Format and Style Considerations in Microsoft Word

A style helps you format text in a document. Microsoft Word styles exist to help you do both simple and complex formatting. In Microsoft Word, you can apply formatting to a document directly using the functions from toolbars and menus. For example, to format a heading, you could use the Bold button and the Font type and Font Size boxes on the Formatting toolbar. But if you had numerous headings in the document, for each similar heading, you would have to repeat the same functions for each heading to consistently format all the headings in the document. A Microsoft Word style can enable you to define and reuse a set of formatting functions throughout the document.

There are multiple types of styles in Microsoft Word such as paragraph, characters, list, and table.

The Supplier Contract Management system requires that you use Microsoft Word paragraph styles to generate content because a document consists of a series of paragraphs with different numbering and indentation. You define these paragraph styles the Microsoft Word template that is associated with each document configurator you create. By defining and using paragraph styles, you create consistent methods of formatting and numbering content in authored documents. Users of authored documents can also use additional Microsoft Word styles in generated documents.

See Microsoft Word - Help and web sites provide information that pertains to features and functionality of Microsoft products.

See Styles and Formatting.

You use a Microsoft Word template file to manage styles and formatting for each document. The template file contains all of the paragraph styles that you can use in a generated document. For example, if you click the New and Blank Document buttons in Microsoft Word, a blank document appears in which you can enter text. This is a file and all of the formatting default values for it are determined by its template, which is a normal.dot file. The .dot file extension is for templates.

The Supplier Contract Management system uses a Microsoft Word template file to manage styles during the generation of the document. The system provides sample templates with the system's sample data to provide you an example of how you can define templates for use with documents.

While Supplier Contract Management uses Microsoft Word templates they are not used in the traditional manner. The system uses the Microsoft Word template as a starting point primarily to obtain paragraph styles that control the appearance of document content as the system assembles the document. When you preview a clause, section, or document configurator or you generate a document, the system first checks the setup information and locates the actual template file on the file transfer protocol server.

Since the use of Microsoft Word templates in Supplier Contract Management is most likely different from how you currently use templates, you should review the "Defining Default Settings for Document Formats and Options" section before creating and uploading Microsoft Word templates.

See Setting Up Document Formats and Options.

The PeopleSoft installation CD provides a sample Microsoft Word template file. The STDTEMPLATE_2007.XMLtemplate contains Microsoft Word paragraph styles and outline numbering that is used in the PeopleSoft sample database. This file is included in the WINWORD folder in the PeopleSoft installation CD.

When you preview a document, the system uses a Microsoft Word default template file to generate a Microsoft Word document containing the content. You define the default template name on the Document Format and Options page. The default template file must contain a set of paragraph styles required for the preview and generate document function. You also define the paragraph styles for use on the Document Format and Options page. The sample word template delivered by PeopleSoft contains Microsoft Word paragraph styles and outline numbering that the PeopleSoft sample database uses.

When you click the Preview Document button for a clause or section, the system extracts the stored XML for each of the document objects stored with the database. During the preview of a clause or section, the system generates text based on the appropriate default Microsoft Word template paragraph style at the SetID level stored in the database. The system uses default paragraph styles during document previews unless you have used clause or section specific (override) paragraph styles or numbering. In this case, the system attempts to keep your override formatting for the specific clause or section. The Overriding Styles section later in this document discusses this concept further.

When you preview a document configurator, the system uses the Microsoft Word template that you specify on the document configurator to apply paragraph styles specific to the configurator.

The Create Document button initiates the document generation process. You specify the document configurator as part of the generation process. The configurator contains the Microsoft Word template. The generation process for creating the .XML file is similar to the preview, except during the expansion of the document configurator, the Supplier Contract Management system overrides the numbering and outline level formatting of the document based on the structure of the configurator.

