_Delete_ term

   There are some spots in your document for which a variable needs to perform its place-holder duties 'just in case,' but it frequently the case where that variable is just not needed. Classic examples: [Address Line 2] and [Suite Number].

   Pathagoras has a feature that will delete these variables if they are blank. If the 'Delete if Blank' box on the Instant Database Screen is checked, any blank variables will be deleted. But that feature, while useful, is not a complete solution. First of all, that box will typically not be checked. That's because you almost always want Pathagoras to preserve variables when you don't yet have values for them when you first process the document. Only on the last run of the IDB would you check the box to clean up the document. That is an extra step you can avoid when you know from the start the variable will be 'blank.'

   If you know the variable should be deleted ab initio (just showing off my lawyer chops), just type '_Delete_' as its value. When the IDB replace routine is run, the adjacent variable will be deleted and not preserved. (This overrides an unchecked 'Delete if Blank' value.) Any extra spaces or blank lines that the variable held space for will also be deleted.

  informationYou can change the delete term to anything you want via the Pathagoras Features | All Settings | Instant Database | Custom Settings. Look for 'Delete Now Term'.)

 

() (facing parentheses)

   If you have 'Delete if Blank' pre-selected, but there is still a variable that you want to preserve in the document, save it by typing facing parentheses as the value. The variable will be left in place -- it will not be replaced by the parenthesis, but because it's no longer blank, it won't be deleted either.