Data Types and Table References

Data Types (also called table names) are the fundamental data structures in Project Notes. They represent the different kinds of records stored in the database — projects, people, notes, etc. Understanding data types is essential for:

Configuring plugin menus to appear on the correct right-click context menus
Creating plugin shortcuts that work with specific record types
Structuring XML exports and imports
Writing plugins that process the correct data

Data Type and Application Views

Each data type corresponds to one or more views (pages/tables) in the Project Notes application. When you right-click on a record or navigate to a table in the application, the data type context determines which plugin menus appear.

Available Data Types

Data Type	Application View(s)	Right-Click Menu Appears On	Purpose
`projects`	Project List Page, Project Page	Project rows in the Project List; Project detail pages	Core project records with schedule, budget, and status information
`people`	People List Page	People rows in the People List; People context menus	Contact and team member information
`clients`	Client List Page	Client rows in the Client List	Client company information and contact details
`project_people`	Project Page (Team tab)	Team member rows within a project	Association between people and projects (roles, responsibilities)
`project_locations`	Project Page (Files & Folders tab)	File/folder entries in the Files & Folders list	Project files, folders, and document locations
`project_notes`	Notes Page, Project Page (Notes tab)	Note entries in the Notes section	Meeting minutes, status notes, and project documentation
`meeting_attendees`	Notes Page (Action Items tab for meetings)	Meeting attendee records	Attendees and participants for specific meetings
`item_tracker`	Item Tracker Page	Tracker item rows in the table	Issues, risks, and action items (primary records)
`item_tracker_updates`	Item Tracker Page (Updates tab)	Status update entries for tracker items	Progress updates and status changes for issues/risks/actions
`status_report_items`	Project Page (Status Report tab)	Status report entries	Project status information tied to status reporting periods

How Data Types Relate to the Application Interface

Projects View

Page: Project List Page
Data Type: projects
Contains: All project records with columns for project number, name, client, status, budget, and schedule
Right-Click Menu: Shows menus configured for projects data type

People View

Page: People List Page
Data Type: people
Contains: All contact/team member records with contact information
Right-Click Menu: Shows menus configured for people data type

Clients View

Page: Client List Page
Data Type: clients
Contains: Client company records with company information and primary contacts
Right-Click Menu: Shows menus configured for clients data type

Project Detail Page

Multiple data types interact on this page:

Tab: Overview → projects data type
Project summary, schedule, budget, earned value metrics
Tab: Team → project_people data type
Team members assigned to the project
Right-click menus configured for project_people appear here
Tab: Files & Folders → project_locations data type
Files and folders associated with the project (found by File Finder or manually added)
Right-click menus configured for project_locations appear here
Tab: Notes → project_notes data type
Meeting notes, status notes, and documentation
Right-click menus configured for project_notes appear here
Tab: Status Report → status_report_items data type
Project status reporting entries

Notes Page

Used for detailed meeting management:

Tab: Notes → project_notes data type
Meeting minutes and notes
Tab: Attendees → meeting_attendees data type
List of meeting participants
Right-click menus configured for meeting_attendees appear here
Tab: Action Items → item_tracker data type with context from the meeting
Action items assigned from the meeting

Item Tracker Page

Comprehensive view for all tracker items:

Main Table → item_tracker data type
Issues, risks, and action items
Right-click menus configured for item_tracker appear here
Tab: Updates → item_tracker_updates data type
Status updates and progress on tracker items
Right-click menus configured for item_tracker_updates appear here

How Data Types Affect Plugin Menus

Right-Click Context Menus

When you right-click on a record in Project Notes, the available context menu items are determined by the data type of that record. Plugins configure which data type(s) their menus apply to.

Example: - If a plugin specifies dataexport: "projects", its menu will appear when you right-click on a project row - If a plugin specifies dataexport: "item_tracker", its menu will appear when you right-click on an issue/risk/action item - If a plugin specifies dataexport: "" (empty), its menu appears in the Plugins menu instead of right-click menus

When a plugin menu does not specify a data type (the dataexport field is empty), the menu appears in the Plugins menu at the top of the application. These menus are not context-specific and can be invoked from anywhere in the application.

Data Types in Plugin XML

When a plugin processes data, the XML structure is determined by the data type being exported. For example:

Exporting a Project (projects data type)

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<projectnotes>
<table name="ix_projects">
    <row id="{8f4e1b2a-5c3d-4e7f-9a2b-c1d4e5f6a7b8}">
        <column name="project_id">{8f4e1b2a-5c3d-4e7f-9a2b-c1d4e5f6a7b8}</column>
        <column name="project_number">ABC-001</column>
        <column name="project_name">Website Redesign</column>
        <column name="client_id" lookupvalue="Acme Corp">{d2e3f4a5-b6c7-4d8e-9f0a-b1c2d3e4f5a6}</column>
        ...
    </row>
</table>
</projectnotes>

Exporting a Person (people data type)

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<projectnotes>
<table name="ix_people">
    <row id="{c2d3e4f5-a6b7-4c8d-9e0f-a1b2c3d4e5f6}">
        <column name="people_id">{c2d3e4f5-a6b7-4c8d-9e0f-a1b2c3d4e5f6}</column>
        <column name="name">John Smith</column>
        <column name="email">john@company.com</column>
        ...
    </row>
</table>
</projectnotes>

Data Type Usage in Plugins

My Shortcuts Plugin

The My Shortcuts plugin uses data types to determine when shortcuts appear:

Menu	Data Type	Behavior
Open in Jira	`projects`	Appears when right-clicking on a project; can access `$projects.project_number.1`
Email Contact	`people`	Appears when right-clicking on a person; can access `$people.email.1`
(blank)	(none)	Appears in the Plugins menu; available globally

Meeting and Email Types Plugin

The Meeting and Email Types plugin associates template types with data types to determine which templates appear in right-click menus for scheduling meetings and sending emails.

File Finder Plugin

The File Finder plugin classifies files and adds them with the project_locations data type, making them appear in the Files & Folders tab.

Summary

Data Types are table names that organize records in the database
Each data type corresponds to application pages/tabs where those records are displayed
Right-click menus appear based on the data type of the record being clicked
Plugins configure which data types they work with to appear in the correct context
XML exports follow the data type structure, with different layouts for different record types

Understanding data types helps you: - Configure plugins to appear in the right menus - Create shortcuts and menu items for specific record types - Write plugins that process the correct data structures