A very important part of the object-oriented philosophy is that the user does not load a program and subsequently create a file from the program. Instead, the user works with objects he creates by "cloning" from an existing template. The Workplace Shell allows the user to create unique templates for the different file layouts and use them with the same application. This is discussed further in Setting up the Users Work Area.
Contents after Installation of OS/2
The templates folder contains several common templates like data files, bit maps, folders, and icons which can serve as models for the user's objects. A template behaves like a pad of paper that you can drag a page off but the pad never ends.
Figure "Templates After Full Installation"
Changes a User Can Make
Users can create an object from the template that comes closest to the type of object that is needed. This object then can be modified to conform precisely to the users' needs and made into a new template.
For example, a "data file" can be dragged from the data file template and put into a work area. The file is then modified to the company memo layout and the standard headings and text are entered. The modified object is then made into a template from which new company memos can be created.
Figure "Example of a Folder With User Templates"
The administrator has to make sure that the program that is intended to work with this template has the appropriate association. Now, when an object has been created from the template and has been named properly, a double click on the object starts the program to work with that object. Figure "Example of a Menu Showing the Association" shows an object derived from a user template with a cascaded menu showing the association with a program.