Default Values

No, i mean add any field to panels, that has a default value. The default value is added in the fields API at /admin/structure/content-types/...

If the default value is suppose to show, it doesn't. It doesn't even render. So default value = no rendering

Panels is using core's render method.

Does this default value appear on the node?

Is the default value added after the node is created? Default values are not retroactive, for example.

Those are handled by token.module and passed through into CTools' keyword system. I'm afraid I have no control over what they actually output.

I have no idea what the actual bug is here, sorry.

@Draven: Earl, Dave and i spoke about this in irc and the conclusion is a little jargony but useful.

In short what you are expecting is totally understandable and we (im roughly speaking for them only in so far as we seemed to agree) think it is probably the way things should work. Unfortunately they don't work this way, but for good reason that is embedded in cores field api.

The long description:

1. Fields are things you attach to bundles that hold attributes of your content. (e.g. text field, image)
2. Bundles are types of entities useful for differentiating purposes. (e.g. basic page, article)
3. Entities are what youre use to thinking of as content (nodes, users, terms, media)

When rendering tokens, the token module just calls field_view_field() on the field you've requested to get the token value.
By default drupal stores NULL as that fields its value on every piece of content when you created the field. Drupal interprets that NULL as empty when viewing or editing so nothing displays.

This can be confirmed by adding a field to an existing bundle (content type) and then editing/viewing the a node of the content type in question. You'll notice the default value is neither displayed nor added to the default value for the form.

In fact, the ONLY time the default value comes into play is in populating the entity creation form (node, term, user). In that case the formstate is populated appropriately and rendered with the defaults in there as you and I would expect.

In my opinion this is a bug. We should store "" on purposefully emptied fields and NULL on undefined (aka default) fields. If we did that we could very easily populate the "default value" from the fields definition when it is rendered by field_api and NULL comes up as its value.

The consequences of this are all beneficial.

When you add a field to an existing bundle (content type) all of the cotnent of that bundle gets the default value which most of the time will be empty. When you want a specifically empty field you just delete the default value out of the populated form item and save. The null will turn into a "" and drupal will know you dont want anything there.

Id also like to extend this to the imagefield so that it can benefit from the non exclusive nature of "default value and "empty". Ill try and make a case and a patch if i have time this weekend.

In the end every field should have a default value that is used if nothing has ever been specified for that content when it is rendered. And that default value should be able to be overridden with something or nothing as the user desires. If this is fixed upstream token can just keep doing its thing. Views might need a little love to make it work on filter and sort though says earl.