. . . that you can double click on each side of the Instant Database screen and obtain some interesting and helpful results.

. . . to use !GroupNames! to tie related variables or blocks of text together so that they change in tandem.

. . . to assign a QuickLink to a folder that you access frequently (or rarely). No single other feature will save you more time in your day.

. . . that <Alt-Q> brings up a menu of commonly used commands that you might wish to use. 6 are pre-assigned. You can assign your own commands to the remainder of the buttons (and reassign a command to any button.)''

. . . that there are two toggles in the 'DropDown List' section of the Pathagoras toolbar to which you should pay particular attention to. The first is the 'NewDoc/Insert' toggle which controls how the text of the next selection you make from a DropDown List is handled. 'NewDoc' means 'create a new document before adding the text. 'Insert' tells Pathagoras to add the text to the current document at the last insertion point. The second setting is the 'Process/Supress' toggle. That controls whether or not <<*Options/Optional* . . .>> blocks will be automatically processed.

. . . that there are two steps to any document assembly project. The first is getting to the initial rough draft of the document. We call this the 'process' phase where <<*Options/Optional*>> blocks are processed, extraneous text is removed and a 'perfect' rough draft containing the document esssential is on screen. Processing occurs automatically when a document is created using a DropDown List or the Document Assembly routine. You can also 'force' processing of a document by pressing <Alt-P>. The second step is personalizing the document via the Instant Database screenage. Press <Alt-D> to scan for and replace bracketed variables that remain in the processed document. (Of course, if your documents do not contain <<*Options/Optional*>> text, there is just the single 'personalizing' step.)

. . .  that when you call a document from a folder, the assumption is you want to edit it, and not 'run' it. (Otherwise you would never be able to make changes to the base document). Therefore no processing of the <<*Options*, etc., blocks take place when you simply recall a document from a folder. If you want to process a document you called up directly from a folder, press <Alt-P>. Just be sure not to save (vs. save as) the document.

. . . that when you call a document from a DropDown List (or build it via the Document Assembly), the opposite assumption is make. A copy of the document is brought to the screen and processing starts automatically. To turn off the auto-processing, click the Suppress button in the DropDown List area or in the Clause Selection screen.

. . . that you can set most display settings (highlighting; show fields, spell check) etc.to default values via the Initial Settings tab in the Pathagoras Setings screen.

. . . that you can add 'arguments' to <<*Options . . . commands to add punctuation to the selections you made. So,

<<*Options(and)* . . .*>> will add commas and a final ‘and’; <<*Options(or)*. . . .>>  will add commas and a final ‘or’

and  <<*Options(enter)*. . . .>> will put each selection on a separate line.

. . . that the Instant Database can be used as an all-purpose Search and Replace tool. Since it can replace multiple items in a single pass, and it can handle all open documents (or even all documents in a selected folder), you can complete your document updates (i.e., changing multiple variables; changing letterheads and signature blocks when a new attorney is added to the firm, etc.) with ease.

    Templates: You can preassign a template to a document (or DropDown List of documents, or a book

 To a document: Type at the top of the document the followig <<*Template*c:\ . . .\template.dotx>>

 To a DropDown List: Select "Other Settings and Options" | Type full name of template, or navigate to the template to complete box. Press Update.

 To a Book: Click Document Assembly. Click the Book to which you want to attach the template. Click the Settings button. Click the Templates tab toward the right half of the screen and type the full name of the template or use the navigator to complete the text box. Press Save.

 

In general

. . . that Pathagoras is infinitely configurable. If you want a particular setting, assume Pathagoras can do it. If you cannot find it, just ask