How-tos

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• Adding attachments to an email using scripts

  This How-To will show you how to insert your own file attachments when sending email through the Designer module, or through automation using the Create Email Contents task in the Workflow module.
  Designer

  JavaScript

• Change detail line formatting based upon a data field value

  This How-To will show you how to change a line Item detail formatting based upon a data field.
  Designer

• Overview of Booklet Imposition

  Here is a basic How-To along with some tips for generating booklets.
  Designer

  output

• Scripts: Combining data fields in conditions

  This How-To shows you how to combine record-based conditions using the Conditional Script Wizard.
  Designer

  scripts

• Creating an address block

  This How-To shows you how to create an address block.
  Designer

• Import and use external fonts

  While there are currently no UI methods of using fonts imported into the Fonts folder in the template’s resources, they are still useable through a small bit of CSS that will “activate” those fonts for use, following which they can be called for use (again, within the CSS).
  Designer

• Load a snippet based on a data field value

  In this How-To, we will personalize a letter for each customer using snippets that contain text in the customer’s language.
  Designer

  scripts

• Localizing templates using JSON

  This How-To shows you how to use JSON to localize text in your template’s content.
  Designer

  scripts

• Using external libraries and frameworks

  When it comes to offering choice, nothing beats the Internet. There are so many different frameworks and libraries out there, whatever you think you want to do is probably already available as a simple library you can add to your Web template with a single line of code. This How-To shows you how to use external libraries and frameworks.
  Designer

  web

• Using OpenWeatherMap API

  While there are many different APIs available to provide weather information on the Internet, OpenWeatherMap appears to offer the simplest, most extensive features available. It is easy to use and free for up to 50,000 requests per day. In this How-To we will explore obtaining weather information in HTML form (the easiest to include in your page) and in JSON format which is better if you wish to customize the weather display in your template.
  web

• Using the Google Maps API

  Sometimes, you just need a map. A map to get you somewhere, or to know where you are. In this How-To we explore how to use the Google Maps API to add a static or interactive map to your template.
  web

• Passing Workflow variables to Designer

  Runtime parameters pass values from Workflow to an OL Connect template, data mapping configuration or Job Creation Preset. They have been introduced gradually in OL Connect, from version 2019.2 up to 2021.1. In older versions, runtime parameters are not available, but this simple 2-step trick will let you get any Local and Global variables from PlanetPress Workflow into your record, for use in your template.
  Designer

  workflow

• Tips and Tricks for Medias and Master Pages

  This is a small collection of tips & tricks specifically related to the use of Master Pages and Medias, along with the Sheet Configuration properties for any sections.
  print

• Dynamic image that doesn’t contain the data field value

  Sometimes, the data field value doesn’t contain the actual name of the image. So, we must proceed via scripting and use an if statement on the data field value.
  Designer

  scripts

• Output Sections conditionally

  The case we deal here is the one where the sections are output according to a data field value condition.
  Designer

  print

• Overflow with multiple master pages

  The case we deal here is one where we add a tear-off section on the first page of an invoice. The tear-off section will appear below the line items only on the first page. So, we don’t want the line items overflow on the tear-off section.
  Designer

  overflow

  print

• Showing a Terms and Conditions on the back of the first page only

  The case we deal with here is the one where we add a Terms and Conditions page only in the back of the first page, regardless of the number of pages in the overflow.
  Designer

  print

• Using a selector to load part of a snippet

  In this case we show how to retrieve parts of a snippet. Suppose we have a single snippet with three parts. Each part contains text wrapped in a absolute div element with an ID.
  Designer

  scripts

• Internal, External and Web resources

  There’s a few tips in this list that will show how to reference different locations where resources can be located (such as images, snippets, JSON data). This tip clarifies exactly what those formats are and how to use them.
  Designer

  JavaScript

  stylesheets

• Creating a multi-page Web template

  Snippets are useful for a lot of things, but in this How-To we’ll be seeing how they can be used to simplify service multiple web pages with the same design and different contents. This assumes that your contents is in various snippets, either internal to the template (in the Snippets folder) or external ones on local disk.
  Designer

  snippets

  web

• Creating Raffle Tickets

  In this How-To we’ll be creating automatically numbered raffle tickets, to be used in events and parties and such.
  print

