Data Model

This document proposes a data model for a Google Forms killer, focusing on flexibility, scalability, and enhanced user interaction.

Form Model

Provides comprehensive structure for forms, including essential metadata and an ordered field layout.

struct Form {
    id: String, // cuid
    title: String,
    description: String, // Optional
    fields: Vector<String>, // Ordered array of Field IDs
    createdAt: DateTime, // default now
    updatedAt: DateTime, // updated at
}

Field Types Enumeration

Enumerating field types standardizes input options.

enum FieldType {
    Text,
    Email,
    Dropdown,
    Radio,
    File
}

Field Model

Supports various field types with additional features like dropdown options and conditional visibility.

struct Field {
    id: String, // cuid
    formId: String, // Link to Form ID
    question: String,
    fieldType: FieldType, // Reference to FieldType enum
    options: Object, // Optional, used for dropdowns and similar types
    conditionals: Object, // Optional, Conditionals object
    fileUploads: Vector<String>, // Optional, IDs of FileUploads
}

Field Options Example

Enables flexibility in defining dropdown options, allowing for customization without altering the database schema.

{
  "options": [
    "Option 1",
    "Option 2",
    "Option 3"
  ]
}

Field Conditionals Example

Provides a structured and flexible approach to defining conditional visibility rules.

{
    "logic": "AND",
    "rules": [
        {
            "fieldId": "field_1",
            "operator": "EQUALS",
            "value": "Yes"
        },
        {
            "logic": "OR",
            "rules": [
                {
                    "fieldId": "field_2",
                    "operator": "NOT_EQUALS",
                    "value": "No"
                },
                {
                    "fieldId": "field_3",
                    "operator": "GREATER_THAN",
                    "value": "5"
                }
            ]
        }
    ]
}

FileUpload Model

Manages file attachments, linking them to fields with necessary metadata.

struct FileUpload {
    id: String, // cuid
    fieldId: String, // Link to Field ID
    fileName: String,
    fileSize: Number,
    fileType: String,
    fileUrl: String, // URL to access the uploaded file
    createdAt: DateTime, // default now
}

Submission Model

Captures user responses and associated metadata for each form submission, enabling detailed analysis and tracking.

struct Submission {
    id: String, // cuid
    formId: String, // Link to Form ID
    responses: Object, // Object structure to store responses
    metadata: Object, // Optional, metadata like submission time, user agent
    createdAt: DateTime, // default now
}

Responses Object Example

Efficiently captures varied responses, adaptable to different field types.

{
  "responses": [
    {
      "fieldId": "field1",
      "responseType": "Text",
      "text": "This is a response to a text field."
    },
    {
      "fieldId": "field2",
      "responseType": "Dropdown",
      "selectedOption": "Option 2"
    },
    {
      "fieldId": "field3",
      "responseType": "Boolean",
      "boolean": true},
    {
      "fieldId": "field4",
      "responseType": "File",
      "fileId": "file_12345"
    }
  ]
}

Metadata Object Example

Provides valuable context for each submission.

{
  "metadata": {
    "submissionTime": "2021-07-21T15:30:00Z",
    "userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; Intel Mac OS X 10_15_7) AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/91.0.4472.124 Safari/537.36",
    "ipAddress": "192.168.1.1",
    "location": {
      "country": "USA",
      "city": "New York"
    },
    "tracking": {
      "campaignId": "12345",
      "referrer": "email"
    }
  }
}

CustomLink Model

Manages the creation and tracking of unique links for sharing forms, enabling control over link distribution, access, and analytics.

struct CustomLink {
    id: String, // cuid
    formId: String, // Link to Form ID
    createdAt: DateTime, // When the link was created, default now
    expiryDate: DateTime, // Optional, when the link expires
    isActive: Boolean, // If the link is currently active
    customUrl: String, // Optional, a custom URL for the link
}