Database Templates
Most database items follow a pattern. Every bug report needs reproduction steps; every meeting note needs an agenda and attendees; every project brief needs goals and success criteria. Database templates capture that pattern once so nobody has to rebuild it — or forget half of it — each time.
A template can pre-fill both property values and page content, so a new item arrives already structured and partly filled in.
Create a Template
- Open the database and click the settings icon in its toolbar
- Select Page templates
- Create a new template and give it a name that describes when to use it
- Build out the template exactly as you'd want a new item to start — add headings, checklists, callouts, and set any property values that should default
Anything you put on the template page becomes the starting point for every item created from it.
Use a Template
When adding an item to the database, click Pick a template and choose the one you want. The new item opens with the template's content and property values already applied.
From there it behaves like any other item — edit it freely. Changes you make to an item don't flow back to the template.
Design Templates That Get Used
- Name them for the situation, not the structure. "Bug report" tells someone when to reach for it; "Template 2" doesn't.
- Pre-set the properties you can. If every incident starts at
Not startedwith today's date, bake that in rather than leaving it to memory. - Leave prompts in the body. Empty headings like Steps to reproduce or Decision cue people to fill them in — a blank page doesn't.
- Keep them short. A template people have to delete half of is one they'll stop using.