Every project manager knows how much information is exchanged outside the official project planning sessions (whether it is in meetings or even around the water cooler). Some solve this problem with a Post-It notes all over their monitors, others have more creative methods. In larger projects, this becomes an impossible task.

Merlin solves this problem by providing the Information Element as a conduit to this type of information. Like all other elements, it can be attached to any specific resource or activity. Since Merlin is Spotlight compatible, finding these elements in a large group of Merlin projects is very straight forward.

From Whom: In this list select the origin or the person who originally delivered the information. You can also manually enter the details in this field. When you expand this section you can enter the date the information was given to you. The default is always the current date.

Review Date: If you would like to review this Element on a specific date, enter a date in the field "Review Date" or select a date by clicking on the mini calendar.

Kind: By default Merlin has three different ways of conveying the information: Telephone, Written, Personal. Selecting one of the "Kinds" will also cause the contents in the field Status to change accordingly. The contents of this list can be modified in the Project Settings.

Status: Select the relevant state of the Information from the Status list. The contents of this list can be modified in the Project Settings.

Priority: Select the priority for the Information. The contents of this list can be modified in the Preferences.

URL: You can attach an URL to an Information Element. If this URL does not start with a protocol (http, ftp oder auch mailto), "http://" will automatically be added once you have left the field. To open the link, click on the symbol behind the field.

Note: If you wish to add more information, you can always click on the "Text" tab and add all the text, history, notes you wish attached to this Information Element.