Currently item types and their attributes would need to be programmed into to read a component or selected manually after an element is displayed. If the templates in the template library had the ability to set these selections and values ahead of time then it would make the use of item types be drastically more efficient.
Really hope we see traction on this idea. Feature Definitions are good for static Item Types but there doesn't appear to be an easy process to get Picklist Item Types to work. It would be a much better workflow to allow an option for assigning Item Types and making the pick list selection in the template. This way the User can avoid zooming in/out of the 3D model making sure they are picking the right component/mesh.
That is exactly what I am looking for.
Ah ok I understand. You want to manage Item Type properties in the Template Editor to keep the number of Feature Definitions and Item Types down.
The inefficiency comes from have a item type like "Asphalt Pavement" that then also has further definitions associated based on mix type/grade/thickness/etc. The feature definition already has "Asphalt Pavement" by default but then the other attributes need to be set automatically each time a new corridor is created. There are also situations where an Item Type may not be automatically defined by a Feature Definition, like with a scheduling task code, that would be nice to define in a template before modeling with it. I believe some of this could be coded into the item types with more time and knowledge.
We currently can attach Item Types to Feature Definitions in a dgnlib. That way they are automatically pulled when a Template generates the Component or Point. Are there any downsides to doing this for your project?