How can I add extra logging to my tasks?

While Mechanic will only perform actions for well-formed action definitions, Mechanic records and displays all JSON objects generated by a task. This means that you can create your own logging by adding code like this to your task scripts:

{% capture message %}
  The current Unix timestamp is {{ "now" | date: "%s" | json }}.
{% endcapture %}

{% log message %}

This example uses the "log" tag. A task which only contains this code will result in something like this:

To show data while working on a task script, use the "echo" action instead:

{% capture message -%}
  The current Unix timestamp is {{ "now" | date: "%s" | json }}.
{%- endcapture %}

{% action "echo" message %}

This allows you to receive immediate feedback in the task preview area, on the right-hand side of the task options.