BizzStream Aero Templates

This document provides an introduction to templates in BizzStream Aero, explaining their purpose, how they are used, and the initial steps to consider when creating them.

What are BizzStream Aero Templates?

In BizzStream Aero, templates facilitate the representation of BizzStream document information in PDF format. Templates are engineered to use specific data from BizzStream documents, subsequently rendering it into tailored, professionally formatted PDF documents.

Key Characteristics

• Data Representation: They act as a bridge between your BizzStream data and a presentable PDF format.
• Customization: Templates allow for significant customization, ensuring the generated PDFs align with your specific branding and informational needs.
• Flexibility: Templates are highly flexible and can be reused across various documents and communication channels, adapting to different informational needs.

Generating PDF Documents

The primary use of templates is to generate PDF documents from your BizzStream data. These PDFs can be used for:

• External Sharing: Sending invoices, reports, contracts, or other official documents to clients, partners, or other external stakeholders.
• Internal Archiving: Creating structured and standardized records of BizzStream documents for internal reference and compliance.
• Printable Materials: Generating documents suitable for physical distribution.

Starting to automate PDFs

Using BizzStream Aero templates, we can create customized, effective ways to display data. There are multiple ways to use these PDFs and ways to start automating with them.

Type	Description
Send Email	Sending emails is the first step in PDF automation. Sending these customized PDFs can help organize workflows and streamline daily tasks of sending information. This can be done by using scheduled actions to send out these emails at a set time, or other action methods.
Saving PDFs	Allows for saving PDFs directly to a specific attachment field. This can also happen the same way as sending emails.
Render PDFs	Allows for the template to be used inside of BizzStream to render the PDF.

Using these two methods are foundational for automating workflows and minimizing manual labor.

Starting with the Template Editor

Now that the basics of what a template can do have been explained, let's walk through the initial steps of creating one in BizzStream Aero.

Navigating to the Template Creation Area

To begin, you'll need to access the template creation interface:

• Go to the Setup section in your BizzStream Aero menu.
• From the Setup menu, select Templates.
• Click the + New button to start creating a new template.

Filling in the Required Information

When you create a new template, you'll have to fill in some essential details:

• Label: The label you provide will also automatically become the Name of your template. Choose a clear and descriptive label that reflects the template's purpose.
• Document Definition: Select the specific document definition that this template will be based on. This links your template to the data structure it will be pulling information from, making it possible to use text expressions within the template.
• Orientation: Choose the page orientation for your generated PDF. By default, this is set to Portrait.
• Page Size: Select the desired page size. By default, this is set to A4.

Configuring Optional Settings

While not mandatory, these optional settings offer further customization for your template:

• File Name: You can define the file name for the generated PDF. This can be a static name or even a text expression, allowing for dynamic file names based on your document data.
• Locale: Adjust the locale settings if your document needs to adhere to specific regional formatting for dates, numbers, or currencies.
• Margins: Customize the page margins (e.g., Default, None) to control the spacing around your content.

Designing Your Template Content

Once the basic settings are configured, you can start building the actual content of your template.

At the top of the template configuration screen, you'll see the Template tab. Clicking this tab will open the visual editor where you'll design your document.

Adding Elements and Styling

Within the template editor, you have a wide range of tools to construct your document:

Item	Description
Text	Add static text or placeholders for dynamic content.
Images	Insert your company logo or other relevant images.
Expressions	Connect your template to your BizzStream data. Use expressions to pull in specific fields from your document definition, such as invoice numbers, client names, or product details.
Links	Embed hyperlinks within your document.
Tables	Create structured tables to display data neatly, such as line items on an invoice.
Styling Options	Apply various styling options to your text, images, and other elements, including fonts, colors, sizes, and alignment, to match your branding.

These are the basic tools. BizzStream expressions can also be incorporated into the templates.

Item	Description	Example
{{expressionInline}}	Evaluates and outputs the result of a given text expression directly into the template.	{{USER["name"]}}
{{#IF(expression)}}...{{/IF}}	Conditionally renders the enclosed content if the provided expression evaluates to true.	{{#IF(USER["administrator"] = true)}}Welcome, Administrator!{{/IF}}
{{#IF(expression)}}...{{#ELSE}}...{{/IF}}	Conditionally renders content: the first block if the expression is true, the second block (after #ELSE) if false.	{{#IF(F["isInStock"] = true)}}Item is available.{{#ELSE}}Item is out of stock.{{/IF}}
{{#SIG("fieldName", {options})}}	Embeds a signature, typically linked to a specific data field, with optional rendering configurations. (e.g. width and height.)	{{#SIG(F["customerSignature"], { width: "100px" })}}
{{#IMG("fieldName", {options})}}	Embeds an image, sourcing it either from a data field or an application setting. It supports optional rendering configurations for the image. (e.g. width and height.)	{{#IMG("image", { width:200, height:200 })}}
{{#EACH(collection)}}...{{/EACH}}	Iterates over a collection (e.g., an array) and renders the enclosed content for each item in the collection. Inside the loop, this refers to the current item.	{{#EACH(L["products"][*])}}{{ F["name"] }} Price: ${{ F["price"] }}{{/EACH}}
{{#WRAP}}...{{/WRAP}}	A generic container block used for grouping content, often for specific processing or styling by the consuming application.	{{#WRAP}}This content is wrapped.{{/WRAP}}
{{VISITOR_URL}}	Inserts a unique link for a visitor. This variable is only defined when the template is used within a workflow action that includes an "addVisitor" rule and appears after that rule. Mostly used to send an invitation email to the visitor. Can also be shown on PDF files.	Click here to begin: {{VISITOR_URL}}

Advanced Customization with HTML

For more detailed control and advanced layout creation, you can also modify the HTML code of the template directly. You can refer to the HTML tab at the top of the template editor, which allows you to use standard HTML and CSS.

Understanding Relations

Finally, it is important to understand the Relations feature. This section allows you to view and define how your template links to other parts of your BizzStream Aero setup, ensuring that data is correctly fetched and presented. Proper linking is essential for your template to function as intended.

Example

Using the Template to make your first PDF. After creating your first template using the steps above, let's walk through an example of populating and styling it.

Add text and different Fields from your dataset. Notice the different styling options applied, such as font size, color, italics, and bold.

A template designed to show the different options can look something like this:

After you've done this and saved the template, you can then use this template within one of the menus or create a workflow containing the template. Next, go to the document definition and create a new workflow item. In this workflow add a new user action, give this user action a clear and descriptive name.

Now add the rule Render PDF. This rule has a required template field. Select your newly created template here. This should look like this:

Add this action to a status!

It's crucial to add this action to a status within your workflow for it to be accessible and triggerable by users.

Now you can go to the layout and test this action: