HappyEverAfter User Guide

Welcome to HappyEverAfter - a quick, robust, and intuitive Wedding Planner designed to help wedding organisers keep track of their weddings. HappyEverAfter provides a plethora of features, including creating weddings and adding different people with different roles to each wedding. Wedding planning can get hectic, especially for a busy planner like you, and with just some simple commands, HappyEverAfter can help you get organised and sorted in no time!

Table of Contents

  1. Quick Start
  2. Feature Preface
  3. GUI Overview
  4. Features
  5. Data Storage
  6. FAQ
  7. Command Summary

Quick start

  1. Ensure you have Java 17 or above installed in your Computer. To check your Java version, open a terminal or command prompt and type java -version
    If Java is not installed or is an older version:

    • Windows / Linux users: Follow the instructions to download and install the latest JDK here : Java Installation
    • Mac users: Ensure you have the precise JDK version prescribed here.

  2. Download the latest version of HappyEverAfter

    • Click the following link here and download the file happyeverafter.jar. Ensure that you download from the latest release.

  3. Move the file to a folder

    • Copy the file to the folder you want to use as the home folder for your HappyEverAfter. The program will store program data and save data in this folder.
    • Tip : Choose a convenient folder location, such as a folder on your home screen. Ensure that you have read and write permissions to the folder.

  4. Running HappyEverAfter

    • Open the "Command Prompt" (for Windows, press Win + R, type cmd and hit Enter) or "Terminal" (for Mac/Linux, search for the Terminal app).

    • Enter cd followed by the folder location where you saved the HappyEverAfter file. For example:

      • On Windows: cd C:\Users\JohnDoe\Desktop\HappyEverAfter
      • On Mac/Linux: cd /Users/JohnDoe/Desktop/HappyEverAfter

    • Run this command to launch HappyEverAfter: java -jar happyeverafter.jar

    • A Graphical User Interface (GUI) similar to the image below should appear in a few seconds. Note how the app contains some sample data. You can choose to clear the data for a clean setup.

      Ui

  5. Type the command in the command box where it says Enter command here... and press Enter to execute the command.

    • See features for a comprehensive list of all commands and command summary for a brief overview.
    • Some example commands you can try:
      • list : Lists all weddings
      • clear : Clears all weddings
      • exit : Exits HappyEverAfter
      • new n/John and Janice's Wedding d/21082025 : Creates a new wedding named John and Janice's Wedding on 21 Aug 2025. Enter the subsequent commands when prompted.
        • add n/Janice p/98765432 e/janice@gmail.com a/Block 09 Prince George's Park t/bride : Add Janice as a bride
        • add n/John p/98989898 e/john@gmail.com a/Block 10 Prince George's Park t/groom : Add John as a groom
      • sort : Sorts weddings in ascending order of the date

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Feature-Preface

Some things you need to know about the features before getting started:

  • Commands are case-insensitive.

    • e.g. Help and help will run the same command.
    • However, parameters are not case-sensitive, unless stated otherwise.

  • Words in UPPER_CASE are the parameters to be supplied by you, the user.

    • e.g. in new n/WEDDING_NAME, you should replace WEDDING_NAME with the actual name, like new n/John & Mary

  • For commands requiring an INDEX (such as open or delete), all inputs must be a valid positive integer passed to the INDEX field.

    • If an invalid INDEX is passed (such as if the INDEX is larger than the number of weddings), an error message will be displayed.

  • Items in square brackets are optional.

    • e.g n/NAME [t/TAG] can be used as n/John Doe t/friend or simply as n/John Doe.

  • Items with …​ after them can be used multiple times including zero times.

    • e.g. [t/TAG]…​ can be used as (i.e. 0 times), t/friend, t/friend t/family etc.

  • Parameters can be provided in any order.

    • e.g. if the command specifies n/NAME p/PHONE_NUMBER, p/PHONE_NUMBER n/NAME is also acceptable.

  • Extraneous parameters for commands that do not take in parameters (such as help, list, exit and clear) will be ignored.

    • e.g. if the command specifies help 123, it will be interpreted as help.

  • Special role tags to identify the bride and groom:

    • Use t/bride to designate a person as the bride
    • Use t/groom to designate a person as the groom
    • A wedding must have both a bride and groom to be valid

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GUI Overview

HappyEverAfter uses a Graphical User Interface (GUI) to display visual information to the user. Here is a brief overview of the GUI.

