209 lines
7.7 KiB
Markdown
209 lines
7.7 KiB
Markdown
# Bill Tracker — Future Improvements
|
|
|
|
**This document tracks potential future enhancements for Bill Tracker.**
|
|
|
|
**Last Updated:** 2026-05-30
|
|
**Current Version:** v0.34.2
|
|
|
|
## How to Use This Document
|
|
|
|
This file is a living document. Agents should:
|
|
1. Read this file before proposing changes
|
|
2. Add new recommendations with priority levels
|
|
3. Never add completed items — move those to HISTORY.md instead
|
|
4. Reference this file when dispatching improvement tasks
|
|
5. Only Ripley can remove items from this list. Notify Ripley if something needs to be removed.
|
|
|
|
### Priority Format
|
|
|
|
All items must include the priority emoji in their heading, matching the section they belong to:
|
|
|
|
| Priority | Emoji | Heading Format |
|
|
|----------|-------|---------------|
|
|
| CRITICAL | 🔴 | `### 🔴 Title — CRITICAL` |
|
|
| HIGH | 🟠 | `### 🟠 Title — HIGH` |
|
|
| MEDIUM | 🟡 | `### 🟡 Title — MEDIUM` |
|
|
| LOW | 🔵 | `### 🔵 Title — LOW` |
|
|
| NICE TO HAVE | 💭 | `### 💭 Title — NICE TO HAVE` |
|
|
|
|
Items are grouped under their priority section heading (`## 🔴 CRITICAL`, `## 🟠 HIGH`, etc.) and sorted most-impactful-first within each tier.
|
|
|
|
|
|
## Pending Recommendations
|
|
|
|
## 🟡 MEDIUM
|
|
|
|
### 🟡 Projected Cash Flow — MEDIUM
|
|
**Priority:** MEDIUM
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-16 by Ripley (from _null's prioritized roadmap)
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Show users what's coming: "You'll have $X left before the 15th", "Upcoming bills before next paycheck", and a "Safe-to-spend" estimate based on starting amount, unpaid bills, and scheduled income. Fits naturally with the existing 1st/15th bucket model.
|
|
|
|
**Scope:**
|
|
- "Remaining after bills" projection per bucket (1st half / 15th half)
|
|
- "Upcoming bills before next paycheck" list
|
|
- "Safe-to-spend" estimate based on starting balance minus unpaid bills
|
|
- Scheduled income support (payday amounts)
|
|
|
|
**Rationale:**
|
|
- The 1st/15th bucket model is already built — cash flow projection is the natural next step
|
|
- Most valuable feature for day-to-day money management
|
|
- Turns a bill tracker into a financial planning tool
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- Requires user to enter starting balance and payday amounts (new settings fields)
|
|
- Calculate: starting amount - unpaid bills due before next payday = safe-to-spend
|
|
- Files to modify: `TrackerPage.jsx`, `routes/tracker.js`, `user_settings` table (new fields)
|
|
- Estimated effort: 8-10 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
### 🟡 Recurring Payment Rules — MEDIUM
|
|
**Priority:** MEDIUM
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-16 by Ripley (from _null's prioritized roadmap)
|
|
|
|
**Status:** Partial — infrastructure built (auto_mark_paid column, confirm/dismiss APIs, UI for suggestions), but no proactive suggestion scheduler generating payments on due date.
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Auto-mark certain bills as paid on due date if `autodraft_status = assumed_paid`. Or create suggested payments awaiting confirmation. Good for autopay-heavy users.
|
|
|
|
**Scope:**
|
|
- Bills with autopay/autodraft get a "suggested payment" on their due date
|
|
- User confirms or dismisses the suggestion
|
|
- Auto-mark option: bills can be set to automatically mark as paid on due date
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- ✅ `auto_mark_paid` column + bill edit checkbox
|
|
- ✅ `applyAutopaySuggestions()` in trackerService handles auto-mark + suggestion generation
|
|
- ✅ Confirm (`POST /api/payments/autopay-suggestions/:billId/confirm`) and dismiss (`POST /.../dismiss`) endpoints
|
|
- ✅ Suggestion UI in TrackerPage with badge + confirm/dismiss buttons
|
|
- ❌ No proactive suggestion engine — only runs when tracker loads
|
|
- ❌ No scheduled task/cron to evaluate bills and create suggestions on due date
|
|
- Estimated effort remaining: 2-3 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
### 🟡 Calendar Agenda Mode — MEDIUM
|
|
**Priority:** MEDIUM
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-16 by Ripley (from _null's prioritized roadmap)
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Replace the month-grid calendar with an agenda view: Today / This Week / Next 14 Days. Group bills by "needs action," "autopay," "already paid." More useful when actually paying bills.
