Copy values from existing content into new add form

I would appreciate ideas or sample code on how the topic can be implemented.

The use case for this feature is that sometimes historical data needs to be preserved and readily available. However, some fields may have outdated information so the content needs to be updated. Instead of creating a new content type and filling-out all fields, I want to copy existing values of an item and make them available in the add form so that the user just needs to update some fields. This would save the user some time.

Thanks.

I'm guessing https://docs.plone.org/develop/plone/content/history.html would do?
It should keep a history of older versions of the object, so you can just edit the existing one.

Thank you for your reply.

I am aware of version histories. However, I will be relating items to other objects. I think it will be more work to use specific versions in views and queries. For now, I am going with a simple copy, paste, redirect to edit view. And then manage drafts via a script to archive un-submitted copies.

I'm unsure if I understand correctly. Do you want to link to a specific version of an object?
ie,

  • Document A refers to Document B
  • User edits Document B
  • Document A refers to the previous version of Document B

Yes you described it correctly.