Notebook Templates

Data collection and management in Fieldmark is done using notebooks, but it is common to re-use the same notebook structure in multiple data collection exercises. This facilitates common data structures so that data can be compared between and across many data collection events. To enable this practice, Fieldmark supports notebook templates which can be used to create many notebooks.

Template Structure

A template uses the same form design structure as a notebook. Templates are stored in a separate templates database and can be marked public or archived for sharing across teams.

Creating a Template

In the dashboard web application you can create a new template if you have permission to do so within your team. Enter a template name; you may add an optional description (up to 250 characters). The template can be created from scratch or from a previously downloaded JSON file (design layout only).

Once the template has been created, you can edit the template as you would a notebook in the designer application.

Creating Notebooks from a Template

In the dashboard web application you can create a new notebook from a template. Enter a name; you may add an optional description (up to 250 characters).

The notebook records the source template on the survey (template used in the dashboard) so you can trace which template it was created from. Design provenance from copying another definition may also appear as derived from template in design metadata when applicable.

The created notebook is a snapshot copy of the template at time of creation. Any subsequent changes to the template will not be reflected in the notebooks created from it.

It is possible to make changes to the notebook that was created from the template using the notebook editor.

Note we are working on implementing restrictions on changes to fields within notebooks derived from templates. A template would be able to assert that a field cannot be changed or can be hidden but not removed, for example.