Ui

On the left pane of the GUI, all weddings are listed. If you have more weddings than the height of the left pane, you can use the mousewheel to scroll down the weddings. Each wedding is displayed with the name of the wedding (eg Jason and Wendy) and the date of the wedding (eg 09 June 2025). The index of the wedding is displayed on the left of the name, from 1 onward. You can use this index for commands such as open and delete.

At the bottom of the GUI is the section for you to enter commands. Type in your command in the pane where it says Enter command here... and press Enter to run the command. The result of the command will be displayed in the grey pane above the input box.

Ui Opened

When a wedding is opened using the open command (eg open 1), it is set as an active wedding and displayed on the right pane of the GUI. The pane displays all members of the wedding, starting with the bride and groom. If the number of members exceeds the height of the pane, you can scroll within the pane using your mousewheel. Each member card displays the following information in order : The name of the person, the tags of the person, the phone number of the person, the address of the person and the email of the person.

Features

Wedding Management

Listing all weddings: list

You can view a list of all weddings in the wedding planner.

Format: list

sample result from the list command

Creating a wedding: new

You can create and add a new wedding to the wedding planner.

Format: new n/WEDDING_NAME d/DATE

Example:

  • new n/John & Mary d/25122025 : Adds a wedding named John & Mary that happens on 25 December 2025.
Note:
  • HappyEverAfter will prompt you immediately to enter the details of the bride and the groom to confirm the wedding. Follow the instructions given in the prompt to complete the creation of the wedding.
    • Each wedding must have exactly one bride and one groom.
    • Use t/bride to designate a person as the bride.
    • Use t/groom to designate a person as the groom.
  • See Adding a person to a wedding for more details.
  • You cannot add a wedding with the exact same WEDDING_NAME and DATE as one that already exists.

You will not be able to issue other commands while in the process of creating a wedding
To cancel creating the wedding, type n. To exit the app, type exit.

Restrictions on Parameters

Names:

  • Should not be blank.
  • Should be case-sensitive.
  • Can contain any amount of alphanumeric characters, spaces, and special characters.
  • Does not have to match the name of the bride and groom. You can name your wedding to what you see fit.

Dates:

  • The DATE Parameter has to be in the format DDMMYYYY.
    • e.g 25122025 for the 25th December 2025
  • Can be any date, past, present or future. We allow past dates for cases such as keeping records on past wedding events.

Opening a wedding: open

You can open a wedding from the Wedding Planner to view its people and edit its people.

Format: open INDEX

Examples:

  • open 1 : Opens the first wedding in the list
  • open 3 : Opens the third wedding in the list

After a wedding is open, the members belonging to that wedding will be displayed on the right pane as shown below. You can then proceed to perform further operations like adding members or editing members.:

An open wedding

Tip: You can open a new wedding without closing the current one. HappyEverAfter will automatically close the current wedding and open the new one.

Closing the current wedding: close

You can close the currently open wedding project to return to the main view.

Format: close

Sorting weddings by date: sort

You can view the displayed weddings by chronological order - with the earliest wedding at the top.

Format: sort

Deleting a wedding: delete

You can delete a wedding from the wedding planner based on the provided index.

Format: delete INDEX

Examples:

  • delete 1 : Deletes the first wedding in the list)
  • delete 3 : Deletes the third wedding in the list)
Note:
  • You can delete any wedding (even the open one) regardless if there is a wedding open or not.
  • When deleting the open wedding, it will close it on the right pane accordingly.

Clearing all weddings: clear

Deletes All weddings and associated contacts from the wedding planner.

Format:

  • clear followed by y will delete all weddings from the wedding planner.
  • clear followed by n will abort the delete operation, and it will not clear the weddings.
Note:
  • To prevent accidental deletions, there will be a secondary confirmation prompt issued after clear to confirm the deletion.
  • If you issue another command before issuing either the y or n command, the clearing will be automatically aborted.

Tip: You can use clear to set up a fresh wedding planner if you don't want the sample data.

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Person Management

Adding a person to a wedding: add

You can add a person to the opened Wedding Planner. You can use tags to specify if the person is a bride, groom, or other wedding party participant. The new person will be displayed on the right pane of the GUI.

