The date picker is how you set a date field, and its best feature is that you can type the date in plain words. "next tuesday", "3 days from now", "tomorrow": Operon reads the phrase and offers the matching date, so you rarely reach for a calendar. The same picker, with a time added, sets the timed fields.

This picker serves two property types: Date fields (dateDue, dateScheduled, dateStarted, dateCompleted, dateCancelled) and Date & time fields (datetimeStart, datetimeEnd, datetimeRepeatEnd). See Inline task syntax for the stored formats.

Choose how task dates look

The Date format setting in Settings → Operon → General, directly below Time format, controls how supported task dates are displayed:

• YYYY-MM-DD — 2026-09-03, the default.
• DD/MM/YYYY — 03/09/2026.
• MM/DD/YYYY — 09/03/2026.

This is a display preference, not a storage format. Task fields remain canonical ISO values such as 2026-09-03, and changing the setting does not rewrite tasks, change Daily or Weekly Note filenames, or alter Calendar and Gantt headers. Date & time displays combine this preference with the separate 12-hour or 24-hour Time format setting.

The selected date in the picker input and the date shown beside suggestions such as Today and Tomorrow follow this setting. Relative labels and weekday names still follow the interface language. Custom keys typed as Date or Date & time use the same display behavior; their saved values remain unchanged.

MEDIA-DOCS-063-1: The date picker open, with a typed phrase and the matching date suggested below.

Type the date in words

Open the picker and start typing. As you type, it suggests dates that match. It understands, in your interface language:

• Named days: today, tomorrow, yesterday.
• Weekdays: next tuesday, and the coming weekday by name.
• Relative offsets: a number and a unit, like 3 days from now or 2 weeks ago. You can shorten the unit to its first letters, so 3 d, 3 w, and 3 m stand for days, weeks, and months. Both directions are offered, future and past, so you pick the one you mean.
• Just a number: type only 3 and Operon offers 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months, in both directions, so you can choose the unit from the list.
• Day and month: type the day first, then a month name, like 3 march. A partial month name matches too, so 3 m also suggests calendar dates whose month starts with m, such as March 3 and May 3. Operon picks the next upcoming occurrence within the coming year. The number always leads: 3 aug works, but aug 3 does not.
• Explicit dates: an ISO date such as 2026-05-31.

In every typed form except a full ISO date, the number comes first. You write the count or the day, then the unit or month name, so it is always 3 days, 3 m, or 3 aug, never aug 3. The date shown beside the suggestion follows your Date format, but what you type stays number-first.

The suggestions are intentionally broad while you are still typing, so a short query can surface several readings at once. Typing 3 m, for example, offers 3 months from now and 3 months ago as offsets, plus March 3 and May 3 as calendar dates, since both months begin with m. Keep typing to narrow it: 3 march settles on the single date.

The placeholder itself reminds you of the idea: "Type a date like next tuesday." Pick a suggestion to set the field.

Brazilian Portuguese dates

When the interface language is Brazilian Portuguese (pt-BR), the picker uses its own Portuguese grammar. Verified examples include Hoje, Amanhã, terça-feira, daqui a 3 dias, 15 agosto, and 15/08/2026. Accents and letter case in supported Portuguese words are accepted, and 15 de agosto is also valid.

This grammar fails closed. An unrecognized English phrase such as next Tuesday or august 15, and incomplete or unsupported Portuguese such as há 3 sem, produces no date suggestion. Operon does not fall back to English parsing or nldates for pt-BR; that avoids silently interpreting a phrase from the wrong language.

Or pick from the calendar

If you would rather see the month, the picker also shows a calendar grid. Move by month or year, click a day, and use Today to jump to the current day or Clear to empty the field. Typing and clicking are two ways into the same control; use whichever is faster for the date you want.

MEDIA-DOCS-063-2: The calendar grid in the date picker, with Today and Clear actions.

Adding a time

For a Date & time field, the picker also takes a time, so you set both the day and the moment. This is what turns a task into a timed block on the Calendar. One pairing rule applies: an end time (datetimeEnd) only makes sense once a start (datetimeStart) is set, so Operon asks for the start first.

Removing a date

A date field can be emptied. When a field already has a value, the picker offers to remove it, which clears the field rather than setting a new date. This is how you unschedule or drop a deadline from the editor.

FAQ

Do I have to use a calendar? No. Typing a phrase like "next friday" is usually faster, and the calendar is there when you want it.

What date phrases work? Named days (today, tomorrow), weekdays (next tuesday), offsets (3 days from now, 2 weeks ago), a bare number for a quick offset (3), and a day with a month name written number-first (3 march), in your interface language.

Why doesn't aug 3 work? The day always comes before the month, so write 3 aug, not aug 3. Operon reads a typed date number-first; the separate Date format setting controls only how the resolved date is shown.

Does Date format change what Operon saves? No. It changes supported task-date labels, picker inputs, and suggestion dates only. Operon still saves task dates as canonical ISO values.

Why does 3 m show months and calendar dates together? While you type, Operon reads a short query both ways: 3 m as an offset (3 months) and as a day with a month starting with m (March 3, May 3). Type more, such as 3 march, to narrow it to one.

Which Portuguese date phrases work? With Brazilian Portuguese selected, use complete Portuguese forms such as Hoje, Amanhã, terça-feira, daqui a 3 dias, 15 agosto, or 15/08/2026. Unsupported or partial phrases are rejected instead of being interpreted through English.

Why can't I set an end time? A timed end needs a start first. Set datetimeStart, then the end.

Related

• Operon Docs MOC
• Recurrence picker
• Custom field pickers