|
|
|
|
**Rationale:**
|
|
- Month grids are pretty but not actionable
|
|
- Agenda mode answers "what do I need to do right now?"
|
|
- Groups by status makes it immediately clear what needs attention
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- New view toggle on CalendarPage: Grid vs Agenda
|
|
- Agenda shows: Overdue → Today → This Week → Next 14 Days
|
|
- Each group sorted by due date, with action status badges
|
|
- Files to modify: `CalendarPage.jsx`, `routes/calendar.js`
|
|
- Estimated effort: 6-8 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
### 🟡 Filtered Exports — MEDIUM
|
|
**Priority:** MEDIUM (upgraded from LOW)
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-11 by Ripley (from _null's prioritized roadmap)
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Export only utilities, debts, overdue, date range, tax-relevant categories. Currently exports everything with no filtering.
|
|
|
|
**Rationale:**
|
|
- Users need "all Q1 utility bills" or "overdue payments this year" for reconciliation and tax prep
|
|
- `/api/export/user-excel` exports everything — no query params for date range, category, or status
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- Add query params to export endpoints: `category_id`, `start`, `end`, `status` (paid/unpaid/overdue)
|
|
- Files to modify: `routes/export.js`, `client/pages/DataPage.jsx`
|
|
- Estimated effort: 6 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
|
|
## 🔵 LOW
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
### 🔵 Payment Method Tracking and Summary — LOW
|
|
**Priority:** LOW
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-11 by Ripley
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
The `payments` table has a `method` column (free-text) but no way to see "how much did I pay via autopay vs manual vs credit card this month."
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- Standardize payment methods: enum or controlled list (autopay, bank_transfer, credit_card, check, cash, other)
|
|
- Add payment method breakdown to analytics or summary page
|
|
- Files to modify: `routes/payments.js`, `AnalyticsPage.jsx`, schema migration
|
|
- Estimated effort: 4-6 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
### 🔵 No Keyboard Navigation or Shortcuts — LOW
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-11 by Ripley
|
|
|
|
**Status:** Partial — Esc closes modals ✅, Cmd+K opens command palette ✅, arrow key tracker navigation ❌
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Only a skip link exists for keyboard accessibility. No `Cmd+K` to find a bill, no `Esc` to close modals, no arrow keys to navigate the tracker grid.
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- ✅ `Esc` closes any open modal/dialog (via Radix Dialog default)
|
|
- ✅ `Cmd+K` / `Ctrl+K` opens command palette (`CommandPalette.jsx`)
|
|
- ❌ Arrow keys navigate tracker rows when grid is focused
|
|
- Remaining effort: 1-2 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
### 🔵 Add comprehensive unit and integration tests
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-08 by Scarlett
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Currently no unit tests exist for components or hooks. The only testing is functional tests in `test-functional.js`.
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- Set up Jest + React Testing Library (or vitest)
|
|
- Test key components: BillModal, TrackerPage row, BillsTableInner
|
|
- Test hooks: useAuth, custom form hooks
|
|
- Test utility functions in `client/lib/utils.js`
|
|
- Estimated effort: 8-12 hours for baseline coverage
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
### 🔵 Missing Bill Grouping and Reorganization API
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-08 by Neo
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
No way to reorder bills, drag-and-drop, or group by custom criteria.
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- `sort_order` column to bills table (default NULL, ordered first by sort_order then due_day)
|
|
- `PUT /api/bills/reorder` endpoint accepting `{bill_id: new_index}`
|
|
- `PUT /api/bills/:id/archived` to soft-archive
|
|
- Estimated effort: 6 hours
|
|
|
|
---
|
|
|
|
## 💭 NICE TO HAVE
|
|
|
|
### 💭 Add consistent form state management pattern
|
|
**Priority:** MEH
|
|
**Added:** 2026-05-08 by Scarlett
|
|
|
|
**Description:**
|
|
Form state management is inconsistent across components. Some use `useState` for each field, others use form libraries.
|
|
|
|
**Implementation Notes:**
|
|
- Consider react-hook-form for complex forms
|
|
- Create reusable form field components (InputField, SelectField, etc.)
|
|
- Standardize validation approach
|
|
- Estimated effort: 4-6 hours
|