# Getting Started

## The Core Journey

1. A new user opens the public **Landing Page** (`/`) or **Pricing** page (`/pricing`), or arrives via an emailed invitation link.
2. They **register** (`/register`) — a three-step in-page wizard (choose account type → complete the profile/organization form → verify a 6-digit one-time code emailed to them) — or **log in** (`/login`) if they already have an account.
3. A newly registered account is routed through **Onboarding** (`/onboarding`, `/onboarding/organization`) until organization setup is complete; an Institution-type account is additionally routed through **Institution Setup** (`/institution/setup`).
4. Once onboarded, the user lands on the **Dashboard** (`/dashboard`) — the authenticated hub — and from there reaches **Projects**, **My Tasks**, **Notifications**, **Search**, **Settings**, and **Billing**.
5. Inside a project, the user progresses through the **research setup journey** shown on the project's Overview tab: define the research question (PICO), select a study design, and, optionally, link a conference submission target.
6. The Owner (or an Admin) **invites collaborators** by email; an invited person registers or logs in and **accepts the invite** to join the project with an assigned role (Admin, Member, or Guest).
7. The team executes the project through **My Tasks** (the task surface, with List, Board, Timeline, and Calendar views, scoped to one project at a time or opened across all projects from the Dashboard), and the project's own **Note Taker**, **Timeline** (activity feed), **Availability**, and **Leaderboard** tabs.
8. The user manages their account through **Settings** (profile, organization, team, privacy, audit log, subscription) and **Billing**, and can **raise a support ticket** at any time from within the app.
9. The user logs out, ending the session.

```{mermaid}
flowchart TD
    A[Landing Page or Pricing] --> B{Have an account?}
    B -- No --> C["Register: account type -> profile form -> 6-digit email OTP"]
    B -- Yes --> D[Log In]
    C --> E{Onboarding complete?}
    D --> E
    E -- No --> F[Onboarding / Organization Setup]
    F -.Institution accounts only.-> G[Institution Setup]
    F --> H[Dashboard]
    G --> H
    E -- Yes --> H
    H --> I[Projects]
    H --> J[My Tasks]
    H --> K[Notifications / Search]
    H --> L[Settings / Billing]
    I --> M["Research Setup Journey: PICO -> Study Design -> Conference"]
    I --> N[Invite Collaborators]
    N --> O[Invitee Registers/Logs In -> Accepts Invite]
    O --> I
    I --> P[Note Taker / Timeline / Availability / Leaderboard]
    L --> Q[Raise Support Ticket]
```

## Public and Entry Screens

| Screen | Route | Purpose |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Landing Page | `/` | Public marketing homepage; default unauthenticated entry point |
| Pricing Page | `/pricing` | Public plan and pricing comparison |
| Login | `/login` | Email + password sign-in |
| Register | `/register` | Account creation wizard (account type → form → OTP) |
| Forgot Password | `/forgot-password` | Request a password-reset email |
| Terms and Conditions | `/terms` | Legal terms (Refund Policy at `/refund` is the same pattern) |
| Privacy Policy | `/privacy` | Legal privacy policy |

**Landing Page**
![Landing Page](_images/fig-06-01-landing-page.png)
*The public marketing homepage at `/`, the default page for an unauthenticated visitor.*

**Login**
![Login](_images/fig-06-03-login-page.png)
*Email and password sign-in. Login failures return a uniform error message regardless of whether the email is unrecognized or the password is wrong, and the account locks out after repeated failed attempts.*

**Register**
![Register](_images/fig-06-04-register-page.png)
*Step one of registration: choosing an account type (Individual or Institution). The form step that follows collects first/last name, email, password, phone, date of birth, and a US mailing address; the final step is a 6-digit one-time code sent to the registrant's email, with a 30-second resend cooldown.*

**Forgot Password**
![Forgot Password](_images/fig-06-05-forgot-password-page.png)
*Requests a password-reset email. The follow-on Reset Password screen requires a link from that email.*

## Authentication and Onboarding Screens

| Screen | Route | Purpose | Available Actions | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Login | `/login` | Sign in | Enter email/password, select **Sign in**; link to **Sign Up** | Uniform error on bad credentials; account lockout after repeated failures |
| Register | `/register` | Create an account | Choose account type; complete profile form; enter emailed 6-digit code; **Resend** (30s cooldown) | Institution-type registrants skip straight to the profile form; invited signups always register as Individual |
| Forgot Password | `/forgot-password` | Request a reset email | Enter email, submit | — |
| Reset Password | `/reset-password?token=` | Set a new password from an emailed link | Enter new password twice; **Back to Log In** / **Proceed to Log In** | Requires a genuine emailed link |
| Verify Email | `/verify-email?token=` | Confirm an email address via link | Automatic on load; **Sign in** on success | A secondary path to the primary in-wizard OTP verification |
| Activate Account | `/activate?token=` | Set an initial password (invited users) | Set password; **Back to Sign In** if already logged in | Used when joining via an invitation |
| Accept Invite / Invite Mismatch | `/invites/accept?token=`, `/invites/mismatch` | Join a project/institution from an emailed invite | Accept; if logged in as the wrong account, see mismatch guidance | Requires a genuine invite link |
| Onboarding | `/onboarding`, `/onboarding/organization` | First-run setup: organization name, academic role | Complete each step | — |

See [Workflows](workflows) for the full registration and invite-acceptance sequences.