Quick Notes Widget

The Quick Notes widget is a fast capture tool for thoughts, links, and reminders that aren't ready to be tasks yet. Type a note, hit Enter, and it's saved. Later, scan your notes, click any to convert it to a task, or just keep the running record of what's on your mind.

Quick Notes is the same data across four surfaces - the dashboard widget, the App Header input field, PrimeFlow nodes, and AI agents via MCP. This article is the canonical home - it covers everything Quick Notes can do across all four surfaces.

This widget is part of the customisable Dashboard layout. To show, hide, or move it, see Dashboard Layout.

What you can do

The four capture surfaces

Quick Notes is a single feature with four entry points that all share the same data store.

1. Dashboard widget

The Quick Notes widget on the Dashboard. Type a note in the input at the top, press Enter, and it appears in the list below. Best for focused note-taking when you're already on the dashboard.

2. App Header input

The App Header (top of every page) has a Quick Notes input field - see Understanding the Interface. Type a note, press Enter, and it's captured to the same store. Best for on-the-fly capture without leaving your current page.

3. PrimeFlow Quick Notes node

PrimeFlow canvases support a Quick Notes node that displays your notes inline on the canvas. Add notes from the node directly into your visual workflow. Best for integrating notes into a flow alongside tasks, projects, and other entities. See PrimeFlow Overview.

4. AI agents (MCP)

The PrimeTask MCP server exposes Quick Notes tools that AI agents (Claude Code, Cursor, others) can call:

• add_quick_note - adds a note to your active Space
• list_quick_notes - lists your notes
• convert_note_to_task - converts a note to a task with a name

Best for agentic capture where an AI summarises a conversation and leaves notes for you. See External Integrations Settings.

Note structure

Each Quick Note has:

• Text - the note content (plain text with smart link detection)
• Timestamp - when it was created
• Type - note / task / reminder (default: note)
• Origin Space - the Space the note was created in (useful when notes from one Space are visible elsewhere)

Notes don't support rich text formatting (bold, lists, code blocks) - they're plain text with intelligent URL handling.

Smart link handling

Quick Notes auto-detects URLs in your text and renders them with truncated, recognisable previews:

Clicking a link opens it in your default browser. This keeps notes scannable even when you've pasted long URLs.

For full rich content rendering (inline YouTube embeds, image previews, X/Twitter cards), the Project Notes system supports more - see Task Notes for the rich text editor used on tasks.

Convert to task

Click the convert action on any note to convert it into a task:

Use this when a captured thought turns into actionable work - see Creating Tasks.

Pagination

Notes are paginated - 10 per page by default (configurable). Newest first. Use the pagination controls to scroll through your history.

Cross-Space visibility

Notes are stored per Space - switching Spaces shows that Space's notes only. Each note's originSpaceId is recorded so you can see where it came from if notes ever appear in cross-Space contexts (like dashboard widgets from a parent Space).

Things worth knowing

One data store across four surfaces

The dashboard widget, App Header input, PrimeFlow node, and MCP tools all read and write the same Quick Notes store (per Space). Add a note from the App Header and it appears in the dashboard widget instantly. Convert a note from the widget and it's gone everywhere.

Notes aren't tasks (until you convert)

Quick Notes are intentionally lighter than tasks - no due date, no status, no priority, no project link. They're a fast capture buffer for ideas you'll triage later. When a note becomes actionable, convert it to a task.

Storage is per Space, syncs across devices

Notes are stored in your Space's storage and sync via File Sync or iCloud. You'll see the same notes across all your devices in the same Space.

Type field is rarely used directly

The note type (note / task / reminder) is set by some entry points but the dashboard widget treats them all the same. The type can drive filtering in the future or per-type behavior in MCP tool implementations.

URL handling is heuristic - not parsing

PrimeTask uses simple pattern matching to detect known URL types (YouTube, Twitter, image hosts). It doesn't parse the URL to fetch metadata - what you see is what was typed.

MCP tools work with the active Space

When an AI agent calls add_quick_note, the note lands in the active Space - the same Space you're currently in. To capture into a different Space, switch Spaces first.

Per-page count is configurable

The default 10 per page can be changed in the pagination controls. Your selection is remembered.

Common questions

Where to go next