Hey, there!  I would like to create a folder template in Platinum, but can't find anything on it in Help.  How is it done?  I'd like to have about 10 repetitions of 3 tracks, each set up differently, so I don't have to use Take Lanes for multiple takes.  It would be something like the old track layers.  Then I could just insert a new folder in one click with the 30 tracks instead of building each track.  Can this be done?

Yes, it's just not immediately obvious.
 
Create your folder full of tracks, then select all the tracks. Then right click on one of the the tracks (not the folder), and choose "save as track template".
 
Then when you insert what you've just saved, it will bring back the whole thing, including the folder and all tracks.
 
You can also include buses doing this.

John T
Yes, it's just not immediately obvious.
 
Create your folder full of tracks, then select all the tracks. Then right click on one of the the tracks (not the folder), and choose "save as track template".
 
Then when you insert what you've just saved, it will bring back the whole thing, including the folder and all tracks.
 
You can also include buses doing this.

Ah!  That was my mistake--I right-clicked on the folder, not a track, and so the option to save as track template was not visible.

John T
Yes, it's just not immediately obvious.

 
No kidding.  Thanks for the tip.
 

I think the reason why it's not obvious is that graphically, it appears the tracks are a subset of the folder. But functionally, a folder is just a way to organize tracks - they can be MIDI, audio, or instruments. So when you save the tracks, you save the folder that organizes them.

Nice, John T. Learned something new today as well
All the best.

Anderton
I think the reason why it's not obvious is that graphically, it appears the tracks are a subset of the folder. But functionally, a folder is just a way to organize tracks - they can be MIDI, audio, or instruments. So when you save the tracks, you save the folder that organizes them.

That's a classic example, I think, of the difference between a user model, and a developer model.
 
In terms of usage, tracks *are* a subset of the folder. Conceptually, visually, everything. That is, seen from a user's point of view.
 
Now, the way to implement that in code is almost certainly as you describe, but that's kind of immaterial. It's so utterly counter intuitive from a user point of view to think that way.

John T
Now, the way to implement that in code is almost certainly as you describe, but that's kind of immaterial. It's so utterly counter intuitive from a user point of view to think that way.

Agreed, which is why when situations like that occur, they should be spelled out explicitly in any documentation (assuming it's too complex to bend the code to fit the desired behavior). I couldn't find any reference in the documentation about how to create track templates when they're enclosed in a folder.

Anderton

John T
Now, the way to implement that in code is almost certainly as you describe, but that's kind of immaterial. It's so utterly counter intuitive from a user point of view to think that way.

Agreed, which is why when situations like that occur, they should be spelled out explicitly in any documentation (assuming it's too complex to bend the code to fit the desired behavior). I couldn't find any reference in the documentation about how to create track templates when they're enclosed in a folder.

Thanks for that, Craig.  So I'm not just "daft" for not finding the documentation.  It could easily be added under Templates in Help.

 
Just add one menu item to the context menu [that you now get when you right-click on the folder blue button] that calls the same function as when you right click on a track number.  There's no change in logic, which is to save all tracks that are currently selected along with any folders they might be in.  There is a special case when you right click a single track that isn't selected which saves it with any parent folder it might be in.  It would make sense to have an unselected folder behave the same (and save all its tracks) but that would add logic and I don't see a problem if you have to select the folder first before being able to save it as a template.
 
EDITED to correct my logic.