PATHAGORAS^™ Users' Guide, Part 4
Comments would be greatly appreciated to improve the usefulness of the text below and of the program.

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  Section B. Document Assembly:
   'Libraries & Books' and 'Clause Selection' screens

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If you wish to proceed to a particular subject, please click on one of the below links: Libraries & Books Screen Clause Selection Screen DoubleClick Controls ----------------- Other important Document Assembly Topics discussed on other pages: Definitions Assembly Basics The Setting screen Neutering forms and clauses Shelving a Book to a library. Personalizing Assembled Documents Glossaries GotForms? Linking to External Database Mouseless Assembly Clause-Sets Prefix/Suffix Naming Convention DocAssembly vs. DocManagement Highlight & Add

Summary:

      The process of assembling a document starts with a click of the DocAssembly icon. That is located on the PATHAGORAS' menu bar (reproduced above) which appears along with the other Word menus.  It is the third icon from the left (showing two documents being combined into one). When you press the DocAssembly icon a screen similar to Figure 9 below will appear.

                  Figure 9. The initial Document Assembly screen showing the DOCASSEMDEMO library that comes with Pathagoras.  Select the topic or type of document to create from the list of books at the left.  If the desired book is not showing, select it from other library via the drop-down box at the right side of the screen.

     'Select Books' Each line at the left under this title represents one of the 'books' in the current library. A 'book' is simply a collection of terms that, when combined in certain patterns, will result in a complete document. Those terms can be collected within a single document (called a  'glossary') or they can reside as separate documents in a standard MSWord folder.  The concepts of  'glossary' and 'folder of terms' were defined and discussed in earlier sections of this Guide.
 
    Each library can contain up to 10 books. A user can have an unlimited number of libraries. Therefore, an unlimited number of books, and commensurately an unlimited number of document assembly terms, are always readily available.

     By way of illustration, consider the following. A general practice attorney might have seven or eight  libraries. Each library would represent a major division of his or her practice, e.g., Domestic Relations, Intellectual Property, Bankruptcy, Criminal, etc.  Within each library the attorney could create  up to 10 different books.  For example, the domestic relations library might have books titled:  "Complaint Clauses," "Answers,"  "Settlement Agreement Clauses," "Decrees," etc. The attorney can quickly add terms to any book in any library using the Highlight & Add features of Pathagoras. When that text is needed for a client document, it is readily accessible.

     Note the text box at the top center of the screen. The text box is constantly updated as various choices are made, and reflect a 'summary' of the actions request by the user. In the above case, the user has elected to assemble clauses from the WillGlossary. (PATHAGORAS knows whether the document assembly source is a folder of terms or a glossary, and will reflect the document source in this box.)

     The large white box just below the text box allows the user to choose the action that will be triggered when the Next>> button is pressed. If the user wants to display the Clause Selection screen (the default 'double-click' action), three options ('Names', 'Subjects' or 'Clause-Sets') are offered.  The remaining choices ('below the line') allow the user to print a 'hard copy' of the available clauses, to directly open the underlying directory or glossary to edit or review the terms., or to create an 'always available' drop-down list of the terms in the selected book.

Here is a bit more on the selections.
a.  Names .  The (typically) shorter name of the clause or document. See figure 11 below.

b.  Subjects. The (typically) longer, more descriptive subject of the clause or document. See figure 10 below.

c.  Clause-Sets only. (A clause-set is a collection of pre-assigned clause references. Composing and using clause-sets allow the user to quickly assemble a large document comprising many separate clauses without having to select each individual clause. See more information about clause-sets at this link.

Other choices:

Printable check sheet.  If selected, PATHAGORAS will transfer the  'name' and the 'subject' of each clause onto a standard Word editing screen. The resulting text can then be edited, formatted, printed and, if desired, saved for later use.  Once printed, the form can be given to the person who ultimately decides which clauses will go into the particular document. After that person makes the selections on the 'hard copy,' it can be returned to the computer operator for electronic assembly.

Open Glossary (shown when the book is a glossary) or Display Folder (shown when the book is a folder of terms): Used for quick access to the original (source) documents or glossary, e.g., for editing the original text.

Display Folder. Perhaps there are other documents in the folder in which the glossary is saved to which you wish quick access.  This is the access point.

Create DropDown List. When selected, Pathagoras will create an 'always active' list of of the clauses or documents that constitute the selected book. The list will appear (and remain) in the tool bar area of the Word editing screen, making all clauses in the list instantly available.

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     If the user had selected 'Show Names' in the Libraries & Books screen (or pressed the 'Show Names' button after the display has been created), the Clause Selection screen would look like this:

        Figure 11: Only the names show in the right panel, but the 'subject' of the clause (user assigned) appears in blue at the center beneath the two panels.

Next>> The is the 'continue' button to effect the action of the selection made at the left of the button:

<Assemble> will insert all the selected clauses into a new document. 

<Insert> will add the selected clause into the current document.

<View/Edit> will open the actual glossary for editing. After the glossary is opened, Pathagoras will highlight the selected term. (If the book is a folder of terms, as opposed to a glossary, the option button will read <Open>.  In that case, will open the original of the selected document for editing.)

<Show Names Only> / <Show Subjects> (toggle button) allows the user to change the display to show or hide the subjects assigned to the various clauses.

<Delete> will delete the selected clauses from the book (glossary or folder). A confirmatory "Are you sure" message will appear to prevent accidental erasures.