Suppose the configurator has a structure consisting of a section and a clause and the section has two clauses. The standard numbering formatting is set to start with 1 for the first level and 1.a for the second level. The document generation expansion process numbers the section text title as 1. without indentation and indents each of the clauses in the section. The system numbers each clause in the section as 1.a and 1.b. The last clause is also at level one in the document configurator and the system numbers it as 2 and does not indent it.

Planning how you use Microsoft Word styles in the document creation process is an important task when setting up the Supplier Contract Management application. Microsoft Word styles change the way the that you view and print a document. You should consider styles when you define these functions:

• Clause and section previews.

  This function enables you to view the document content before you generate the document. The Preview function is available for clauses and sections and uses the Microsoft Word template name defined as a default value on the Document Format and Options page. Microsoft Word styles for previewing documents are simple paragraph styles for clauses and include:

  • Numbered title and bodies.

  • Unnumbered titles and bodies.

  • Numbered bodies.

• Document generation.

  This function uses a Microsoft Word template to create the complete Microsoft Word XML Document through a document configurator. You define the Microsoft Word template on the Document Configuration Definition page. The Microsoft Word style for document generation might require additional formatting, such as headers, footers, and table of contents.

  Multiple Microsoft Word templates might also be required to support the document generation process. Each template should have all of the styles that are in the Microsoft Word template that you use to preview documents.

  For example, a simple form contract for renting dormitories at a university might not require a table of contents; where as, contracts for sporting goods at the same university might require a table of contents. In this example, you could create and upload two Microsoft Word templates into the PeopleSoft system. You can then create two document configurators, each referencing a different Microsoft Word template.

When possible, ensure that the text you enter into a clause or section document during editing uses the default style of Normal. The PeopleSoft system converts the Normal style to the appropriate Word paragraph styles and outline numbering as defined in the Microsoft Word template and specified on the Document Format and Options page. Using Normal text when possible enables you to better use the clause in a variety of configurators and have the system determine which styles, such as numbering and indentation, to apply for that configurator based on its associated Microsoft Word template.

If you choose not to use the Normal style and instead specify specific styles in the clause or section content, it has an override affect on the generated document. This is described in the Overriding Styles topic.

Microsoft Word paragraph styles combined with outline numbering determine the default formatting and numbering scheme for content included in a document configurator. Using paragraph styles provides consistent default formatting and numbering for all content that you select to include in a generated document.

In the Microsoft Word template, you must define all the paragraph styles that the system can use as default document formatting and all paragraph styles that you might use to override during the editing of a clause or section. PeopleSoft provides sample paragraph styles in the STDTEMPLATE_2007.XML template that demonstrate the use of styles. To access, review, and update styles:

1. Access the Define Document Templates and Styles page.

2. Open the STDTEMPLATE_2007.XML template by clicking the View button.

   The system opens the Microsoft Word document.

3. View the styles in Microsoft Word.

   For example, select Styles from the Home tab.

   The Styles pane appears containing Microsoft Word and PeopleSoft paragraph styles (those with a prefix of PS). When you move the mouse pointer over a PeopleSoft style, and right-click the mouse, a list of values appears with options for maintaining the style.

   Note: Always refer to Microsoft Help for specific documentation and instructions that pertain to Microsoft products.

While generally not recommended, you can override default paragraph styles that the PeopleSoft system applies based on the styles defined on the Document Format and Options page. You can select another predefined clause or section specific paragraph style or numbering format as you edit a clause or section in a Microsoft Word document. For example, if you want to add bullets in a clause, you must select a paragraph style that has a bulleted list associated with it in the Microsoft Word template. Then, you apply the new paragraph style to the specific area of the clause content. This override feature can be useful when you have more complex clauses, with specific additional numbering specified within the clause or section that are needed when the basic numbering and outline levels defined for a configurator and Microsoft Word template paragraph style are not sufficient.

When you use an override style that is not defined in the Microsoft Word template, the system saves the style and content in an XML content in the PeopleSoft database. The system uses the new style for preview and document generation processing rather than the paragraph style defined on the Document Format and Options page.

