Use case · Telegram groups with topics

A task tracker for Telegram groups with topics

DeloPulse is a free Telegram bot for tracking tasks in work groups, including forum groups with topics. A task created in a topic stays in that topic: its card, the overdue notice, the Remind button and the comments all live there. Every assignee has a status of their own, so the card shows who has reported and who has not.

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Free, no sign-up. Works with and without topics.

How tasks behave in a forum group

Teams turn on topics to keep projects, shifts or clients apart. Tasks should follow the same split: whoever was asked for something in the “Website redesign” topic should find it there without digging through General.

A task lives in the topic where it was created

Send /task inside the “Website redesign” topic and the card appears in that topic. After the deadline passes, the overdue notice goes there too. The author’s Remind button and the comments stay with the card. Nothing about that task shows up in General or in the neighbouring “Hiring” topic.

When the bot answers a command or a button press, the reply goes to the topic the action came from. Messages that concern the whole group, such as the setup question and the registration card, go to General.

A topic for tasks that have no topic of their own

Some tasks start outside any topic: one created in the Mini App with the topic left at its default, or the next occurrence of a recurring task that was set up outside a topic. These go to the group’s topic for tasks. An administrator chooses it by sending /settings inside that topic and pressing “📌 Post tasks in this topic”, or in the group settings of the Mini App. The weekly recap arrives in the same place. Until a topic for tasks is chosen, all of these go to General.

Pick the topic in the Mini App form

The task form in the Mini App has a Topic field. Any member of the group can use it, and it lists the open topics the bot has already seen. The server accepts a topic only from that list, so a task cannot be sent into a topic of some other group by editing the request.

A message already in the topic becomes a task

Reply to it with a bare /task. The first line of the message becomes the title, the rest becomes the description, and the people @mentioned on the first line become assignees. The task stays in that topic. A bare /task with no reply starts a draft that also remembers the topic it was typed in.

By default the bot removes the command together with its own reply, so only task cards remain in the chat. A group can turn this off when the original message should stay visible, which is handy in a topic used for briefs.

A closed or deleted topic does not lose the task

If Telegram refuses to let the bot post in a topic because someone closed or deleted it, the bot tries General once, and the task continues there for good. The bot marks the topic as closed and sends its later messages straight to General until someone writes in the topic again. Other topics keep working as before.

The bot learns topics as people use them

The Telegram Bot API does not give a bot the list of topics in a group. DeloPulse remembers a topic the first time it sees a message there. If a topic is missing from the Mini App list, write any message in it and it appears.

Several people on one task, with a status for each

Topics sort work by subject but say nothing about who has finished. DeloPulse tracks that per person, the same way as in a group without topics.

One card, one status per person

Put Aziz, Kate and Rustam on one task and the card tracks three statuses. Kate is done, Aziz is working on it, and Rustam has not answered yet. The card reads 1 / 3 and names the people who still owe their part. When the last part is done, and accepted if review is on, the task closes.

Taking the task, then reporting back

An assignee first takes the task with “I'm on it” or turns it down with “Decline”, then reports with “My part is ready”. Pressing “My part is ready” straight away also counts as accepting. Both steps show on the card next to each name.

Review by the author, when you want it

Review is off by default. Turn it on for a task and a finished part goes to the author, who presses “Accept work” or “Send back”. A part sent back returns to that one assignee, and the others keep their status.

Reminders in private, one notice in the topic

24 hours, 3 hours and 1 hour before a deadline with a time, the bot writes in direct messages to the people who have not reported. Someone who has reported stops getting them. After the deadline, one message in the task’s topic names who missed it. The bot updates that list as people catch up and clears the message away when the task is closed.

Add the bot to a group

It works the same way in a group without topics. Turn topics on later and new tasks follow them.

Setting it up in a group with topics

There are five steps, and the first task can go out a couple of minutes after the bot joins.

