What if instead of starting with a form, you could start work by selecting an Entity, like a household, school, or farm, and then decide what form to use.
We've heard your feedback that this "Entity-first" approach could make your work easier, so we're launching user research sessions to help set a design direction.
The ideal participant for these sessions:
Is a data collector or works closely with data collectors
Is collecting data on thousands of Entities (e.g., households, schools, farms)
Technically, our projects haven't migrated to use entities yet, mostly because of the lack of media issue described here, but should I still fill out the form if I plan to use entities in the future when this gets resolved?
We're aware of the challenges around media and hope to make improvements in that area. For this round of research, we're focusing on users currently working with Entities to better understand existing workflows before testing new prototypes. That said, will likely do additional feedback rounds later, so there will definitely be opportunities to get involved!
As per my understanding, enumerators will download entity data first on their phones (when internet is available) and then will use the downloaded information (house, road, school, hospital, farm, tree) to collect further data.
If possible, the ODK Central Server should allow creation of entities (like a list etc.) and allow ODK collect to download project/form specific entities automatically (enumerators should not perform any manual action like download data of an entity).
What you describe already exists today! You can define Entity Lists for your houses, roads, schools, etc either from existing data or populate them from form submissions. If you configure devices with standard App User QR codes, they will update forms and Entity Lists automatically when connectivity is available.
This thread is about evolving the Collect user interface so that users start by seeing their Entities rather than seeing their forms. Currently, listing Entities so that users can select them is done inside of forms. That means an enumerator needs to first select the action to take and then the thing/Entity they want to take the action on. That works for many workflows but not all.
Over the past few weeks, we’ve interviewed people working closely with data collectors to better understand what works well (and not so well) about Entity workflows today, how data collectors learn about longitudinal data collection, and the value of an Entity-first experience.
High-level takeaways
Strong alignment and excitement around an Entity-first vision
Users see higher-priority issues that need attention before Entity-first
For some, a form-first experience will always be the preferred way to navigate
Clear desire for a task-oriented, map-based experience
When we asked about what needs attention before Entity-first, a few clear priorities stood out:
Media attachments in forms: Data collectors should be able to capture and upload photos, audio, and video directly within forms, including those linked to entities.
Entity editing: Users should be able to easily update or correct entity data within submissions or linked forms, reducing manual corrections and inefficiencies.
Repeats with Entities: Data collectors should be able to use repeat groups with entities to capture more flexible and structured data across multiple instances.
Map metadata: Map bottom sheets should only display relevant, user-friendly information.
Form guidance: Data collectors should be able to receive clear guidance to choose the right form, avoid duplicate entries, and follow workflows seamlessly.
Entity resources: Organizations should have access to clearer examples, documentation, and training materials to shorten the learning curve for entity-based workflows.
Central UX improvements: There should be more streamlining of form creation and user assignment in ODK Central.
What’s happening next?
We’ve taken this feedback and prioritized it alongside other common pain points and opportunities we’ve been hearing through the forum, Insiders calls, stakeholders, user research, and customer support. Check out the updated roadmap.
You’ll notice that an Entity-first experience isn’t on the roadmap just yet. For now, our focus is on improving existing workflows and exploring what a more task-oriented approach could look like in the meantime.
Lastly, if you didn’t get a chance to participate in this round of research, we’d love to hear your thoughts below!
I think you are on the right track by responding to workflow requests first. However, media attachments to entities are not listed in the roadmap, even though this seems to be an important entities feature that is still missing. Thank you all for your great work!
It’s in the Later column. The roadmap is meant to show when we expect to start building the functionality. That said, even though it’s coming up “Later,” we’ll still be doing some discovery work to start scoping it out.
The ideal participant for these sessions:
Interested in participating? Sign up here.