Calendar templates
What this page is — an explanation of the templates a calendar is created from, and what each one decides.
What it is for — choosing the right template before you create a calendar, since the choice is permanent.
The problem it solves — the template picker shows three dozen names with no explanation of what picking one commits you to. It commits you to the event form.
Permission: Create Orbit Calendars (to use a template). The catalogue itself is maintained by the platform operator — see the operator catalogue.
1. What a template decides
| The event form | Which fields an event asks for, which are required, and which offer a fixed list of choices |
| The opening view | Whether the calendar opens in month, week or day |
| The event colour | The colour events are drawn in on the grid |
It does not decide the calendar's name, timezone, working days, resources or sharing. Those are yours, and all of them can be changed later — see create a calendar.
2. The catalogue
Templates are grouped by business function. The functions available are:
Marketing · Real Estate · HR & Recruitment · General Operations · Healthcare Appointments · Academic Scheduling · Legal Case Management · Client Consulting · Production Planning · Hospitality Management · Project Scheduling · Financial Calendar · Logistics Scheduling · Program Management · Retail Operations · Technical Support · Event Planning · Content Production · Public Services
Four examples, to show how different the event forms are:
| Template | Opens in | The event form asks for |
|---|---|---|
| Site Visit Schedule | Week | Client Name*, Phone Number*, Interested Unit/Plot*, Visit Type, Cab Pickup Required? |
| Candidate Interviews | Day | Candidate Name*, Position*, Round*, Resume / CV Link, Zoom/Google Meet Link |
| Social Media Scheduler | Month | Social Platform*, Post Caption*, Campaign Image |
| Project Coordination | Week | Site Address*, Gate/Lockbox Code |
An asterisk marks a required field.
3. How the form is built
Each template carries a definition of its fields. A field has a label, a type, and sometimes a fixed list of choices:
| Kind of field | Appears as | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Text | A single-line box | Client Name |
| Long text | A multi-line box | Post Caption |
| A fixed list | A dropdown | Visit Type — First Visit, Negotiation, Final Inspection |
| Yes / no | A pair of radio buttons | Cab Pickup Required? |
| A link | A single-line box validated as a web address | Resume / CV Link |
| An image | An asset picker | Campaign Image |
These fields appear under Additional Details on the event form — see create and edit an event.
4. Choosing one
Pick the template whose required fields you will always be able to fill in. A required field you cannot answer will block every event you create.
If nothing fits exactly, prefer a template with fewer required fields — a field you do not need is a smaller problem than one you cannot supply.
Changing it would change what every existing event is required to contain. To move a calendar to a different template, create a new calendar and re-enter the events.
5. Don't confuse this with…
| The operator catalogue | Adding, editing and importing templates is a platform-operator screen — see the operator catalogue |
| Custom fields elsewhere in Orbit | Other modules let an administrator define fields. Schedule's come from the template and are not editable inside your organisation |
6. Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Cause |
|---|---|
| The template is greyed out when editing | Expected — it is fixed at creation |
| A field you expected is missing from an event | It is not in that calendar's template |
| You cannot add a field | Templates are operator-maintained. Ask your platform operator |
More in troubleshooting.