If you have multiple languages for your project and you create content entries in one language, you will see placeholder entries for some/all of the other languages.
In this article we will look at the following:
What are placeholder entries and why are they created?
When are placeholder entries created?
What happens when I change my default language?
How can I hide placeholder entries?
What are placeholder entries and why are they created?
Placeholder entries are created to maintain consistent data, or in other words, to maintain relationships between entries. If you create an entry in one language and you want to create a linked entry in another language, you can simply add the placeholder entry of the other language. This ensures that the two entries are linked.
There are two different placeholders
Physical - An actual entry that is created in your database
Pseudo - An entry that is only visually represented in the Flamelink app interface for a corresponding default language entry. It does not exist in your database. The entry is shown so that you can add the linked entry in a different language. Once you add a pseudo entry it will be promoted to a physical entry that is created in the database.
In Flamelink, the default language is treated as the source of truth. The default language will always have a physical entry for any content entries created in your non-default languages.
Let's use an example.
I have two languages for my Flamelink project: English as the default, and German as the non-default language.
I create a content entry in English
When I switch to German there will be a Pseudo entry for the entry I created in English.
If I want to add the entry for German, I can simply select the plus (+) button, add content, and save.
Once I save, the entry will be added to the database.
When are placeholder entries created?
As explained in the previous section, if your content entry was created in the default language, a Pseudo placeholder entry will be created in all of the other non-default languages so that you can easily create a translation entry.
If your content entry was created in a non-default language, a Physical placeholder entry will always be created for the default language. Once the Physical placeholder entry in the default language has been updated with content, Pseudo placeholders will be created for all your other languages in order to add translated versions.
What happens when I change my default language?
Once you switch your default language, physical placeholder entries will be created in the new default language for each entry that existed in the old default language. This is crucial to maintain consistent data.
Let's use an example.
I have two languages: English (default) and German (non-default).
I created entries A, B, and C in English and then added entries A and B (by selecting the plus + button) in German as well.
English
German
Note that entry C in German is a pseudo entry because it has not been added for German yet. In other words, it does not exist in the database for German.
I then switch German to my default language.
A physical placeholder (database entry) will now be created for Entry C in German
Because German is now my default language, it will be treated as the language that must have a physical entry for all non-default language entries.
How can I hide placeholder entries?
Select the Hide Placeholder Entries (eye) icon to show or hide placeholder entries.
Read more about adding and managing content in different languages here.