Using Placeholders for Page (Tree) Blueprints
- Adil Nasri
The placeholder sidebar
Creating or editing a Page Blueprint is like creating or editing a page, but with the addition of having access to a configuration panel that shows on the side of the Confluence editor. Within there you can create multiple placeholders with different field types and configure the settings.
Adding placeholders
Placeholders act as form fields on your Page Blueprints. When someone creates a page from that Page Blueprint, they'll be prompted the Create dialog asking them to fill in the placeholder values first, before editing the page. Each data entered will be added to the page.
Placeholders are especially useful if one value is being used in multiple places on the blueprint, as they only need to be filled in once.
For each placeholder you create you get to choose from various field types.
Created placeholders (e.g Team) are displayed in the Confluence editor as blue boxes. An additional icon visualizes the chosen field type:
Text
Allows users to enter any combination of letters, numbers, or symbols in a single line.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
Hide in editor | User entry will not be shown in the editor. This option is not supported within Page Tree Blueprints and will be disabled. |
Set as page title | User entry will be used as page title. This option is not supported within Page Tree Blueprints and will be disabled. |
Multiline text
Allows users to enter any combination of letters, numbers, or symbols on multiple lines.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
Hide in editor | User entry will not be shown in the editor. |
Select
Allows users to select one value from a list that you define.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Options | Values users get to select from. Options can be ordered via drag and drop. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
Hide in editor | User entry will not be shown in the editor. |
Set selected options as labels | Options that are selected by users in the blueprint form will automatically be added as labels to the page.
Special characters include the following: ':', ';', ',', '.', ' ', '?', '&', '[', ']', '(', ')', '#', '^', '*', '@', '!', '<', '>' |
Multiselect
Allows users to select more than one value from a list that you define.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Options | Values users get to select from. Options can be ordered via drag and drop. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
Hide in editor | User entry will not be shown in the editor. |
Set selected options as labels | Options that are selected by users in the blueprint form will automatically be added as labels to the page.
Special characters include the following: ':', ';', ',', '.', ' ', '?', '&', '[', ']', '(', ')', '#', '^', '*', '@', '!', '<', '>' |
Date
Allows users to pick a date from a popup calendar.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
User mention
Allows users to mention each other using autocomplete.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Enable multi-user mention | Enabling users to mention more than one user. |
Confluence page
Allows users to link to an existing Confluence page or blog post using autocomplete.
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
Name | The value entered here will be shown to the user in the 'Create' dialog. |
Description | Shows in the form field within the 'Create' dialog. |
Mark as mandatory | Makes user entry non-optional. Also displays a red asterisks next to the placeholder in the blueprint form. |
Created placeholders
Created placeholders are displayed in the configuration sidebar. By clicking on placeholders you can edit them.
All created placeholders are also shown as blue boxes in the editor unless you specifically choose to hide them. Additionally, they are displayed in the Page Blueprint form where they can be arranged.
Re-using placeholders in Page Tree Blueprints
Once created placeholders can be reused on different pages within the Page Tree Blueprint which is especially useful if one value is being used in multiple pages, as they only need to be filled in once. When editing a page and wanting to add an already existing placeholder just open up the placeholder sidebar and click on the icon next to the desired placeholder.
Deleting placeholders
Once created placeholders that are not required anymore can be removed. Just navigate to the placeholder in the editor and press the 'Backspace' key to remove it. Since it is possible that placeholders are used on multiple page you can only delete them permanently in the Page Blueprint form.
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