This commodity offers advanced Microsoft Word (2010-2013) techniques for creating a protected template with fillable fields (or "Content Controls" in Microsoft terminology) for data that cannot be completed by Clio's merge field tags. These techniques would be useful for creating protected trust receipts with Certificate Automation.

Related article: Tutorial - Using Document Automation to Create a Trust Receipt

If you are not familiar with Certificate Automation, please see the following support manufactures:

Using Clio'southward Document Automation
How to Create a Document Template

Contents

Showing the Developer Tab
Calculation Form Controls
Control Properties
Formatting Form Controls
Calculation Editing Restrictions/Protection to your Template
Advanced Certificate Automation Webinar

Showing the Developer Tab

The tools that you volition need to add together class controls to your template can exist found in the Developer tab which is hidden by default.

To show the Developer tab,  click "File".

File.png

And then click "Options".

Options.png

In the Give-and-take Options window,

  1. Click on "Customize Ribbon" in the left-manus sidebar.
  2. In the Tabs area on the correct, check the box abreast "Developer".
  3. Click OK.

Customize_Ribbon.png

Calculation Grade Controls

On the "Developer" tab  i, in the "Controls" group  2 are a number of available form command fields.

Developer_Tab.png

Some useful form controls are:

To add a class command to your template, click in the document where you desire the control to go, then click on the icon for the control that you want to add.

Control_Added.png

To change the default placeholder text on the control ("Click hither to enter text" in the to a higher place instance) click "Design Mode".
To change the Properties of the command, click "Properties".

Design_Mode.png

Control Backdrop

Each control has options that can be accessed past clicking "Backdrop" with the control you desire to modify selected.

For example, this is how you lot will add options to a Dropdown Selection Control or specify the appointment format displayed when using the Date Picker Control.

Case #one — Rich Text Content Control Properties

RichText_Control_Properties.png

The instance to the left shows the bones Property options bachelor to form content controls.

  • Adding a name to the "Championship" field, will display that name when the control is selected.
  •  The "Show as" dropdown box allows y'all to change the basic appearance of the command'due south bounding box or tags.

  •  The "Locking" options are but useful if your template controls already contain content that you exercise not want to be changed or delete. Do non bank check these options if you await that the content may demand to exist added or changed in the content control.

Example #2 — Philharmonic/Dropdown Selection Control Properties

Dropdown_Control_2.png

In add-on to the properties detailed above, the Dropdown Listing Control Backdrop gives you lot the ability to add options for the user to select from when completing the course.

To add together a new option to the dropdown command, click the "Add" push button. To edit an existing option, click on information technology then click the "Modify" button. To delete an option, click on it then click "Remove".

Example #three — Engagement Picker Control Properties

Date_Control_2.png

The Date Picker Control Properties allow you to select the format of the date that is displayed when the user selects a twenty-four hour period from the mini agenda.

Click on a date format in the choice area to select information technology, then click OK.

Formatting Form Controls

By default, the text that is input into a control volition take the aforementioned formatting as the line that it was added to.  To change the formatting of the text that is input into the command, highlight the control with "Blueprint Style" OFF and make formatting adjustments as you lot would to any other text.

To change the wording or formatting of the control's placeholder text:

  1. Turn on "Blueprint Fashion".
  2. Highlight the placeholder text and make formatting adjustments as desired.
  3. Turn OFF "Design Mode".

When formatting control placeholder text, proceed in mind that the default styling of that placeholder may non get in easy to immediately identify as a course control. Adding a highlight or some distinctive styling to the placeholder will make information technology more visible in your document. When the finish user types or selects content in the control, the placeholder formatting volition disappear and the content volition have the styling of that line in your document.

Adding Editing Restrictions/Protection to Your Template

Protecting your template tin can ensure that whatsoever user or Contact who may exist completing your merged documents will only be able to alter information that is in the form controls that y'all add to your template.

To restrict editing on your template:

  1. Get to the Developer tab.
  2. Click on "Restrict Editing"
  3. In the Restrict Editing sidebar on the right, check the box under step "2. Editing restrictions" and change the dropdown to "Filling in Forms".
  4. Click "Yes, Start Enforcing Protection" under stride "three. Start enforcement".

    Restrict_Editing.png

  5. In the Commencement Enforcing Protection popular-upwards, enter in an optional countersign if you desire the document to exist countersign protected, or click OK if y'all practise not want to add password protection.

    start_enforcing.png

  6. Salvage the protected template as a new version to ensure that you don't overwrite your original document.

Once uploaded to Clio, the protected template will create new protected Discussion documents while still pulling information from Clio.

More than data is bachelor on Microsoft.com

Advanced Document Automation Webinar

In nether an 60 minutes, we demonstrate advanced MS Word techniques for adding provisional fields and form controls to your Discussion template. We besides demonstrate how to add editing restrictions to your template. This avant-garde webinar is intended for users who are already comfortable with creating Word templates for utilise in Document Automation.

Click HERE to view the recording.