OS EDU - Dear CSM - Copy? Template? What's the difference?

Question : I see that we can easily "Copy" a page (or a workgroup) and we can also make a "Template" of a page or a workgroup. What's the difference and why would we do one or the other?

Answer : Awesome question! They really are two different features, so let's be sure to talk about why you'd use one or the other.

• Copy : When you copy a page, you are doing just that: Making a Copy. The page will replicate as many features as it can. Keep in mind that if you move the page to another workgroup, you may need to adjust permissions. (Employee Directory Islands, for example, will need to be replaced. Announcement Islands are Workgroup specific, etc)
• Why Copy? : We strongly recommend making a Copy of a page before you make any major changes to the original. This let's you "play" with the new page, adjust things until it looks the way you want. Then go apply the changes to the page you actually want to change.  Copying is also a great way to get consistent content out quickly. One example of this might be "Branch Pages."  If you want every Branch to have its own page, but you want the Branch pages to look very similar, Copying is a great way to do that. Simply rename the page, adjust the content for that location, and you're done! 
• Template : A Template is like a copy, in that the Portal will try to keep as much of the original content as possible. The big difference is how the Portal saves the information. The Template will become something you can choose when you Create a New Page. We have a great video for you to reference, here.So now - this layout is available to ANYONE who has permission to make a New Page!
• Why Templates? : Templates make a layout easy to use and VERY consistent. No more fiddling with island shapes and sizes, you can even preset things like background colors. Also? The Template can be Exported and/or Imported. So... we can share! The "SetUpPercentages" template in the snapshot above is one we've made that you can import (if you are on 6.1 or higher)  You can make templates in your sandbox and import them to production, too.