Styles

This group works with styles — named sets of formatting (font, size, bold, color, alignment, spacing) that you define once and then apply to paragraphs of the PDF. Instead of formatting each paragraph by hand, you create a style and apply it; every paragraph using that style shares the same look. This group also lets you add a run of inline text with its own formatting to the last paragraph.

Prerequisite: before using any of these instructions, the workflow must already have a PDF created (with Create PDF).

These concepts recur across several instructions in this group; they are explained here once.

• Document: indicates which document in the workflow the instruction applies to. If left empty, the current document is used. If the document doesn’t exist (or is not a PDF), the instruction simply does nothing.

• What a style is: a style is a named recipe of formatting. Normal is the built-in base style every PDF starts with. You create a style (giving it a name), then apply it to paragraphs with Apply Style To Paragraph. Re-running a create instruction with an existing name reuses (updates) that style instead of duplicating it.

• The “last paragraph”: Apply Style To Paragraph and Apply Character Style act on the most recently added paragraph of the document. If the document has no paragraph yet, they do nothing. Add your text first, then apply.

• Dynamic values (@name): in a text field (style name, font name, alignment, inline text…) you can type @ followed by the name of a value saved earlier in the workflow, and it will be replaced by that value.

• Colors are hex codes: a color is a hex code — 6 characters like FF0000 (red), with or without a leading #. An invalid code becomes black. Leaving the color field empty means “leave the color as it is”: Modify Style and Apply Character Style keep the existing color, and Create Paragraph Style doesn’t touch the style’s color (its default is black, 000000).

• “From variable” fields: the @name trick only works in text fields. The numeric fields in this group (Font size and the spacing fields) each have a companion “from variable” field:

  • If you leave it empty, the value typed in the normal field is used.
  • If you fill it in with the name of a saved value, the engine ignores the normal field and reads the value from that variable.

  This is mainly for chaining instructions. If you only work with fixed values, you can ignore these fields. (The yes/no fields Bold and Italic have no “from variable” companion, and they only turn formatting on — setting them to No leaves the existing setting untouched.)

• Apply Character Style .pdf
• Apply Style To Paragraph .pdf
• Create Paragraph Style .pdf
• Create Style Based On .pdf
• Modify Style .pdf

Apply Character Style .pdf

Adds a run of inline text with its own formatting (font, size, bold, italic, color) to the end of the last paragraph.

When to use it: to insert a few words in a different look — a bold colored phrase, for example — without changing the paragraph’s own style.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Text	The inline text to add. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Font name	Font family for this text. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Font size	Font size in points. Applied only if greater than 0	0	No
Bold	Yes = bold, No = explicitly not bold	No	No
Italic	Yes = italic, No = explicitly not italic	No	No
Color (hex)	Text color, 6 hex characters. Empty = keep the paragraph’s color. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Font size (from variable)	Reads the size from a saved value	(empty)	No
Bold (from variable)	Reads the yes/no value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Italic (from variable)	Reads the yes/no value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: the text is appended as a new run to the last paragraph; if there is no paragraph yet, nothing happens. Font name is applied only if it is not empty and font size only if greater than 0; bold and italic are always applied, so No means the run is explicitly not bold/italic even if the paragraph style is. The color is applied only when Color (hex) is not empty (otherwise the text keeps the paragraph’s color); an invalid hex code becomes black.

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Apply Style To Paragraph .pdf

Applies an existing paragraph style (by name) to the last paragraph.

When to use it: to give the most recently added paragraph a predefined look in a single step — for example a heading or a custom style you created earlier.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Style name	Name of the style to apply (e.g. Normal or a custom name). Supports @name	Normal	Yes

Important behavior: the style is applied to the last paragraph; if the document has no paragraph yet, nothing happens. If the style name is empty, the instruction does nothing. The named style should already exist (a built-in such as Normal, or one made with Create Paragraph Style).

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Create Paragraph Style .pdf

Creates a new paragraph style — a named set of font, color, alignment, and spacing — that you can then apply to paragraphs.

