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About Variables

Variables are pre-set terms that you can use in your project over and over. They are stored in "variable sets," which can hold multiple variables. Flare provides you with an initial variable set, but you can add as many additional variable sets as you like.

Variables are somewhat similar to snippets. The difference between variables and snippets is:

• Variables are used for brief, non-formatted pieces of content (such as the name of your company's product or your company's phone number). There are different kinds of variables: (1) those you create, (2) system variables (e.g., date and time; Chapter, Section, and Volume numbers), (3) Heading variables, and (4) Running Head variables. Some of these are especially useful for page headers and footers in print-based output.

• Snippets are used for longer pieces of content that you can format just as you would any other content in a topic. In snippets you can also insert tables, pictures, and whatever else can be included in a normal topic.

Variable Components

A variable has two main components—the variable name and the variable definition.

example

An example of a variable name is "CompanyName." The definition for that variable name might be "ACME Incorporated." Using that example, if you were to insert the CompanyName variable into a paragraph of a topic, the phrase "ACME Incorporated" would be added at that spot and shown in the output.

Types of Variables

Following are the main categories of variables that you can use.

• Custom variables These are variables that you can create in variable sets. They can be used for virtually any purpose (product names, company information, terms that are used frequently). See Creating New Variables.

• System variables Flare lets you insert the system date and time as variables. The global format in windows controls the format dates and times in variables. To insert a system variable, you simply select Insert>Variable. Then select System and choose the specific variable.

  In addition, for Adobe PDF, Microsoft XPS, and XHTML output, you can insert system variables in page layout frames that display your chapter, section, or volume numbers (if you are using auto-numbers to identify the various parts of a manual). See Inserting Chapter, Section, and Volume Number Variables into Frames.

• Heading variables You can insert Heading variables into page layouts or master pages in order to automatically display text based on the <h1> through <h6> heading styles that you use in your project. Like Running Head variables, they are useful when creating print-based output. It's an easy way, for example, to automatically display a chapter title in the header of a chapter. For Adobe PDF, Microsoft XPS, and XHTML output, you can also use Heading variables to automatically display glossary headings/terms and index headings/terms in a page layout frame. See About Heading Variables.

• Running Head variables In addition to system variables and those you can create (from the "MyVariables" template), you can also add Running Head variables (using the "Running HF" template). A Running Head (or Running HF) variable is a special variable that you can insert into a header or footer in a page layout or a print master page. It lets you display certain text in the header or footer automatically, based on the style associated with the variable. For example, Running Head variables are useful if you want to include the title of each chapter in a document in a header or footer without having to type them into multiple pages.For more information see About Running Head Variables.

  Note: Running Head variables are supported only in Adobe FrameMaker and Microsoft Word output.

Visual Cues for Variables

When you insert variables into content, there are a few ways to discern that certain content is actually a variable, as opposed to regular text. Example

Markers

First, markers can be turned on or off, providing a visual cue about the content in the form of brackets. When you insert a variable into a topic with markers turned on, the variable definition is displayed in a marker represented by brackets on either side of the definition. If you cannot see all of the information in a marker, you can adjust the marker width (at the bottom of the View>Show menu).

Here is an example of a variable with markers turned on (View>Show>Show Markers):

Variable Names

In addition to markers, you can select an option to show variable names. Here is an example of a variable with variable names turned on (View>Show>Show Variable Names):

Highlighted Variables

You can also select an option to display variables with a highlighted background (select View>Show>Highlight Variables). Here is an example:

More About Variables

Here is some more information about variables:

• Initial variables By default, Flare initially provides you with two custom variables (CompanyName and PhoneNumber) when you start a new project or add a new variable set (using the "MyVariables" template). You can use these variables, modifying their names and/or definitions to meet your needs. You can also create additional variables. A variable set file has an .flvar extension and is stored in the Project Organizer under the Variables folder.

• Overriding variable definitions You can create new variables in the Variable Set Editor. The variables that you create and define in the Variable Set Editor are available to your entire project. However, if you want the definition for a variable to be different in a particular target, you can override the project-level definition for that target in the Target Editor. If you preview a topic, the variable definition associated with the primary target is displayed.

• Condition tags You can apply a condition tag to a variable so that it is included in some targets but not in other targets.

• Auto Suggestion In addition to inserting variables the "old-fashioned" way, you can also insert variables when using Auto Suggestion (a popup window that predicts content as you type). See About Auto Suggestion.

• Manual variable links You can also add variables to content (e.g., TOC entries, browse sequence entries, hyperlinks) manually.

  For example, you can rename a TOC entry and replace it with a variable from a variable set. To do this, click on the entry and highlight the text. Then replace it with this syntax: mcvariable:VariableSet.VariableName. That syntax works if the variable is the only content in the entry. If you want the entry to have text plus a variable, you would instead use this syntax: .

  example

  For example, if your variable set is called "MyVariables" and you want to use a variable called "CompanyName," you would enter this as the name of the TOC entry: mcvariable:MyVariables.CompanyName. But if you want the entry to display as "Contact My Company" (where "Contact" is simply text you add manually and "My Company" is the variable definition), you would enter this as the name of the TOC entry: Contact . Follow these same steps for browse sequence entries.

  Please note that if you insert variable syntax, the variable text may not always show up in search results. Of course, if you also insert the variable into the header in the actual topic, search results will find it. Another way to ensure that search finds the variable text is to enter the following syntax as the topic title in the Properties dialog:  (e.g., ). See Changing Topic Titles.

  Similarly, you can use variables in hyperlinks by using this syntax: <a href="mcvariable:VariableSet.VariableName">My hyperlink text</a>.

Tasks Associated with Variables

Following are the main tasks involved with using variables.

• Add set You can use the initial variable set provided by Flare, and you can add more variable sets if necessary. Each variable set can hold multiple variables. See Adding Variable Sets to Projects.
• Create You can create custom variables within a variable set. See Creating New Variables.
• Insert You can insert variables into topics (as well as other elements, such as snippets or page layout frames). See Inserting Variables, Inserting Chapter, Section, and Volume Number Variables into Frames, Inserting Heading Variables Into Frames, and Inserting Running Head Variables into Frames.
• Edit After you create a variable, you can easily edit it in the Variable Set Editor. If you change the definition for a variable that has been inserted into topics, the changes will automatically be reflected in all those topics. See Editing Variables.

See Also

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