Associate entry templates with folders

You can use the Associate Entry Templates action to associate one or more entry templates with a specific folder. When users add an object to a folder that has an entry template associated with it, the entry template is automatically used instead of the standard wizard. If more than one entry template is associated with the folder, users can select the entry template they want to use. You can specify the order in which the entry templates are displayed for the user. If the user does not have access rights to an entry template associated with the folder, the entry template is not shown to the user.

Inheritance

You can explicitly associate entry templates with a folder, or you can let the folder inherit entry template associations from a parent folder or object store. If no explicit or inherited associations exist, the standard wizard is used instead.

File type categories

You can associate an entry template with one or more file type categories so that the entry template is used only when adding specific types of documents. Use the File type categories site preference to create a file type category that contains a list of MIME types, where each MIME type corresponds to a document type.

The following sections explain how Workplace XT determines the appropriate entry templates when file type categories are specified, depending on whether you are adding a single document or adding multiple documents using the drag method.

Adding a single document

The following process determines which of the folder's associated entry templates apply when a single document is added.

  1. Workplace XT identifies the entry templates that specify a file type that matches the document's type.
  2. If none of the entry templates that specify a file type match the document's type, Workplace XT looks for entry templates with no file type specifications.
Sample scenarios when adding a single document.
A user wants to add this document. The folder has these entry templates associated with it. The entry templates are shown below as:
entry template name: file type category (extensions referenced by MIME types)
Explanation of results.
example.doc ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
ET5:
The document is added using ET1.

ET1 is the only entry template that is associated with documents with the .doc extension.

example.doc ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
ET5:
ET6:
The user can select one of the following entry templates:
ET5
ET6

The entry templates with file type category associations (ET3 and ET4) are not associated with documents with the .doc extension, so Workplace XT looks for entry templates with no file type categories and finds ET5 and ET6.

example.doc ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET2: docs (.doc)
ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
ET5:
The user can select one of the following entry templates:
ET1
ET2

Both ET1 and ET2 are associated with documents with the .doc extension. ET5 cannot be used for this document even though the entry template does not specify a file type category, because the document has already matched ET1 and ET2.

example.doc ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
The document cannot be added to this folder, because the folder has associated entry templates but the entry templates do not specify this document type.
example.doc   No entry templates are associated with this folder, so the document is added using the standard Add Document wizard.
example ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET5:
ET7: no content ()
The document is added using ET7.

ET7 is the only entry template that is associated with documents with no content, that is, documents with no MIME type.

example ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET5:
The document is added using ET5.

The entry template with file type category associations (ET1) is not associated with documents with no MIME type, so Workplace XT looks for entry templates with no file type categories and finds ET5.

Adding multiple documents using the drag method

When a user adds more than one document at a time, the selected documents might include several document types. When this occurs, the entry templates that apply to one document type might not apply to the other document types. If Workplace XT cannot identify one or more entry templates that apply to all of the document types being added, the user must change the selection of documents and start over.

However, when you add documents at the same time to a folder that has one or more entry templates associated with it, Workplace XT groups the documents by file type category. Before assigning and updating properties for the documents, you can remove a file type category group or documents from within that group. Those documents are not added.

Entry templates that launch workflows cannot be used when adding more than one document at a time. If the user selects an entry template that launches a workflow, an error occurs, and the user must select a different entry template or add the documents one at a time.

The following process determines which of the folder's associated entry templates apply when multiple documents are added.

  1. Workplace XT identifies entry templates that specify file type categories that contain the document types being added.
  2. If the entry templates that specify a file type category do not specify the types of any of the documents, Workplace XT looks for entry templates with no file type category specifications, with the following results:
Sample scenarios when adding multiple documents using the drag method.
A user wants to add these documents. The folder has these entry templates associated with it. The entry templates are shown below as:
entry template name: file type category (extensions referenced by MIME types)
The user gets these results.
example.doc
example.xls
ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET2: docs (.doc)
ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
ET5:
The document is added using ET1.
example.jpg
example.pdf
ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET2: docs (.doc)
ET5:
The document is added using ET5.
example.doc
example.xls
ET3: images (.jpg)
ET4: books (.pdf)
The documents cannot be added to this folder, because the folder has associated entry templates but the entry templates do not specify these document types.
example.doc
example.xls
example.jpg
ET1: office (.doc, .xls)
ET2: docs (.doc)
ET3: images (.jpg)
ET5:
No documents are added, because no single entry template has file type specifications that match all of the types of the documents being added.

ET5 cannot be used because the type of one or more of the documents being added match one or more of the entry template file type specifications.

Scope

Entry template associations to folders apply only when adding a document, not when modifying a document. If an entry template specifies that it is to be used for subsequent checkins of a document, that entry template remains associated with the document being added, even if the document is later moved to a different folder. After a document is added using the standard wizard, subsequent checkins do not use an entry template, even if the document's folder is associated with entry templates.

Prerequisite

You must be a member of the Application Engine Administrators access role and have access to the Preferences action to associate entry templates with a folder. In addition, the Authoring Page Display site preference must be set to Workplace XT and Workplace. See General settings for Author for more information about this site preference.

To associate entry templates with a folder

  1. Right-click the folder you want to associate and click Preferences > Associate Entry Templates. Workplace XT displays the following information:
  2. Perform any of the following actions:
  3. (Optional) Limit the entry template association to selected file type categories.
    1. Select an entry template in the Selected entry templates and click Options. Workplace XT displays the available and selected file type categories.
      KEYBOARD TIP Press the spacebar to view the options for the selected entry template.
    2. Add or remove file type categories as desired. Click View MIME types to see the MIME types associated with a file type category.
      KEYBOARD TIP Press the spacebar to view the associated MIME types for the selected file type category.