When to use it: to define a reusable look once (for instance a “Caption” or “Intro” style) and apply it wherever you need it.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Style name	Name for the new style. Supports @name	MyStyle	Yes
Font name	Font family. Applied only if not empty. Supports @name	Arial	No
Font size	Font size in points. Applied only if greater than 0	12	No
Bold	Yes = bold, No = not bold	No	No
Italic	Yes = italic, No = not italic	No	No
Color (hex)	Text color of the style, 6 hex characters. Empty = don’t set a color. Supports @name	000000	No
Alignment	Paragraph alignment: left, right, center, or justify	left	No
Space before	Space above the paragraph, in points	0	No
Space after	Space below the paragraph, in points	0	No
Font size (from variable)	Reads the size from a saved value	(empty)	No
Bold (from variable)	Reads the yes/no value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Italic (from variable)	Reads the yes/no value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space before (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space after (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: if the style name is empty, nothing happens. If a style with that name already exists it is reused; otherwise a new one is created based on Normal. Font name is applied only if not empty, font size only if greater than 0, and the color only if Color (hex) is not empty (its default 000000 is black). Bold and italic are always applied. An unrecognized alignment falls back to left. Space before and after are always set (in points).

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Create Style Based On .pdf

Creates a new style that inherits from an existing one, overriding only the settings you provide.

When to use it: to make a variant of an existing style — for example a bigger, bold version of Normal — without redefining everything.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
New style name	Name for the new derived style. Supports @name	MyDerivedStyle	Yes
Base style name	Name of the style to inherit from. Supports @name	Normal	Yes
Font name	Font family. Applied only if not empty. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Font size	Font size in points. Applied only if greater than 0	0	No
Bold	No change keeps the base style value; Yes = bold; No = not bold	No change (empty)	No
Italic	No change keeps the base style value; Yes = italic; No = not italic	No change (empty)	No
Space before	Space above the paragraph, in points. Applied only if greater than 0	0	No
Space after	Space below the paragraph, in points. Applied only if greater than 0	0	No
Font size (from variable)	Reads the size from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space before (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space after (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: if the new style name or the base style name is empty, nothing happens. If a style with the new name already exists it is reused; otherwise it is created inheriting from the base style. Only the settings you provide are overridden: font name if not empty, font size / space before / space after only if greater than 0, and bold/italic only when you choose Yes or No (with No change they come from the base style). Everything else is inherited from the base style.

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Modify Style .pdf

Changes the formatting of an existing style, updating every paragraph that uses it.

When to use it: to tweak a style that already exists (for example to recolor Normal or enlarge a custom style) so all paragraphs using it update at once.

Parameter	Meaning	Default	Required
Document	Document the instruction applies to	(current document)	No
Style name	Name of the existing style to modify. Supports @name	Normal	Yes
Font name	Font family. Applied only if not empty. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Font size	Font size in points. Applied only if greater than 0	0	No
Bold	No change leaves it as it is; Yes = bold; No = remove bold	No change (empty)	No
Italic	No change leaves it as it is; Yes = italic; No = remove italic	No change (empty)	No
Color (hex)	New text color, 6 hex characters. Empty = leave the color unchanged. Supports @name	(empty)	No
Space before	Space above the paragraph, in points. -1 = leave unchanged	-1	No
Space after	Space below the paragraph, in points. -1 = leave unchanged	-1	No
Font size (from variable)	Reads the size from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space before (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No
Space after (from variable)	Reads the value from a saved value	(empty)	No

Important behavior: the style must already exist — if it doesn’t, the instruction does nothing (it never creates a style). If the style name is empty, nothing happens. Only the settings you provide are changed: font name if not empty, font size only if greater than 0, and bold/italic only when you choose Yes (add it) or No (remove it) — No change leaves them exactly as they were. The color is applied only when Color (hex) is not empty; space before and after are each applied only when 0 or greater (so -1 leaves them untouched).

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