SAP Enable Now – Creating book templates
?In my previous article I walked through the creation of derivative book page templates for situations requiring multiple templates that share a common theme. Your key takeaway should be an understanding of the benefits and the process for copying and modifying templates instead of creating them from scratch.
?In this article I will cover the process for creating book templates. It is nearly identical to the process of creating book page templates so instead of detailing the process again, I will point out the differences and some unique features of the book template. You can click on this link to read SAP Enable Now – Create Book Page Templates .
?If you need a refresher on books and book pages, I suggest you refer back to the article I wrote providing a high-level overview of both of these informational assets. Click on this link to read SAP Enable Now – Books and Book Pages .
What is a Book?
?A book is a container of one or more book pages. Creating a book instead of linking individual book pages takes advantage of the inherited linking functionality between book pages eliminating the need to manually create and maintain the links. Pages can be added or removed within the book and the navigational links will self-heal. Links are determined by the book hierarchy. As shown below, the book contains 3 individual book pages. The links are sequential from top to bottom. If I remove book page 2, the links will update such that the next page from book page 1 becomes book page 3, and book page 3 would have book page 1 as the previous page. If I add book page 2 back into the book between book pages 1 and 3, the links would auto-adjust to accommodate the revised hierarchy.
What is a Book Template?
?A book template is a book boiler plate that contains one or more book pages featuring the branding and color palette along with any consistently appearing content such as logos, taglines, and company privacy or other disclaimers. It is an object used to accelerate the book creation process.
?If a book can contain one book page, why would it make sense to use the book template instead of the book page template?
?The short answer would be to future-proof the asset. By using the book template there is no downside. You get the ability to add additional pages with auto-linking if you need it.? If the book page template is applied, and at some date it becomes necessary to add additional pages, all links between the pages would need to be applied and maintained manually. This can become a maintenance burden and a quality issue as the learning content grows over time.
Creating a Book Template
?Refer to the article on creating a book page template and apply the following information to accommodate the process for a book template.
??Book page templates should be constructed before the book template as the pages will be incorporated into the shell of the book template. If you haven’t created the book page templates, I recommend you do that work first and then come back to this article.
?When creating book templates, the first step is to locate or create a folder for them. As a best practice I recommend they be maintained within the Toolbox/Templates/Book folder structure.?
Next, perform the following steps:
?The new Book pop-up window displays. Name the template and select Ok to continue the creation process.
?The new book template appears in the Enable Now navigation window.
?At this point you have a book that is only a shell. In the next steps we begin to populate the book with book pages.
?Highlight the book as shown in the previous image. Select a new object from the menu as demonstrated earlier.
?Navigate to the templates tab and select the book page template, name the page and click Ok.
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?The editor window opens, and if required, additional editing of the book page can be performed. If the book page template was properly constructed, no additional edits should be required except for image updates. Remember the book page is part of a book template and placeholder text is the norm.
?In this example I created a table of contents. The placeholder text field for the slide title uses and displays the file name as the title. The benefit of smart template design can be appreciated as the volume of deliverables grows.
?It is important to note that you are using a book page template as the starting point for the book page. This new book page is not a template itself; it is a component of a book template. Do not attempt to make the book page a template.
?I will cover the use of book and book page templates in a future article. When this book template is used to create a book, the final learner-ready edits and content enrichment will take place. I will edit the body text but not change the title text within the editor window.
?Shown below is the action for applying the image to the image placeholder area.
?Here is a sample of what the edited book page could look like. Note that my table of contents contains a bulleted list of topics and not the actual learner deliverable text. The book page is part of the book template that will be used when creating the actual books. It is within those learner-intended books that the specific topic text will be edited.
After saving the book page, repeat the process to add additional book pages to the book template.
?The remaining actions include activating the template and making it available within the New Objects/Templates tab. Both of these actions are described in the creating book page templates article.
Summarizing Book Templates
?Book templates can be quite useful in accelerating the content development process and driving both quality and consistency across the development team. By following best practice recommendations most of the manual editing can be automated, allowing the effort to focus on high value needs instead of tedious verification of compliance with standards. The book framework contains embedded navigational links reducing the effort required to create and manage the learning materials.
?Having the templates available in the New Objects window enables greater visibility and efficiencies for the content developers. Your takeaway should be a general understanding of how book templates are used and the steps required to create them.
What’s next?
?In my next article I will demonstrate the process for using book and book page templates.
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Mr. Gray is a seasoned business strategist experienced in SAP Enable Now implementation and training, PMO stand up, digital and business transformation, process development, and best practice guidance. He has developed industry-leading methods for SAP Enable Now readiness, staff modeling, project deployment, financial performance, team onboarding, and business readiness. Mr. Gray is a problem solver at heart and a sharer of knowledge by choice. He has authored more than one hundred thought provoking articles which are all available on Linked-In.
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