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References & fields

This group of instructions adds references and automatic fields to a document: footnotes and endnotes, bookmarks, hyperlinks, cross-references, captions, a table of contents, a list of figures, and dynamic fields (date, author, page count, and so on). It also includes an instruction that tells the word processor to refresh all of these when the document is opened.

Prerequisite: before using any of these instructions, the workflow must already have a DOCX document created or opened (with Create text doc), which these instructions will act upon.

A note on fields that the word processor updates: several of these instructions insert a field — a placeholder that the word processor fills in with real content (a table of contents, a list of figures, a cross-reference, or a dynamic value such as the date or page count). When the document is first generated, these show placeholder text; they display their real content once the word processor updates them. Update All Fields makes the word processor refresh them automatically the next time the document is opened.

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.

  • Dynamic values (@name): in any text field you can type @ followed by the name of a value saved earlier in the workflow, and it will be replaced by that value. For example, if you saved a bookmark name in chapter1, you can type @chapter1 in the Bookmark name field.

  • Where content is added: the instructions that add a note, field, or link (footnote, endnote, bookmark, hyperlink, cross-reference, dynamic field) attach it to the last paragraph of the document. Insert Caption and Insert List Of Figures add a new paragraph at the end; Insert Table Of Contents adds it at the very top of the document.

  • Saving a result: Insert Footnote, Insert Endnote, and Insert Bookmark offer a field to save the identification number of what they create, under a name you choose, so you can reuse it in later steps. If left empty, nothing is saved.

  • “From variable” fields: the @name trick only works in text fields. So that a numeric field (like Max heading level) or a yes/no field (like Is external URL) can also take its value from a saved value, each one has 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 uses that variable’s value.

    This is mainly for chaining instructions (one instruction saves a value, the next one reads it). If you only work with fixed values, you can ignore these fields.

Delete Bookmark .docx

Removes a bookmark, keeping the text it marked

When to use it: to clean up working bookmarks before the document is delivered.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Bookmark name Name of the bookmark to remove. Supports @name (empty) Yes
Save count key Name to save how many were removed under (empty) No

Important behavior: the name is required; with it empty the instruction does nothing. The text stays: what is removed is the mark, not what it marked. Both ends of the bookmark are removed together. Cross-references pointing at it stop working, so remove them first if there are any.

Insert Bookmark .docx

Inserts a named bookmark at the end of the last paragraph. A bookmark is an invisible marker you can later point a hyperlink or a cross-reference at.

When to use it: to mark a spot in the document so that an Insert Hyperlink or Insert Cross Reference instruction can link to it.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Bookmark name Name of the bookmark. Supports @name MyBookmark Yes
Save bookmark name in Name under which to save the bookmark’s name (empty) No

Important behavior: if Bookmark name is empty, nothing happens. What is saved is the name of the bookmark — the same value that Insert Cross Reference and Insert Hyperlink ask for — so you can chain them without typing it again.

Insert Caption .docx

Inserts a numbered caption (such as “Figure 1” or “Table 2”) as a new paragraph at the end of the document.

When to use it: to label a figure or table with an automatically numbered caption that stays in sequence as you add more.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Label The caption’s label, which also drives its numbering (for example Figure or Table). Supports @name Figure Yes
Caption text Optional description shown after the number; empty = just the label and number. Supports @name (empty) No

Important behavior: if Label is empty, nothing happens. The number is a field that updates automatically, so captions sharing the same label stay in order. The caption uses the document’s “Caption” style.

Insert Cross Reference .docx

Inserts a cross-reference to a bookmark — a link that shows some text and jumps to the bookmarked spot when clicked.

When to use it: to refer to another part of the document (“see Chapter 2”), pointing at a bookmark created with Insert Bookmark.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Bookmark name Name of the bookmark to reference. Supports @name (empty) Yes
Display text Text shown for the reference; empty = the bookmark name is shown. Supports @name (empty) No

Important behavior: if Bookmark name is empty, nothing happens. The reference is a field that the word processor updates; until then it shows the display text (or the bookmark name).

Insert Dynamic Field .docx

Inserts a dynamic field whose value the word processor fills in automatically — such as the current date, the author, the file name, or the total page count.

