Package com.almworks.jira.structure.api.attribute

package com.almworks.jira.structure.api.attribute

This package provides Attribute API. Attributes is a concept added by Structure platform for universal access to item data.

An attribute is something that can be calculated or retrieved for a structure row or an item. In Structure-based apps, most item data is retrieved not by going to a corresponding underlying service (like IssueService), but through attributes. Attributes also provide a way to show aggregate or derived values.

An attribute is identified by AttributeSpec. To calculate the values, client code passes ForestSpec, row IDs and attribute specifications to StructureAttributeService and receives a matrix with values as a result.

Attributes are extensible. The specific implementation of an attribute is provided by Structure itself or by other add-ons. It is therefore important to notice that if an add-on is installed or uninstalled, the implementation of some attributes may change.

For the SPI, see com.almworks.jira.structure.api.attribute.loader package.

Note: It is important to differentiate attributes from columns. A column in Structure widget displays some HTML to the user. It usually requires one or more attributes to be loaded, it then takes attribute values and displays them somehow (sometimes as-is, sometimes not — for example, Icons column can display concatenated icons, loaded through several attributes.