User Definable Guides
What are User Definable Guides?
Have you ever needed to pull together one document for a contractor with all the installation guides for the items you are specifying? Do you want to provide a client with professional-looking PDFs of the care and use instructions you've collected for their project?
DesignSmart's User Definable Guides allow you to create custom PDF packages quickly and easily. Like most features in DesignSmart, designers will probably come up with creative ways to use this that we never envisioned!
And while you are at it, throw on a cover page with your logo and contact information so show your clients just how professional your are.
Set up
There is only one thing you need to do to create your own User Definable Guides.
Step 1:
Select the Customizable Lists tab in System Settings.
Then, go to the Attachments tab.
In the Attachments field, enter the types of guides you will be creating.
In the example below, the designer has decided she will be creating Installation Guides, and Care and Use Guides.
Adding Attachments
Add your attachments on the Item Detail View on the Attachments tab.
In the Document Type Field, indicate which guide this document will appear.
Be sure that the Include on Spec button is on.
Generating the Guide
Under Reports go to Preview Spec or under Actions go to Generate Spec. They both do essentially the same function.
Un-check the Text, Graphics , and Condensed checkboxes (1)
If you want to only generate a guide:
- Click on the Attachments check box (2)
- Click on the Doc. Types button (3)
- Un-check the Spec documents check box (4)
- Check the guide you want to generate (5)
Close the Document Types pop up and generate your guide.
Tips
- Remember to click on the Multiple Specs button so you get more than just the current spec
- Click on the Cover Page check box to include a cover page to the PDF document. To learn more about how to create the cover page click here.