Concepts

TrackStudio is one of the most powerful and scalable Java-based defect and issue management software applications.

When developing TrackStudio, we tried to use as few objects and concepts in the system as possible and attempted to realize the necessary functionality through enhancing the objects already existing in the system. This synergy allowed us to create a system that's powerful, yet easy-to-use-and-understand.

The simplicity of the design and the clear concepts of the system are reflected in the user interface. We tried to create a logical user interface where you cannot get lost. Whatever the users do, they are always fully aware of the current state of the system and of the actions available to them.

We attempted to create a user interface that can comfortably manage a large number of tasks with least waste of time. We understand the problems that can arise when managing hundreds of users and projects, and we try to find the most effective and simple solutions to them.

We did our best to optimize the user interface for those people who spend a lot of time working with the system daily. You won't find here any multi-page wizards for creating a user or a task, because each of these operations can be performed with one mouse click wherever you are in the system. Creating complex objects (for example, a workflow) can be stopped and resumed at any step.

Let's look at the main objects, defined in the TrackStudio system and their purpose.

Object	Description
Task	A task is any object whose state is to be tracked. The flexibility of TrackStudio allows our customers not only to track the state of bugs and feature requests, but also to keep records of the equipment, to track the process of making advertising materials. The system supports a task hierarchy, which means that projects can contain subprojects and the latter can contain issues. This makes the user interface much easier: if you know how to create a project, you know how to create bugs. If you can create a workflow and set security rules for a certain project, it means you can create workflows and set security rules for project groups and even for issues. All the created objects (filters, workflows, custom fields) can be inherited, which means you do not have to declare the same custom fields and workflows for each new project. It is enough just to create a new project and it will automatically inherit all the properties common for this project group. You can also enhance the inherited objects to make them fit the specific project.
User	A user is the key object in the system. As for tasks, TrackStudio supports a hierarchy for users, which makes it possible to use the system effectively in medium sized and large organizations. The system allows transferring a part of an authority or even the entire authority to the subordinate managers without losing control over the system. Subordinate managers can have the same rights and privileges for their parts of a project as the project manager does over the whole project. These lower-level managers can use shared project rules, user roles, task categories, custom fields, and workflows, and can modify them according to their specific needs. The project manager has access to all the information and can create reports, and analysis relating to the project as a whole or to individual elements - all with only a few clicks of the mouse.
Workflow	The behavior of any task in the system is defined through the workflow. A workflow allows rules to be set for changing the states of a task in the system. A workflow consists of states and transitions while the transition matrix defines the description of the transitions.
Message	A message is used for changing the state of a task. The available types of messages are defined by the workflow. You can enter some additional information when saving a message. For example, with just a few mouse clicks, John, a developer, can mark the task as finished, set its resolution, specify the time spent on the task and type in an explanatory comment. An important feature of the system is that it allows creating messages to be created via e-mail using a very simple interface, similar to that used in web forms.
Category	Categories define the type of a task and are used to create links between tasks and workflows. When creating a category, you can specify its possible subcategories and user groups that can create and delete tasks of that type. For example, you can specify that only a manager can create tasks of the project type, or that a bug cannot have a project as its subtask.
User Status	User status represents a user group. Each user group can have a specific set of privileges. User status has a hierarchical structure (a subordinated user status cannot have more privileges than a parent user status). A user can be included in several different groups and the user status set can be different for different projects.
Filter	Filters are very important objects in the system. Not only do they allow you to search for tasks meeting the specified criteria, but they are also used to adjust e-mail notifications. As with all the other objects, filters and e-mail notification rules are inherited, which saves time configuring filters for each project. In TrackStudio every user can set their personal rules for e-mail notification. For example, they can specify that in the project group A they are interested only in the messages from the customer, in the project B they are interested only in those tasks where they are a handler, and they are interested in all activities in the issue C. Additionally, the user can receive e-mail notifications either each time a change that meeting the specified criteria occurs in the object, or at regular intervals. For example, a manager can receive a daily report containing all the information about the project entered into the system during the previous day.
Report	Applying a filter results in a list of tasks. Another way of getting a summary about a group of tasks is by using reports. For example, you can obtain information about the tasks created by every developer, or what percentage of user requests have been successfully fulfilled. The reports can be generated in the form of HTML, PDF, CSV, XML or XLS.
Custom Field	Custom fields allow you to enlarge the list of fields available for the system objects. Custom fields are not object-specific, so you can create them for tasks, users and even workflows. Calculated custom fields are especially useful in filters, email notification rules, and distribution reports. Calculated custom fields can be implemented via scripts.
E-Mail Template	TrackStudio uses the powerful template processing engine to format the e-mail notification messages. You can specify a separate e-mail template for each user.
Script	Script represents a description on the Java-like language of the calculated custom field algorithm. TrackStudio has a powerful object model enabling you to access to any system object via the script. When accessing the objects via the script, TrackStudio checks the permissions.
External user self-registration rule	TrackStudio can be configured so that the new user registration will be possible without the participation of the system administrator using self-registration rule. In this case, users can register with the system on their own and gain access to certain tasks.

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