You should add new Microsoft Word styles to the default Microsoft Word template in the system or to Microsoft Word templates used by the document configurator when:

1. You use the new style to create content.

   You can add a new style to the default Microsoft Word template or to a document configurator Microsoft Word template to ensure that the Microsoft Word style is available for use during document generation and if needed for overriding during the editing process of a clause or section. For example, you can make a new style in a template available during clause maintenance that can be used to override a standard style. Then when authors are editing the clause or section, they can select the style in Microsoft Word.

2. An organization has established document formatting standards.

   An organization can define a set of formatting standards for document. You can add the resulting Microsoft Word styles to the Microsoft Word template. Then, through training, authors of generated documents can use the styles correctly. You should also consider the document configurator structure as part of a style standardization project.

To locate and add a new Microsoft Word style to a Microsoft Word template:

1. From within PeopleSoft, open the Document Template and Style page and select the View button for the default Microsoft Word template.

   Download the file to the Microsoft Windows file system.

2. Edit the file.

   The document might be blank since Microsoft Word template files do not generally contain content. One exception could be a table of contents formatting tag.

3. Use the official Microsoft Word documentation to add a new style, and save the resulting file in a .xml format.

4. Open the Define Document Template and Styles page in the Supplier Contract Management application.

5. Click the Upload a file link.

   The system prompts you to browse for the file within the file system. When you find the file, click the Upload button.

   If you are updating the default Microsoft Word template, the name is the same as the existing Microsoft Word template in the system. The system prompts you that the row exists and the template is in use. Since you are updating the template, you should click Yes.

These topics provide several examples of how you can format documents and displays sample formatting in Microsoft Word.

Unnumbered Clauses

To remove numbering from clause, ensure that the Numbered Clause check box on the Clause Definition page is clear. This example illustrates unnumbered clauses that have been included in a section that is going through approval:

This screen shot illustrates an example of unnumbered clauses

The default Microsoft Word style used for the preview document function is controlled by the information entered in the Document Text Styles grid on the Document Format and Options page. In this example, the content includes five clauses incorporated into a section. Each of the clauses has a unnumbered title and a body under the unnumbered title for an unnumbered clause.

The default value for the Microsoft Word style is the value you enter in the Unnumbered Title Style field. You enter the paragraph style for the body in the Microsoft Word style for the Body Style under Unnumbered Title field. Supplier Contract Management provides sample Microsoft Word styles for the PSUnnumHeading and PSBody2 values.

Numbered Clauses

This screen shot illustrates a example of a numbered clause document:

The default value the system uses for the Microsoft Word style to preview documents is controlled by the information entered in the Document Text Styles grid on the Document Format and Options page. In this example, the content includes five clauses. Each clause has a numbered title and a body under the numbered title for a numbered clause. The default value for the Microsoft Word style is the value you enter in theNumbered Title Style field. You enter the paragraph style for the body in the Microsoft Word style for the Body Style under Numbered Title field. Supplier Contract Management provides sample Microsoft Word styles for the PSNumHeading and PSBody1 values.

Indented Numbered Content

This screen shot illustrates an example of indented numbered content in a generated document:

The document configurator controls the numbering and how the content is arranged with respect to the left margin for the generated document. In this example, the Outline Position column in the Content Elements grid sets the numbering for each of the content. The section Warranties and Representations of Supplier, has an outline position value of 2 and the section contains a clause, General Product Warranty, and another section, General Service Warranty. The numbering of content within the first section has an outline position value starting with 2.1. The indentation of each content element follows the outline position value as well.

The Microsoft Word style controls the numbering format. The Numbered Section or the Numbered Clausecheck boxes in each of the content elements controls the numbering in the document.

If the check box for the parent content element is selected, the system also numbers any content element within the parent. In this example, the section, General Service Warranty, would have the numbering checked, the clause, Qualification, would be numbered even if the Numbered Clause check box was not selected.