What are templates good for?
When you create a knol, you can use another knol as a template. This fills your new knol with content copied from the original.
This feature lets you conveniently reuse the structure or outline of an existing knol. If you are writing knols about a specific topic, a well-chosen template can help organize your writing to aid covering the topic thoroughly. If you are collaborating with a group of authors, sharing a template across your work can enhance the quality of your documents, by starting them with a common appearance and style.
Any knol can be used as a template -- so long as it is published (and not copyrighted with "All Rights Reserved") or it is a knol you are an owner or author of.
Some knols have been created specifically for use as templates. Below is a list of a few of them, and for a good example of the use of a template see the knol on How to mix a perfect Martini , based on the How-to template .
List of Example Templates
English- How-To Template (used for the Knol for Dummies contest)
- Company Profile
- Dog Breed Template
- Vocational Education Template
- Continued-Knols Template
- Lesson Plan Template
- ... add more here
German
- City profile
- Company Profile
- Template for Knolcategories
- Fortsetzungs-Knol Template
French (Français)
- Knol aide/templates
- Knol aide / templates - template1
- Knol aide / templates - template2
- Knol aide / templates - template3
- Knol aide / templates - template4
- Knol aide / templates - template5
- Knol aide / templates - template6
- Knol aide / templates - template7
- Knol template graphique "prêt à l'emploi"
- Knol chart template : Ready to use
Portuguese
- Perfil da Cidade (City Profile)
Please feel welcome to create new templates or translate them into your native language. Just add them to this list.
Use search to find pages used as templates
Just go to the Search Toolkit, select Document type: Knol Templates, sort by page views, and search. Or -- just use this search. You will see pages that have been used as templates, with the pages that have been used frequently as templates coming first.Best practices when using templates
- Immediately rename your new knol as soon as you create it, then save it.
- If you have any ideas on how to improve a template you have used, please do so. If the template is in Moderated or Open collaboration modes, you can edit it. Otherwise, leave a comment for its owner. Or -- copy the template and turn it into your own template.
Best practices when creating templates
- Your document's title should end with the word Template. Make sure that users who read it do not confuse it with a content page.
- Create pages that you think would be a good basis for other authors to use in creating knols, and add them to our list on this page.
- Make sure your contribution is licensed under the Creative Commons, or we cannot use it.
- Note that the editors for different browsers (Internet Explorer 6/7, Firefox, Safari, Chrome) all differ in capabilities. There may be some templates which are easy to edit using one browser, but are very difficult to work with using another. These issues are especially likely if the knol contains complicated formatting, or formatting which was not created using our online editor's toolbar options. Let us know at knolhelp@google.com if you encounter difficulties. If a particular template turns out to be too difficult to use in some popular browsers, we will not feature it.
We hope to eventually have a range of features which use and extend the template mechanisms. We cannot pre-announce exactly what those are, as they are liable to change. But you are welcome to post suggestions or feature request.
Template FAQs
Q: What templates can I use?The Create Knol dialog has several choices.
- You can use the default option, which is simply to create a new blank knol.
- If you create a new knol while visiting an existing one, then you may use the existing knol as a template or -- if the existing page was created from a template -- you may use its template.
- You can use any of the knols you have recently used as a template.
- You can paste in the URL of another knol, and use it as a template.
For example, suppose you want to create a Dachshund knol. You are currently viewing a Greyhound knol, and the Greyhound knol was created from a Dog Breeds Template knol. You would be able to create the new knol from either Greyhound or Dog Breeds Template. In either case, the first thing you would do is rename the "Copy of Greyhound" or "Copy of Dog Breeds Template" to be your new name, "Dachshund", then you can go to work on your new knol.
Q: But, I am on a knol and I cannot select it as a template!
Perhaps it is Licensed with All Rights Reserved. Look for a Creative Commons knol, and use that.
Q: Can I search for templates?
At this moment we have no particular support for searching for templates. You might just search for pages with Template in their title. In the future we will add support specifically to search for templates.
Q: How can I tell if a knol was created from a template?