1. Add the bot
Use the button on this page and choose the group. The suggested rights are deleting and pinning messages. The bot works without admin rights too, and tells you what it cannot do without them.
2. Answer the setup question
An administrator picks the group’s language and time zone, then the bot posts a registration card in General. If General is closed to the bot, send /start in any open topic and the question appears there.
3. Choose the topic for tasks
Send /settings in the topic where Mini App tasks, recurring tasks and the weekly recap should land, and press “Post tasks in this topic”. Skip this step and they go to General.
4. Let the bot see your topics
Each topic becomes known after the first message the bot sees in it. Busy topics are picked up on their own; a quiet one needs one message.
5. Ask assignees to open the bot once
A bot cannot write first. Until a person opens a chat with it, reminders cannot reach them, and the card marks that person with “Direct notifications are not connected”.

What it does not do with topics

Check these before you plan a workflow around the bot. Some come from Telegram and some are product choices.

A task does not move between topics

The topic is chosen when the task is created. If a task was posted in the wrong topic, cancel it and create it again in the right one. The only automatic move is the fallback to General when its topic is closed.

A reply thread is not a topic

In an ordinary supergroup, replies form threads that look a little like topics. The bot treats only real forum topics as topics, so a group without them behaves like any other group chat.

Chat messages are not tasks

An ordinary message with @mentions stays a message. A task is created with /task, by replying /task to a message, or in the Mini App. The bot does not parse or store ordinary conversation.

No board view per topic

There is no Kanban board, Gantt chart or time tracking. The Mini App has lists, a deadline calendar and per-person on-time statistics for the group as a whole.

What to check in any task bot for a forum group

Whichever bot or Mini App you try, these six questions show quickly whether it suits a group with topics. Test them in a spare group with two topics before moving the team.

Where does the card appear?

Create a task inside a topic. If the card lands in General, people working in the topic will not see it where they work.

Where do reminders and the overdue notice go?

Reminders should arrive in private messages. A public notice after the deadline should appear once, in the task’s own topic, and should not repeat every hour.

What happens when a topic is closed?

Close the topic and press a button on its task. A bot that silently fails here will lose tasks the first time a project ends and someone closes its topic.

Does each assignee get a status?

Put three people on one task. Some bots keep one shared status for the whole task, and then the card cannot tell you who is still working. The comparison of Telegram task bots shows which ones track each person separately.

Does it use the official Bot API?

A tool that asks you to log in with your Telegram account works through a userbot, which acts with your account’s access to every chat you are in. DeloPulse uses only the official Bot API, and each group’s data is kept apart from other groups.

Does it need a second app?

If the team has to install something or sign up, part of it will not. DeloPulse runs inside Telegram: commands and buttons in the chat, and a Mini App for lists and history.

See also: Telegram bot for task management · Assign tasks to employees · Track employee tasks · the guide to tracking assignments in a work chat.

Where it fits and where it does not

A good fit when
  • your group already uses topics for projects, shifts, sites or clients;
  • a task often has several assignees and you need to see which of them is late;
  • the team will not install another app;
  • the same duties repeat every week and should appear in the right topic on their own.
Look elsewhere if
  • you need boards, sprints, dependencies or time tracking per topic;
  • tasks have to move between topics as they progress through stages;
  • your team does not use Telegram for work.

Frequently asked questions

Can a Telegram bot track tasks in forum topics?

Yes. DeloPulse keeps a task in the topic where it was created: the card, the overdue notice, the Remind button and the comments stay there. Tasks without a topic of their own go to the topic for tasks that an administrator chooses, or to General.

What happens to a task if its topic is closed?

When Telegram refuses to let the bot post in the topic, the bot tries General once and the task continues there. The bot marks the topic as closed, and the rest of the group keeps working.

Can I move a task to another topic?

No. The topic is chosen when the task is created, in the chat or in the Mini App form. To change it, cancel the task and create it again in the right topic.

What if the General topic is closed to the bot?

Cards of tasks without a topic cannot appear while General is closed. Tasks created in open topics work as usual, reminders still reach people privately, and everything is in the Mini App. Reopen General, give the bot the right to manage topics, or choose a topic for tasks with /settings.

What does it cost?

Nothing. Every feature is free, there is no paid tier and no limit on group members, and topics work the same way in every group.

Two minutes to try

Post your first task in a topic

Add DeloPulse to the group, open the topic of your current project and send /task with two names and tomorrow’s date. The card stays in that topic.

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