• Custom table footer with subtotal at the end

  In this How-To we’ll show you how to make your own footer with text, while leaving the grand total at the end of the table along with a subtitle and taxes.
  Designer

  overflow

  print

• Add and Format the current date

  This How-To shows you how to add the current date to your template, and to format it in the desired locale and language.
  Designer

• Maintaining extra spaces in text added to a template

  In the world of HTML, extra spaces are generally dealt with by removing any spaces beyond the single one. In some cases, this is not the behaviour you want to maintain, and those spaces should all be shown in your output.
  Designer

  stylesheets

• Split a String into Elements

  In this How-To we’re going to take a single field and split it into different elements. This is useful to create lists, menus, etc.
  Designer

  scripts

• Dynamically adding options to an HTML drop-down

  In this How-To we’ll explore how to dynamically add new options to an HTML drop-down, or in other words, how to add new <option> elements to a <select>.
  Designer

  scripts

  web

• Testing the Capture OnTheGo Template Wizards

  This How-To will show you how to use the existing Capture OnTheGo templates available from the Connect Welcome Screen. Note that following this How-To requires Connect 1.3 or higher.
  Designer

  web

• XML: Using XPATH in the Repeat step

  In this How-To we’ll be exploring the use of XPATH to handle flat-level XML files that we want to add a bit of structure to.
  xml

• Using Preprocessors in the DataMapper

  Preprocessors are an extremely powerful feature of the DataMapper. They allow you to make changes to the input data file before anything else happens – even before the file settings are applied and the boundaries are set!
  preprocessor

  scripts

• Create blank pages on field value

  This How-To will show you how to create any number of blank pages in your output, using a number found in a field value.
  Designer

  print

  scripts

• Extracting a multi-line item description

  In this How-To we’ll show how to extract an item description that appears in multiple and variable number of lines.
  scripts

• Adding record data to a custom barcode in print output

  In this How-To we’ll show how to add use metadata fields to add text and barcodes in your Print output.
  Designer

  output

  print

• IIS reverse proxy for Workflow

  In this How-To we’ll explore the #1 best practice when it comes to providing end users with output generated by Workflow: use a public IIS instance with a reverse proxy pointing to a separate, private Workflow server.
  workflow

• Scripts: Basic Scripted Condition in Workflow

  This How-To demonstrates the basics of creating a scripted condition in Workflow.
  samples

  scripts

  workflow

• Scripts: PDF Page Count using Alambic API

  This simple script is used to count the number of pages in a PDF using the Alambic API, which is a very fast and efficient way to do so.
  samples

  scripts

  workflow

• Scripts: Send an email via a script in Workflow

  The following is a VBScript example that sends an email through an SSL Connection, using gmail’s SMTP server. This, of course, assumes that you have a gmail account!
  samples

  scripts

  workflow

• Scripts: Resize an image without an external application

  This script uses a simplified function that demonstrates the use of the WIA object in Windows Scripting Host. It lets you resize images without the use of an external program or software.
  samples

  scripts

  workflow

• Scripts: Manual Counter in Designer

  While the Generate Counter script is really, really useful for things like Raffle Tickets, it’s unfortunately unuseable if you already have your own Data File as it cannot complement that data file automatically.
  Designer

  samples

  scripts

• Scripts: Communicate with an HTTP(S) API from Workflow

  This How-To is meant to show an example of how to communicate with an external service from a Run Script action task in the Automation module (Workflow). It is geared towards users with an existing background in scripting and network communications, as the concepts here are relatively complex for beginners.
  samples

  scripts

  workflow

• Cloning your way through nested tables

  This How-To with accompanying sample explains how to programatically generate a detail table including nested items, in the most efficient way possible. The method used here is generally refered to as Cloning, since we create copies of the tables and rows, editing them as we go along.
  Designer

  scripts

• Add a Record Index and Count to your document

  In this short How-To we’ll show you how to get the current record index, and the total number of records in the record set, displayed on your document.
  workflow