Visit the revisions page. We provide a link to the template used to create a knol. (If the template was unpublished or deleted after being used, you can still see it viewing version 1 of any knol derived from it.)
Q: If a template is changed, are knols that were created from it updated?
No.
Q: What if templates are used to duplicate low quality, "spammy" content?
Use the "Flag inappropriate content" link, or report the problem to knolhelp@google.com. We will investigate and determine whether the content is in violation of our Terms of Service or Content Policy.
Q: What if someone uses the option to create from templates to steal my content?
Copying content using templates is no different than copying it using cut-and-paste.
If your content is licensed under the Creative Commons, then some forms of reuse are legitimate. Read the relevant licenses to be sure. If you believe your rights have been infriged upon, refer to the Copyright Information section of the Terms of Service.
Our intended use is that the template provide simply a starting point, and that new knol be modified to be substantively and usefully different from the source. Copying content without improving or adding value to it may be deemed in violation of the Knol Content Policy.
Garry Jenkins
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New Dog Breed Template
http://knol.google.c
Thanks.
Dennis Daniels
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Can someone please post a screencast on HOW TO use an existing KNOL as a template?
I've created/lifted a template from google docs that I'd like to use here:
http://docs.google.c
and here
http://docs.google.c
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We've approved your edit suggestion to add this video to the knol. Thanks again!
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Northern Web Technologies Northern Web Technologies
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Beware of what you are copying!
Yücel Türk
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Turkish
Knol does not support Turkish yet, but thank you for the interest. At the moment, you can create knols in any language, but the product interface is only available in twelve languages. See here for more details: http://knol.google.c
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Knol Help
Improve template "best practices" -- using color to mark text in templates ...?
http://knol.google.c
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NOTE: The title, sub-title and summary should all be replaced with your own words. Also everything in (BLUE) should be replaced by your own words and everything in RED should be deleted. The (black) can stay if you think it is useful.
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I also note that he uses YELLOW background to indicate text that should be changed into hyperlinks.
What do people think of using color in this fashion? Should we adopt some form of this as a "best practice" for template authorship? Or does it make it too hard to use the template, because you have to constantly switch colored text back to plain? Would any particular editing tools facilitate the use of templates?
Get some practice working with templates in Knol and let us know what you think!
The use of color-coded standards to highlight what should and shouldn't be done within a template/ form/ standard is useful. I have introduced this standard into many companies with positive results.
I am sure there must be reasons 'out there' for the default use of blue to indicate a link. However, in many companies I have altered this standard to be fuchsia pink - because 'where it's pink, there's a link - so you don't have to think' (particularly in electronic board papers/Joint Venture documentation etc). It is amusing to see that this is being used in companies where I've had no contact - but where someone has moved from one company to another and taken the standards with them because it works and has an impact. It particularly aids those who are learning how to navigate using links.
As well as stating what will be used as a standard, what should not be used should also be clarified.
For example, in the style guides where these types of standards are clarified for a company, I also usually state that the use of underlining as a means of emphasis is no longer accepted. Underlining as a social norm now infers a link. Therefore, underlining headings or any other text is not accepted unless it is a link.
In templates, forms and spreadsheets, I always use a yellow background to indicate that the user must change a particular area. The shade of yellow depends on the screens being used (some data projectors show yellow as green during a presentation for example). I usually use a pale yellow background (as opposed to yellow text) as it is a significant indicator for all users to see/react to, however when it is printed on a B&W printer it doesn't print a block of grey/black to the degree that the text typed on it can't be read. Similarly, when such a printed document is faxed or scanned there are no great blacked out areas all over the page.
If digital products/knols are to be used outside the screen display/read domain - colors used for best practice standards should consider the other mediums . So, for example, if products/knols are expected to be printed, blue text and red text printed on a B&W printer won't assist the reader. If the primary medium is to be online, this isn't such an issue.
This is only some thoughts - I trust it assists. I believe guidance by Google for Knols in some sort of Recommended Style Guide would assist, or perhaps include these as styles available during the editing or writing of a Knol - available in the same manner as the Headings. A legend to be included at the end of Knols would also assist those who were not familiar with the principal.
Enjoy!
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