The Max Function
Max calculates the maximum of two values: The maximum of «Number1» and 100.1 is «Max(Number1,100.1)».
XpressDox Support
Laying out the data capture interview
XpressDox will create a data capture interview automatically, using the data elements defined on the template. The sequence in which the data elements appear on the interview can be controlled with the CaptureDataElement command, and the Heading and Tab commands can assist with further layout.
Using Tabs in the interview
Templates with many data elements might result in data capture interviews being constructed by XpressDox which are intimidating to the template user. The Tab command assists the template author in laying out the data capture interview.
Protecting your template investment
When templates have been created using a programming environment such as Microsoft® VBA, the obvious risk for a firm is that the programmer leaves and their replacement takes some time to learn how the documents were created. Often it is simply easier for a new developer to create document templates from scratch, thereby nullifying a firm’s investment.
…and then there’s Document Assembly
An industry ‘guru’ recently wrote that document assembly is the next big wave for law firms. Those firms that use it will prosper and those that don’t will lose out. But there are also those who don’t think document assembly is necessary, who have the perception that Microsoft® Office Word can create templates just fine on its own. In which camp are you?
The XpressDox Cookbook
The official XpressDox Cookbook contains various recipes for different aspects of XpressDox. It is intended to complement the User Reference. The latter document is comprehensive in that it covers all of the XpressDox commands and functions, but does so to a limited depth. The Cookbook is designed to give in-depth coverage of certain commonly used aspects.
Using XSLT functions – XpressDox
XpressDox uses XSLT technology to insert data elements into Merge Fields. This means that a vast amount of functionality is available to the experienced user, especially the XSLT functions, which are used to format data. XpressDox functions and XSLT functions can be mixed in one Merge Field
XML and Data Sets
The core process of XpressDox is the merging of data into a template to produce a final merged document. The XpressDox merging engine thus needs two things: a set of data to merge, and a template into which to merge the data. The data which XpressDox merges into a template is referred to as a Data Set, and must be in XML format. The template then addresses the data elements in that Data Set by referring to them in Merge Fields.
What is document assembly?
Document assembly software adds value to word processing through the concept of a template, which has the variable parts of a document identified (or marked up) differently from the static parts. In this way, when a template is subsequently used (or run), the user is asked only for the variable data, which is then inserted into the template at the correct places, producing a completed document.
Suppressing empty lines in your assembled document – XpressDox
Conditional processing is one of the most powerful features of XpressDox Docussembly™. In particular, this applies to removing empty lines from a merged document. One application of this is removing address lines which contain empty data.
XpressDox user guides
One of strengths of XpressDox Docussembly™ is the fact that even novice users can create their own templates with very little training. In fact a novice user can create their first template in under 5 minutes.
Define layout in a base template
Sometimes a letterhead needs to dictate not just things like the company’s logo and fairly static items like the directors’ names, but also the position of the addressee information and data elements like ‘Your Reference’ and ‘Our Reference’, for example.
Capture a multi-line address in one field
You may not want to have to define 3 or 4 or some maximum number of address line data elements, and have the user capture them one at a time, and still provide conditional formatting logic to suppress any empty data elements. XpressDox document assembly supports this by the concept of long text fields.
Where have all my data elements gone?
Sometimes you will have marked up a template and then when you run it, one or more of the data elements don’t appear in the data capture interview. Conversely, sometimes the data element may appear in the capture interview but not on the merged document. This Cookbook recipe gives the background to why this might be, and what you can do about it.
RemoveParagraph: remove unwanted paragraphs
Although XpressDox does a lot to make sure it leaves no unwanted empty paragraphs behind, it is sometimes necessary to manually remove the unwanted paragraphs. The RemoveParagraph() command will empower the template author to do this.
Run a template for a number of data sets, and print the merged documents
After data sets have been saved as a result of running templates, it is possible to use those data sets, either individually or in batches, to produce mass mailing documents.
Test for Any or All repeated items meeting criteria
It is sometimes necessary to test whether at least one (Any) of a group of repeated items meets a particular set of criteria, and also to test whether All of the group meet those criteria. This article discusses how to construct those tests.
Source and destination formatting
When including part (or all) of one document into another, which is the basis of the BaseTemplate, IncludeTemplate and InsertDocument commands, there is always an issue about what formatting (styles, fonts, etc.) should be applied in the resulting document. XpressDox provides three options for this.
Look up a fee in a tariff table
The TableLookup command in XpressDox Docussembly™ can be used to look calculate values such as tax amounts or fees payable where these values are quoted in a tabular form, such as legislated tariffs.
The CaptureAsLongText Command
CaptureAsLongText and InsertFormattedText. The data capture interview will provide a multi-line control into which the data for the data element can be captured: «CaptureAsLongText(PropertyDescription)» If this long text is included in the document via a simple fillpoint (in the above example: «PropertyDescription»), then any line breaks which the user may
The CaptureDataElement and CaptureDataElements Commands
The commands in XpressDox which control the format of the interview do typically not appear on the interview unless they are required in the template being run. This mechanism allows, amongst others, the specification of all interview-layout commands in one template which is then included (with IncludeTemplate or IncludeCodeTemplate) by the templates requiring that
The ChooseFromList Command
This is a command which will present the user (via the interview) with a list of options from which to choose the value of a data element rather than a free-format text field. Command structure: I live in«ChooseFromList(State,Alabama,Alaska,Arizona,Arkansas,California,Colorado,Connecticut,Delaware,Florida,Georgia,Hawaii,Idaho,Illinois,Indiana,Iowa,Kansas,Kentucky,Louisiana,Maine,Maryland,Massachusetts,Michigan,Minnesota,Mississippi,Missouri,Montana,Nebraska,Nevada,New Hampshire,New Jersey,New Mexico,New York,North Carolina,North Dakota,Ohio,Oklahoma,Oregon,Pennsylvania,Rhode Island,South Carolina,South Dakota,Tennessee,Texas,Utah,Vermont,Virginia,Washington,West Virginia,Wisconsin,Wyoming)» «ToUpper(State)»
ChooseFromRDBList
Present a list of choices to the user on the interview in the form of ‘Radio Buttons’. Command structure: «ChooseFromRDBList(style,free,formal,semi-formal)» Inserting a ChooseFromRDBList command into your template does not necessarily place the control onto the interview. If the value is not needed anywhere then the list will not
ChooseFromRepeatingData – XpressDox
Present a drop-down list in your XpressDox template This command will present a drop-down list of values in the interview. This is similar to the action of the ChooseFromList command, except that the values to be displayed are not provided at template authoring time, but are contained in the
The ChooseFromSamples Command
Present a list of choices to the user, in a drop down list, except that in this case the user is permitted to type their own value and is not restricted to just the items in the list. Command structure: «ChooseFromSamples(Salutation,Yours faithfully,Yours sincerely,Kind regards)»«Salutation» In all other respects
support@xpressdox.com
901 S MoPac Expressway, Building 1, Suite #300, PMB 300127, Austin, TX, 78746, USA
85 Tottenham Court Road, London, W1T 4 TQ, UK
35 Anderson Road North, Cape Town, 7550, Western Cape, South Africa
Copyright ©2023 XpressDox. All Rights Reserved. | Website By Hello Fascination