Format: add n/NAME p/PHONE_NUMBER e/EMAIL a/ADDRESS [t/TAG]…​

Examples:

  • add n/Mary Muller p/98765432 e/mary@example.com a/123 Kent Ridge St t/bride
  • add n/John Danny p/89989788 e/john@example.com a/456 UTR Ave t/groom
  • add n/Harry Kane p/13701978 e/kane@example.com a/789 NUS Rd t/bridesmaid
  • add n/Alan Wayne p/98775633 e/alan@example.com a/123 Clementi Rd t/photographer

Add Command

Restrictions on Parameters

Names:

  • Should not be blank.
  • Can be any length.
  • Can only contain alphanumeric characters, spaces and limited special characters(, or ' or . or -)
  • Can not start with the special character.
  • Should not be identical to any person already in the wedding.
    • e.g. If a person with the name of "Ma Dong-Seok" already exists in the wedding,
      • A person by the name of "ma Dong-Seok" can be added.
      • A person by the name of "Ma Dong-Seok" (with two spaces between "Ma" and "Dong-Seok") can be added.
      • A person by the name of "Ma Dong-Seok" cannot be added.

Phone numbers:

  • Should not be blank.
  • Should only contain numbers (no letters, spaces or special characters).
  • Can be any length.

Email addresses:

  • Should be of the format LOCAL_PART@DOMAIN, with the following constraints:
  • LOCAL_PART has the following constraints:
    • Should only consist of alphanumeric characters and these special characters: +_.-.
    • Should not be blank.
    • Should not start or end with any of the above special characters.
  • DOMAIN is a domain name, which is made up of 1 or more domain labels separated by periods.
  • Each domain label has the following constraints:
    • Be at least 2 characters long.
    • Should start and end with alphanumeric characters.
    • Should consist only of alphanumeric characters, separated only by hyphens, if any.
  • Examples of valid emails:
    • admin@localhost
    • e1234567@u.nus.edu
    • chae-won@gmail.com
    • fong_hrishi@out-look.com

Addresses:

  • Should not be blank.
  • Can take any value.

Tags:

  • Should consist only alphanumeric characters, with no spaces
  • Are case-sensitive: A tag "Brother" is considered different from "brother".
    • The only exception to this are the groom and bride tags. These tags are case-insensitive.
    • Different casing variations of them (e.g., "GROOM, "Groom", "gRoOm") will not be permitted if the wedding already has a person with that corresponding tag.
  • Only one person in each wedding may have the groom and bride tag, specified with t/groom and t/bride respectively.
    • However, a bride and groom may have other tags.
  • Can have any number of tags (including 0)

Finding people: find

You can search for all weddings that contain the names of people that match any one of the provided search terms.

Format: find [NAME]…​

Examples:

  • find Sun
  • find Sun Hrishi
  • find sun timo

Note:

  • Search term should not be blank or consist only of spaces. For examples, find will be counted as an invalid command.
  • Search terms are case-insensitive. Typing find sun will produce a match for a person named SUN
  • You can provide any number of search terms, separated by spaces.
    • find will match names to at least one of the search terms. For instance, find sun timo will return results for both the person named sun and the person named timo.
    • The ordering of the terms does not matter. For example, find Zhe Hao will return the same result as find Hao Zhe.
  • Names do not have to be an exact match for the search term. For example, find timo will result a result for a person named timothy
    • However, the search term must be continuous. For example, if the person is named timo, find tim will return a result but find tio will not return a result.

The result of the search will be outputted on the result box above the command input box. You can then use the open command to open a wedding based on the result. A sample output is shown below:

find command

Filtering by tag: filter

You can filter the list of the currently opened wedding to display all people that match at least one of the tags.

Format: filter [TAG]…​

Examples:

  • filter bride : Displays only the bride
  • filter groom : Displays only the groom
  • filter : Displays all people without filtering
  • filter photographer caterer guest : Displays all people that has at least one of the tags. For example, if Person 1 has the photographer tag and Person 2 has the guest tag, both Person 1 and Person 2 will be displayed in the filtered result.

Note:

  • Tags are case-sensitive.
  • Tags can only be alphanumeric characters.
  • Tag matching is done on an individual basis.
    • For example, filter photographer guest will match all people that have either photographer or guest tag or both tags. The person does not need to have the exact same tags as all the tags specified in the filter command.
    • Similarly, filter photographer will match a person that has both the tags photographer and guest. The filter command does not have to contain all tags for the person; it only has to match at least one.
  • Tag matching is done on a complete string comparison basis.
    • For example, filter pho will not match a person with the tag photographer. The individual tag string must be an exact match.

Tip: If you want to clear the filters, use the filter command with no tags, i.e. filter

Removing a person: remove

You can remove a person from the currently opened wedding based on the provided index. The index refers to the index number shown in the displayed list. The index must be a positive integer. The active wedding pane will be automatically updated with the new list of members

Format: remove INDEX

Example:

  • remove 3 : Removes the third person in the list

In the example usage below, issuing remove 3 will remove the person named timo from the active wedding. remove_one

After removing:
remove_two

Note:

  • You cannot remove a bride or groom from a wedding. Every wedding must have both roles.