• Manipulating PDF Files with Metadata

  In this How-To we’ll be taking a look at how to manipulate metadata in Workflow, without any sort of document or template. We’ll be using Metadata tools exclusively to sort, split, and merge a PDF job.
  pdf

  workflow

• Separate Job by Invoice Number Using Presets

  In this How-To we’ll explore how to separate your output job by invoice number, in order to create one file per invoice. Since we’ll be implementing this in the Job/Output Creation presets, this method can be used both when printing from Designer, as well as automating it from the Workflow tool.
  Designer

  output

  pdf

• Interacting with the Data Repository API

  This How-To will show you how to interact with the Workflow Data Repository using it’s scripting API. Because the default tasks involving the Data Repository only offer to Insert or Update, any other action requires the API to be used in a scripting action.
  repository

  scripts

  workflow

• How to Archive Emails using SMTP Input

  Users often contact Support to enquire about ways to backup emails sent to their clients for accounting and tracking purposes. Emails can be archived in Workflow v8.6.1+ using the SMTP Input Server.
  workflow

• Dynamic Charts for use with Web Dashboards

  Before jumping into the details of “how it’s done”, it’s important to understand the basic elements that make it possible to have a chart.
  Designer

  output

  web

• Speed Up your Connect templates

  This How-To will cover some basic tricks to speed up your Connect template.
  Designer

  output

  scripts

• Performance Testing Grounds

  These are tests performed internally by employees in order to test/prove/verify the difference between various methods used for processing, mapping and generating data and files in our products.
  Designer

  optimization

  output

  pdf

  performance

  workflow

• Reading and Interpreting Connect Logs

  Reading and Interpreting Connect Logs

• Connect Performance and Optimization Megathread

  Connect Performance and Optimization Megathread
  Designer

• Calculating the LUHN Check Digit in Connect

  Calculating the LUHN Check Digit in Connect
  Designer

  scripts

• Database Lookups from DataMapper

  This How-To will show you how OL Connect DataMapper can use the JDBC (Java Database Connectivity) driver to connect to a third-party DBMS. JDBC makes it possible to establish a connection with a database, send SQL statements and process the results.
  scripts

• Dead Simple Cover Page

  This How-To shows how to create a cover page on any job, using only Designer and the Output module.
  Designer

  scripts

• Put one slice per detail record in a Pie Chart

  Create a Pie Chart with one slice per detail record for the field of your choice?

• ‘Stamping’ one PDF file on another

  “Stamping” refers to a method of layering one PDF over another PDF, via a script in Workflow. This how-to explains when and how to use this method.
  pdf

  print

  scripts

  workflow

• Creating a Table of Contents using a Post Pagination script

  Creating a Table of Contents
  post pagination

  scripts

• Connect to localhost with COTG on Windows 10

  Running Capture OnTheGo (COTG) on Windows 10 is the perfect way to debug or demonstrate a COTG solution since you can have the COTG app, the Connect Workflow and the Connect Designer all running side by side on the same PC (or VM).

• Secure Email Input/Output

  Over the past few years, one of – if not the – most requested improvement to Workflow has been a way to capture and send email messages from/through online servers like Office365 and Gmail.
  secure email

• WordPress & Cloud – FAQ’s

  FAQs on WordPress & Cloud
  cloud

  wordpress

• WordPress & OL Connect Technology

  This How-To focuses on WordPress as the first CMS with which OL Connect can integrate.
  wordpress

• Creating (nested) dynamic tables with the wizard

  Designer

  table

• Nuts and bolts for dynamic rows

  Designer

  table

• Data-sum it up!

  Designer

  table

• Switching Connect Server to use an external MySQL Database

  In this How-To we will cover how to switch OL Connect Server to use a separate external MySQL database.

• How to extract data from CSV files with different column names

  Sometimes the only difference between CSV files is that the column names are different. Up to OL Connect version 2021.2, you would need to create a different data mapping configuration for each of the files to process them. That is no longer necessary. You can now use a method that allows to extract values from CSV files that have different column names.
  datamapper