Creating Definitions (Content Types)

What are Definitions?

Definitions are the building blocks of your data schema in Qik. A definition describes a type of content — its name, fields, validation rules, and behaviour. When you create a definition, you're creating a new content type that your organisation can create instances of.

For example, you might define a 'Project' type with fields for title, status, deadline, and assigned team member. Once defined, your team can create individual Project items that follow that structure.

Built-in vs Custom Types

Qik includes several built-in base types:

• article — General-purpose content (the default)
• submission — Form submissions (creates a form)
• event — Calendar events with scheduling
• profile — People/contacts
• scope — Organisational units/groups
• workflowcard — Workflow items (creates a workflow)
• email — Email message templates

You create custom definitions that extend these base types. For instance, a 'Workshop' definition might extend the event base type, inheriting event features like dates and attendance while adding custom fields specific to workshops.

Creating a New Definition

To create a definition:

1. Navigate to Content in the sidebar
2. In the content types area, create a new definition
3. Enter the title (singular name, e.g. 'Project'), plural (e.g. 'Projects'), and database key
4. Select the base type this definition extends
5. Optionally assign a category to group related types together
6. Select which scopes this definition belongs to

The Field Editor

After creating a definition, use the field editor to define what data the type stores. The field editor has three panels:

• Field Tree (left) — Shows all fields in a draggable tree structure. Add, remove, duplicate, and reorder fields here.
• Preview (centre) — A live preview of how the fields render as form inputs. Test the form as you build it.
• Field Settings (right) — Configuration options for the selected field, including type, validation, expressions, and display settings.

Field Types

Common field types include:

• String — Text input (single line or textarea)
• Number — Numeric input
• Boolean — True/false toggle
• Date — Date or datetime picker
• Array — Multiple values (e.g. multi-select)
• Object — Nested group of fields
• Reference — Link to another content item
• Key — Auto-generated unique identifier

Field Configuration

Each field can be configured with:

• Title — Display label
• Key — Database field name
• Type — Data type
• Widget — How the input renders (input, textarea, select, radio, etc.)
• Minimum / Maximum — Validation rules (set minimum to 1 to make required)
• Options — Predefined choices for select/radio fields
• Expressions — Dynamic logic for default values, visibility, or computed values
• Description — Help text for users

Definition Settings

Beyond fields, definitions can be configured with:

• Default scopes — Which scopes new items of this type are created in
• Restrict scopes — Limit which scopes this type can be used in
• Default sort — How list views sort items by default
• Category — Group definitions by category in the Content section
• Automation — Set up notifications, actions, workflows, and confirmations that trigger on create/update/delete

FAQs