Editing a person: edit

You can edit the details of a person in the currently opened wedding.

Format: edit INDEX [n/NAME] [p/PHONE] [e/EMAIL] [a/ADDRESS] [t/TAG]...

Examples:

  • edit 1 p/91234567 e/newemail@example.com will update the phone and email of the person at index 1 to be 91234567 and newemail@example.com respectively.
  • edit 2 n/New Name a/New Address will update the name and address of the person at index 2 to be New Name and New Address respectively.

Note:

  • You cannot edit the bride/groom tags of a person.
  • At least one field must be provided for editing.
  • When editing tags, the existing tags of the person will be removed.
  • e.g. if the person already has the tag Brother, and you want to add a new tag Coming, you will have to run the command edit INDEX t/Brother t/Coming.
  • If you want to remove all tags from a person, you can enter t/ with no tags behind. This will remove all tags from the person at the specified index.

Restrictions on Parameters:

  • See Restrictions on Parameters in the add command for more details.

Tip: If you need to change the bride or groom of a wedding, use edit to change their information instead of editing the tag of another person to make them bride/groom.

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System commands

Viewing help: help

You can view a message providing a web link to access the User Guide.

help message

Format: help

Exiting the program: exit

You can exit the HappyEverAfter application.

Format: exit

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Data Storage

Saving the data

HappyEverAfter data is saved in the hard disk automatically after any command that changes the data. There is no need to save manually.

Editing the data file

HappyEverAfter data is saved locally as a JSON file in [JAR file location]/data/weddingplanner.json. Advanced users are welcome to update the data directly by editing that data file.

Caution: If your changes to the data file makes its format invalid, HappyEverAfter will discard all data and start with an empty data file at the next run. Hence, it is recommended to make a backup of the file before editing it.
Furthermore, certain edits can cause HappyEverAfter to behave in unexpected ways (e.g., if a value entered is outside the acceptable range). Therefore, edit the data file only if you are confident that you can update it correctly.

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FAQ

Q: How do I transfer my wedding planner data to another computer?
A: Install HappyEverAfter on the other computer and replace the data file it creates with the file from your original installation (located at /data/weddingplanner.json).

Q: Can I add multiple weddings at once?
A: No, you need to create weddings one at a time using the new command. Alternatively, for advanced users: you may update the data file yourself. Look through the "Editing the data file" section for more support.

Q: What happens if I try to add a second bride or groom to a wedding?
A: The system will display an error message as the current implementation of HappyEverAfter supports only one bride and one groom per wedding.

Q: How many weddings can I have in HappyEverAfter?
A: There is no limit to how many weddings can be added. However, we would advise you to keep it under a reasonable amount (such as 100) as many weddings may lead to performance loss.

Q: How many people can I add to a wedding?
A: As of the most recent version, you can add at most 100 people for one wedding.

Q: Can I add international phone numbers?
A: Unfortunately, international phone numbers will only be implemented in future. However, HappyEverAfter supports variable length numbers for phone numbers. One possible option would be to use a custom combination of numbers to denote the + symbol such as 000.

Q: I renamed the bride and groom of a wedding. How do I change the wedding name?
A: The system currently does not support the editing of wedding names directly. However, you may update the data file yourself. Look through the "Editing the data file" section for more support.

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Command summary

Action Format, Examples
Create Wedding new n/WEDDING_NAME d/DATE
e.g., new n/John & Mary d/25122025
Open Wedding open INDEX
e.g., open 2
Close Wedding close
List Weddings list
Sort Weddings by Date sort
Delete Wedding delete INDEX
e.g., delete 2
Clear All Weddings clear
Add Person add n/NAME p/PHONE e/EMAIL a/ADDRESS [t/TAG]...
e.g., add n/Mary Smith p/98765432 e/mary@example.com a/123 Wedding St t/bride
Find Person find [SEARCH TERMS...]
e.g., find John Doe
Filter People by Tag filter [TAGS...]
e.g., filter groom bride
Remove Person remove INDEX
e.g., remove 3
Edit Person edit INDEX [n/NAME] [p/PHONE] [e/EMAIL] [a/ADDRESS] [t/TAG]...
e.g., edit 1 p/91234567 e/newemail@example.com
Help help
Exit exit