Tips and Tricks
Mapping SmartPaths and Books:
- Take advantage of where you are!
If the document you have open on your editing screen is from the folder which you wish to set as a SmartPath, click the PathSmart ('runner') icon. If there is a blank line which can be filled, click it. PathSmart will then ask “Is the folder of the current document the folder you want to assign to this SmartPath?" If so, say 'Yes.'
Perhaps the document is from folder that you want to assign as a document assembly book. I.e., the displayed document, along with other documents in the same folder, represents a collection of clauses from which documents could be assembled. If that is the case, click the Document assembly icon. The 'Libraries & Books' screen will appear. Click on an empty shelf and the QuickSet button will display. Click QuickSet and then choose the first option presented, which will read: Set the folder of the underlying document as the Document Assembly book."
- If you keep documents with different subject matters in the same folder, map the same folder twice but give each a different SmartPath nickname.
- Keep your favorite paths in each of your profiles. That way you always have quick access to your most frequently used paths.
- While Instant Database is a great tool for personalizing documents, its potential extends far beyond just that. You should know that IDB is simply a variation of MSWord's powerful search and replace function. We use 'IDB' to clean up documents imported from the internet. Using readily available algorithms to perform this cleanup, we search and replace ^ p^p (double carriage returns) with (for example) "&*&*", ^p (a single paragraph) with a space with a space and then the & *&* with a ^p. We saved it out as '_Cleanup'. Works like a charm.
- Do you do a lot of e-mail attachments of Word documents? Pathagoras can make your life a little easier.
- For example, I use AOL for my e-mailing. Whenever I want attach a Word document to an e-mail, AOL will default to a directory from which I can choose the attachment. Unfortunately, this default directory is not (and is nowhere near) where I keep my Word documents.
- Pathagoras does not work directly within AOL. To ease my search for the document I want to attach to the email, I had to develop a workaround. It's very easy. Add the AOL (or Netscape or whatever) default path to your PathSmart profile. After you have finalized and saved the document in Word and safely placed it in its permanent folder, just SmartSave a copy of the desired document to the path that AOL looks for attachments. Then when you e-mail and want to attach a file, it's right there.
- Mouseless navigation is among the most powerful, but perhaps least understood, of the features of the entire program. Mouseless navigation, however, could not be simpler. Just type the SmartPath number that represents one of your folders (it's just a simple number 1 thru 12) to the editing screen and press the trigger key <Alt-G>. The folder assigned to the desired SmartPath will instantly be displayed. You can open every and any document folder on your system directly from your keyboard.
- So what if the folder you want is in a profile (a collection of 12 SmartPaths ) that is not the current ('default') profile. Piece of cake. So long as you know the profile name and the SmartPath number, Pathagoras can take you there. Simple type two colons to tell Pathagoras that the profile which follows next may not be the default profile. Then type profile name, a comma and the SmartPath number. E.g., ": :Docs,4 " (no quotes, not case sensitive). See Mouseless <Alt-G> Navigation for more tips and tricks using this incredible feature.
- If you religiously follow the practice of placing your "General Glossary" in Position #1 of all libraries, or have created a "SuperGlossary" this little trick (which combines elements of document assembly and document management) will lead you to documents that you know exist, but are just not quite sure where. The trick is best demonstrated by example:
I keep my passwords and account numbers in a Word document called "top secret information and passwords." It's in a folder that I have mapped as SmartPath 2 of my "RHL" profile. I don't always remember the full name of the document (it's pretty long), nor am I always in the RHL profile. However, as noted in the previous hint, if Pathagoras encounters a line that looks like this:
"::rhl,2:top secret information and passwords"
, Pathagoras can retrieve the document named after the third colon. (Note the setup: 2 colons followed by the profile name followed by a comma, then the SmartPath #, a colon and then the document name.)
Whoa, that is way too much to remember! Yes, it is. This part is the real trick. Save that long address as a glossary term called " topsecret " (or whatever you want). Then when you want to get to your passwords, type ' topsecret ' to the screen and press <Alt-G>. The document address ( : :rhl,2:top secret information and passwords) will replace the nickname on the screen (just like any glossary name is replaced by the full text of the called for term). Then, with the cursor at the end, press <Alt-G> again. Pathagoras will locate " top secret information and passwords.doc " in SmartPath 2 of the rhl profile , and place a copy of it onto the editing screen. (Press <Ctrl-Al-G> if you want the original document.) This works for any document, not just 'top secret' ones.
- Full document name. Want to know the full name of the active document? SaveSmart (the 'disk' icon) can tell it to you. When you display the SaveSmart screen, the active document's full name (DOS path and all) displays at the bottom of the SaveSmart screen.
- Want to see the other documents in the same folder as the currently displayed document? Display the SaveSmart screen and click the button at the far right of the name field. A regular Word 'File Open' window will appear and you can peruse the other files in that folder.
- DropDown Lists. While ordinarily you can have a maximum of 10 books available from which to quickly pull clauses, by taking proper advantage of dropdown lists, you actually can have 20. Create a library containing 10 of your favorite books, but place 10 more into the (up to 10) available dropdown lists.