude AI (Chroniclers) to help build infrastructure. Our documentation lives in a Gitea repository (`firefrost-operations-manual`).

**The Trinity (users):**
- Michael (technical lead, Type 1 diabetic, post-stroke — needs mobile-friendly tools due to medical alert dog requiring frequent desk breaks)
- Meg (community manager, often mobile/traveling)
- Holly (co-founder, Discord/server management, located in Newfoundland)

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## THE PROBLEM

We have **4 separate task tracking systems** that evolved organically:

### System 1: `docs/tasks/` (Original, Richest)
- **72 subdirectories**, each with a README.md containing full task specs
- Example: `docs/tasks/arbiter-2-1-cancellation-flow/README.md` (53KB of detail)
- Status is embedded in the README header, not YAML frontmatter
- **Pros:** Most complete specs, supports attachments/diagrams
- **Cons:** No quick overview, no mobile-friendly index

### System 2: `BACKLOG.md` (Quick Reference)
- **~32 task entries** in markdown tables
- Organized by priority (P1/P2/P3/P4)
- **Pros:** Easy to scan, prioritized
- **Cons:** Manual sync required, no individual task links, can get stale

### System 3: `tasks/` root folder (Mobile Manager)
- **9 simple markdown files** with YAML frontmatter
- Built for a React-based mobile task manager
- **Pros:** Machine-readable frontmatter
- **Cons:** Only 9 of 72 tasks migrated, duplicate of `docs/tasks/`

### System 4: `docs/tasks-index/` (Decap CMS)
- **4 card files** with YAML frontmatter
- Built for Decap CMS web interface
- **Pros:** Editable via web UI
- **Cons:** Only 4 tasks, Decap is not mobile-friendly

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## REQUIREMENTS

### Must Have:
1. **Mobile-friendly task viewing** — Michael needs to check tasks from phone/tablet during medical breaks
2. **Single source of truth** — One system, not four
3. **Quick overview** — See all open tasks at a glance with priority/status
4. **Link to details** — Tap to open full task spec (Gitea web view is fine)
5. **Low maintenance** — Should not require manual syncing between systems

### Nice to Have:
1. **Task creation from mobile** — Add new tasks without desktop
2. **Status updates from mobile** — Mark tasks complete
3. **Filtering** — By priority, owner, status
4. **Works for all Trinity members** — Not just Michael

### Constraints:
- **No SSH from Claude's sandbox** — Claude can only access via Gitea API and web
- **Static hosting preferred** — Site deploys to Cloudflare Pages via 11ty
- **Gitea is the repo** — Not GitHub (Gitea API is similar but not identical)
- **Budget-conscious** — Prefer free/self-hosted over SaaS subscriptions

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## WHAT WE'VE TRIED

### Gitea Issues + Kanban Projects
**Result:** "Failed miserably" (Michael's words). The UI was clunky, syncing was problematic.

### Decap CMS
**Result:** Works on desktop, but fundamentally not mobile-friendly. The interface requires too many taps/clicks on mobile.

### Custom React Mobile Manager (Chronicler #67)
**Result:** Works, but only reads from 9 task files. Doesn't see the other 63 tasks in `docs/tasks/`.

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## QUESTIONS FOR GEMINI

1. **Architecture:** What's the best way to consolidate these 4 systems? Should we:
   - Enhance `docs/tasks/` READMEs with YAML frontmatter and build an index?
   - Generate a static JSON index at build time from `docs/tasks/`?
   - Use a different tool entirely?

2. **Mobile Interface:** Is there a better mobile-friendly task viewer than custom React? Options we're aware of:
   - PWA with service worker
   - Simple static HTML generated at build time
   - Third-party tool that can read from Git

3. **Decap CMS:** Is there any way to make Decap mobile-friendly, or should we abandon it for task management? (We still use it for other content.)

4. **Sync Strategy:** If we keep `docs/tasks/` as source of truth, what's the best way to generate a mobile-friendly index? 11ty build step? GitHub Action equivalent for Gitea?

5. **Alternative Tools:** Are there any Git-based task management tools we haven't considered that would work better for our use case?

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## CURRENT TECHNICAL STACK

- **Repository:** Gitea (self-hosted) at git.firefrostgaming.com
- **Website:** 11ty static site on Cloudflare Pages
- **CMS:** Decap CMS (for non-task content)
- **API Access:** Gitea REST API with token authentication
- **Mobile Manager:** React SPA at `/admin/mobile.html`

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## DESIRED END STATE

1. **One folder** (`docs/tasks/`) contains all task specs
2. **One index** (generated or manual) provides quick mobile overview
3. **Status changes** in the README or frontmatter automatically reflect in the mobile view
4. **No manual sync** between multiple systems
5. **Trinity members** can view and ideally update tasks from any device

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## RESPONSE FORMAT REQUESTED

Please provide:
1. **Recommended architecture** with rationale
2. **Implementation steps** in priority order
3. **Estimated effort** for each step
4. **Alternative approaches** if the primary recommendation has issues
5. **Tools/libraries** you'd recommend (if any)

Thank you, Gemini! 🔥❄️