<Create dropdown list> When selected, creates an 'always active' list of the selected clauses. The list will appear (and remain) in the tool bar area of the Word editing screen, making all clauses in the list instantly available.

Note:  Creating a dropdown list from the Clause Selection screen is not the same as creating one from the the Libraries & Books screen.  When a dropdown list is created from the Clause Selection sceen, only the items in the right panel are placed in the resulting list.  The contents of the entire book will populate a dropdown list created from the Libraries & Books screen.)

 
<Back> allows the user to the DocAssembly Libraries & Books screen.

Show:

    <Name> The name assigned to the clause (typically the 'red label' in the glossary. above the actual glossary term; or the actual document name. 

    <Subject> The subject assigned to the clause (typically the 'blue label' in the glossary. above the actual glossary term; or the subject assigned in the Subject line of the  document properties field.

Sort By:

Sometimes the name of the clauses provide the better sort order. This is expecially true if the prefix/suffix  naming convention (e.g., wil100, wil110, wil120, etc.) was used to name the clauses, or if the names were given artificial prefexes  just to force a sort order (e.g., a1_Introductory Clauses a2_Identification of Parties, a3_Addresses, b1_Recitals, etc.), but you didn't what those names to appear.

    <Name>
    <Subject>

Stacked / Linear option: The user can choose whether to arrange the clauses 'one above the next' (i.e., 'Stacked') or on the same line (i.e., 'Linear', with no paragraph mark between entries. Stacked is the default method.

 E.g.:
'apples,
oranges,
strawberries'

OR  'apples, oranges, strawberries,' etc.

The box at the bottom is informational only. It states the nature of the source of the clauses (either 'Glossary' or a 'Directory') and the prefix associated with the book.

The various <?>  buttons reveals detailed explanation of the workings of this screen. The small <?> buttons are action specific. The large <?> button provides a screen overview.

 The box next to the large <?> button displays the number of clauses in the currently collection.
 The box just beneath, and between the two panels displays either the 'name' of the clause or its subject, whichever is the converse of the items displaying in the panels.

<Expand Set>: if you have selected a clause-set, you can either accept the set in its entirety for assembly, or you may wish to delete (before assembly) a clause or two from the set that you know are not appropriate for the particular client or customer. To remove a clause from the set, click  the <Expand Set> button. Click the clause from the set you wish to remove. Proceed with Document assembly. Only the remaining clauses will be inserted into the new document. (The delete clause is removed from this assembly session only. The deletion does not affect the actual clause-set as maintained in the glossary.

<Select All> Self-explanatory.  'Select All' toggles to 'Clear All' (and vice versa) when clicked. 

Clause count: The unlabelled number box to the right of Select All reflects the number of available entries in the left-hand panel.

Double-Click controls  (top edge of screen)
         At the top edge of the screen are the Double-Click controls, which add even more flexibiity to the program. Two of the controls (Insert and Assemble) allow the user to insert the 'double-clicked clause directly into the existing, or a new, document.

• Transfer: The 'default' action. Transfer selected clause from left panel to right;
  
• Preview: view the clause before inserting it; the first 1,000 characters of that clause are displayed. (Note: In addition, the entire clause is placed onto the standard Windows 'clipboard.' It is thereafter available for 'pasting'  in Word and any other application in the same fashion as a standard Windows "paste" operation.)
• Insert: paste the selected clause into the existing document ; or
  
• Assemble: create a new document and paste the selected clause as its initial text.      
  

    Logic built into PATHAGORAS continually sets the remaining choices to the most likely user need. For example, if the user double-clicks on 'Double click equals Assemble' and then double clicks a specific clause, that item is inserted into a new document and Pathagoras changes the 'default' to 'Double click equals Insert.'  Similarly, if the user chooses 'Double click equals File Open', the 'After Double Click --Leave Open'  switch changes to 'After Double Click--Close Screen.'

       Note that the double-click controls pertain to a single element only. If several items have been checked, and the user double clicks on one of them, only that element will be acted upon.

Pathagoras provides quite a few more additional options for managing your selections. Click the More>> button to view them.




<Add Terms Manually>  Let's say that you like the clauses that hve been selected, but you want to add one more clause to the list. You cannot type directly into the clause selection box, but this is the next best thing. Type the clause name in the 'Add Terms Manually' box. When you click the Add-> button, the clause's name will be transferred into the right panel beneath the currently selected entry.

 <Add clause names as hidden text> Next is a handy switch that can be helpful in tracking down the source of a typographical or other error which exists in a base clause. If this box is checked, PATHAGORAS will imprint next to each clause in the document being assembled, as hidden text, the names of the clause. To identify the 'offending clause,' simply press the 'Show/Hide' button in the Word menu bar. (Show/Hide is a Word, not PATHAGORAS function. Show/Hide is represented in Word's menu by the "¶" icon.)

<Create Clause-Set> Certain basic documents always contain the same clauses. It is a bit of a waste of time to have to display the checksheets and then methodically check off each required clause on the CheckBox form for such repetitive documents. The solution is a 'Clause-Set.'  If  you want to create a clause-set, check this box.   More on clause-sets at this link.

<Master Set > Next is a handy

Part A of this Section 4 provides the new and experienced user an introduction to document assembly.
Part C of Section 4 discusses the engine behind the surface: the Settings screen.
Part D will guide you through the steps needed to create your own document assembly system.
Part E discusses alternative document assembly methods.
Part F demonstrates how to personalize a document or form for a specific client or customer.
Part G takes you step-by-step through the process of adding 'books' to your libraries.