'Create Variables' Assistant

Using the Create Variables Assistant.

When the document you want to Pathagorize is filled with 'personal data' (names, addresses, sizes, colors, etc.), call on the 'Create Variables Assistant. It allows you to quickly convert each piece of personal data into a [variable].

By way of example, let's assume that you wish to sanitize a Will that was originally written for, and has lots of instances of "Janet Q. Doe" and her husband "James R. Doe", her children, "Meenie, Minie, and Mo Doe", etc. Because what you had created is a perfect example of a well constructed Will, you wish to turn it into a 'source document' for future Wills.

The Create Variables Assistant is one of those 'must know' features about Pathagoras. It turns what otherwise might be an arduous process of 'sanitizing' your personal text-laden documents into into a cake walk. (Here, we use 'sanitize' to mean "clean out all instances of personal text, replacing them with variables.")

To activate the 'Create Variables' Assistant, press the hot key combination <Alt-V> (for 'Variable'). You will see this overlay, planted in the upper right corner of your editing screen (hopefully out of the way):

Figure 1. The Initial 'Create Variable' Assistant Screen.

Note that there are two sides to the Create Variables Assistant screen, 'left' and 'right', divided by a blue bar. We will discuss these separately in the following pages.

As an alternative to Alt-V, you can activate the Create Variables Assistant, by selecting 'Authoring/Editing Tools' | Wizards and Assistants" section in the Pathagoras drop down features list. (Image 2003, and before) (Image 2007 and after)