How can a countdown timer be created and set within the app?

Support, Troubleshooting, & Help
1

Hi all,

I need to create a countdown timer using a variable that can be set in the input. and can press the start and stop buttons as needed.

I’ve tried step timer, but it can’t be set in the input and can’t be stopped.

Is it possible to create without using node-red?

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1 Like
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Hey @arsan.sri welcome to community!

You are totally right, you hit on a few of the biggest painpoints of the step timer, as the name implies, it basically only works with steps, so it is not super flexible. I will create a feature request to make the step timer way more flexible. The key limitations I see right now are:

  • Can only be tied to time in step and time in app, not some other user defined value.
  • Cant be stopped or reset without leaving the step.
  • Triggers can’t be fired when the timer completes.

Are there others I am missing?
Pete

3

@Pete_Hartnett

Thanks for the reply.

That helps a lot, so now I might have to find another way.

4

Has there been any progress on updating the step timer?

I am hoping to use the step timer to inform users how long the process should take. I really like how I can use a variable to input the target time. By organizing my steps using step groups, I can more easily utilize the “Time elapsed on Step” app information variables to continuously (although not in real time) update the timer given changes in the work environment. I would enjoy firing a trigger if the time runs out, but being able to use a variable for target time makes it possible to define a value AND makes it possible to reset.

I was wondering if visual updates to the step timer would be possible. Currently, the size of the font is determined by two things: Current countdown value and Widget size. If the current time is close to 0, the display text becomes bigger and vice versa. The font size also changes based on the widget size. This is very clunky and hard to design around. If the font size could stay static, I think it would be much easier to include. Lastly, but not as important, different time displays would be helpful. Currently the widget is locked to Minutes:Seconds. Some of our processes takes hours and even days, so different time formats would be nice to better visualize time left.

Thanks,
David