ArcGIS Pro Project Notes Window

[EricBushee]

It would be great to have a place in ArcGIS Pro to record notes and documentation about a project. It could be as simple as a notepad-like space in a separate window, accessed in the View ribbon. Notes could be typed in and double as a running history of the project. We often have multiple users accessing the same .aprx, and it would be helpful for them to record what they did, and why they did it, for the next user. It would also be helpful when you open a project two years later and try to remember what exactly happened. Separate Word or notepad files can always be made and put into the project folder, but once you start adding additional programs someone has to open, they are less likely to actually do it. With the current ArcGIS Pro architecture, it seems like it could be easily implemented as an additional window.

[leahmaps]

@RandyCasey I had the idea because I no longer have access to Microsoft "sticky notes" on my computer. I took most notes there for my projects. I don't think a text editor/notes need to be as comprehensive as what you might find in Words/Onenote/Docs, but it would be nice to integrate in some way.

[ademshark]

I have been curious about a feature exactly as the original poster wrote it for some time. Pro has so many features, and with many projects being accessed by multiple users, a heads up note space would be nice. Why not include this as another tab that could be kept open as with Map, Layout, Notebook, etc. Something that could be displayed upon loading regarding data sources or special instructions for project use.

Thanks!

[wayfaringrob]

Slack Canvases are almost exactly what we need here. They toggle on and off alongside the chat (I believe they open automatically when they are new or there is new content?); much more effective and useful than being buried in metadata and you can even add comments. Lots of functionality in there that would support a million different use cases. I just found out about them recently when a project I'm working on created one in our channel for communicating mapping needs - they use it to outline how to format a request & what to include.

for what it's worth, an ArcGIS Pro/slack integration would be killer (if it worked)

[CS_VT]

It's always so validating when I find myself wanting the same feature that others want/need.

I'm in the midst of a longer term data collection project that ebbs and flows depending on data from third parties. Being able to document, keep notes, etc inside the .aprx - in a user friendly way would be IDEAL. It would help with documentation, I bet it would even make metadata easier because there'd be built in notes for the process. I've even tried using the Map Notes feature, which I thought would be perfect solution - floating features IN the map that can be attached to another feature or a point in space, but it's right there in the map. But the character limit is laughably short. Shorter than tweets used to be! What's that about?

ESRI already has the Tasks feature that lives right under the Contents panel. Why not add a similar notes feature. It lives right where we're always looking for information about whats in the project anyway? Just a long text box with editing that can be switched on/off. 

[wayfaringrob]

This seems to be the same idea (merge?): Notes Bar (Like in Power Point) in ArcMap - Esri Community

[HollyTorpey_LSA]

I've so often thought about how helpful this would be. I think a Notes pane would be great, and even greater if it had a checkbox to "Display on project opening" or something. Often you don't even realize or remember that you should read the notes for a project, so it needs to be in your face as soon as you open the project. That's why solutions like metadata are not ideal. Notebooks, layout text boxes, ModelBuilder labels, etc., are a little better, but you have to remember to save the project with them open and visible or remember to go looking for them. At my workplace, we work in multiple projects every day and sometimes return to projects months or years later (and multiple people sometimes work in the same project at different times). A project log/notes pane that is always open and visible when projects open would be incredibly useful.

[CS_VT]

I commented in this thread earlier with a similar concern but I have developed my own workaround to this problem.

Each time I want to keep track of what's going on in a map - track my process, note what I need to do next, etc. - I open a layout associated with the map (sized at printer friendly 8.5x11) and make ONE giant text box to fill the layout. I basically just keep narratives of my workflow here, but with all the layout tools at your disposal you can go wild. Maybe even add a little version of the map if you wanted to notate things on the map in a graphical/text-based way. Nothing would stop you from starting another layout if you need to create a different product based on the same map, but here you can connect the notes to the map and keep everything in an easy to access place!

This has proven to be a helpful way to get CLOSE to this kind of solution without having to dig too deep into settings or other funny notebooks. You can even save your project so that the Layout is the first thing you see when you open it!