Server-based Word Processing

There are many advantages of creating a server-based application that creates business critical documents. The templates and the databases are centralized, all users are working on the same basis and are up to date anytime and anywhere. Server-based applications can be controlled using a web-browser interface, so that users have access to the most important documents anywhere in the world. In legacy applications, the documents are created on client side in a Windows application, but in many cases, it is not necessary to have a full view of the document before creating it.

Business documents should always have the same look and feel. It is possible to merge a template with just the appropriate data server-side. Not every single document must be saved individually, but could be created on demand, based on the most current data.

The advantages are:

1. Documents can be compiled with the most current data.

2. Documents can be personalized depending on the recipient or author.

3. Different versions of the documents do not have to be stored separately.

Template-based Document Automation

A template is a collection of content, including variable text fields. A text field is a named region in a document that is possibly formatted. During the compilation process, the actual field values are substituted for the corresponding text fields. These templates can be created using a template designer. TX Text Control .NET Server is shipped with the TX Template Designer to create these templates. The following diagram shows the high-level document automation process:

A template is loaded into TX Text Control .NET Server. The contained fields will be merged with the corresponding fields from various data sources. A data source could be a set of databases or an end-user interface which asks the user to insert the field values.