When to use it: to show information that should stay up to date on its own, like a date that reflects when the document was last updated.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Field type Which field to insert, chosen from a fixed list: Current date · Current time · Creation date · Last saved date · Last printed date · Page number · Total pages · Pages in section · Author · Last saved by · File name · Document title · Document subject, stored as DATE, TIME, CREATEDATE, SAVEDATE, PRINTDATE, PAGE, NUMPAGES, SECTIONPAGES, AUTHOR, LASTSAVEDBY, FILENAME, TITLE or SUBJECT DATE (Current date) Yes
Format Date/time pattern; applies only to the five date/time field types. Empty = let the word processor use its own regional format. Supports @name yyyy-MM-dd No

Important behavior: the Format is used only for Current date, Current time, Creation date, Last saved date and Last printed date, and is ignored for all other field types. The field shows a placeholder (such as [DATE]) until the word processor updates it.

Insert Endnote .docx

Inserts an endnote — a note collected at the end of the document — and places its reference mark at the end of the last paragraph.

When to use it: to add a note or citation that should appear at the end of the document rather than at the foot of the page.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Endnote text Content of the endnote. Supports @name Endnote text. No
Save endnote Id in Name under which to save the endnote’s identification number (empty) No

Important behavior: the reference mark is added at the end of the document’s last paragraph.

Insert Footnote .docx

Inserts a footnote — a note shown at the bottom of the page — and places its reference mark at the end of the last paragraph.

When to use it: to add a note or citation at the foot of the page.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Footnote text Content of the footnote. Supports @name Footnote text. No
Save footnote Id in Name under which to save the footnote’s identification number (empty) No

Important behavior: the reference mark is added at the end of the document’s last paragraph.

Insert Hyperlink .docx

Inserts a clickable hyperlink at the end of the last paragraph. It can point to an external web address or to an internal bookmark within the same document.

When to use it: to link to a website, or to jump to a bookmarked spot inside the document.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Display text The clickable text shown for the link. Supports @name Click here No
Link target Which destination is used: Web address (Url) (external) or Bookmark in this document (bookmark) external (Web address) No
URL Web address, used when Link target is Web address. Supports @name (empty) No
Bookmark name Name of the bookmark, used when Link target is Bookmark in this document. Supports @name (empty) No

Important behavior: Link target alone decides which of the two destination fields is read; the other one is ignored, so filling in the wrong one no longer changes where the link points. With Web address, the URL must be a complete address (for example https://example.com); if it is not, nothing happens. With Bookmark in this document, an empty Bookmark name does nothing.

Insert List Of Figures .docx

Inserts a list of figures (or tables) — an index of every caption that shares a given label, with the page each appears on.

When to use it: to add a “List of Figures” or “List of Tables” that gathers all captions of one kind, after using Insert Caption to label them.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Label The caption label to list (for example Figure or Table). Supports @name Figure Yes
Title Heading shown above the list. Supports @name List of Figures No

Important behavior: if Label is empty, nothing happens. The list is a field that the word processor must update; until then it shows placeholder text. It is added at the end of the document.

Insert Table Of Contents .docx

Inserts a table of contents at the very top of the document, built from the headings in it.

When to use it: to add an automatic table of contents to a document whose headings use heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, and so on).

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No
Title Heading shown above the table of contents. Supports @name Contents No
Max heading level Deepest heading level to include (for example 3 includes Heading 1 to Heading 3) 3 No
Max heading level (from variable) Reads the level from a saved value (empty) No

Important behavior: the table of contents is added at the top of the document. It is a field that the word processor must update; until then it shows placeholder text asking you to right-click and choose “Update Field”.

Update All Fields .docx

Tells the word processor to refresh all fields in the document — table of contents, list of figures, cross-references, dates, page counts, and so on — the next time the document is opened.

When to use it: as the last references instruction, so that everything inserted as a field displays its real content instead of placeholder text when the reader opens the document.

Parameter Meaning Default Required
Document Document the instruction applies to (current document) No

Important behavior: this sets a flag so the word processor updates the fields on open; the update itself happens in the word processor when the document is opened.

This documentation is the help of the application, and it comes underCreative Commons Attribution 4.0.