SalesKing Documentation » SalesKing API

h1(title). PDF API

The SalesKing uses the pdfLib for creating PDF documents. You can customize any generated pdf files (f.ex. Invoice) by uploading PDF templates into the system.

Customizing the pdf templates is not really difficult. Despite your will to read the docs and spending some time trying, you need Adobe´s Acrobat Writer and a Acrobat Writer plugin to edit the data placeholders: the "Block plugin":http://www.pdflib.com/de/download/pdflib-familie/block-plugin/

h1. Contents

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h1. Audience

This document is intended for SalesKing users which want to customize the pdf templates. 

This help section assumes that you understand the basics of Adobe Acrobat and the pdfLib-Block plugin. Further you should have some basic knowledge of how to create a pdf file from various resources as well as some graphic design knowledge.

For more information about those things, see the Additional resources section at the bottom of this document.

If you master the art of pdf customizing you definitely have a sharp knife to cut down on those ugly invoices and official documents ... layouted with word

h1. PDF Templates in General

A pdf template can be any pdf file. There is a small set of conventions you need to follow, but first the normal steps you take in customizing:

# make layout in photoshop / indesign / gimp / OO / Word

# generate a pdf

# get one of our default templates / or start from scratch

# open acrobat writer and export the blocks from the default template to your new pdf. (How too´s will follow, until then read the pdfLib Block plugin manual)

# customize the blocks on you new pdf (block size/text/font/position/content/..)

# upload the pdf into SalesKing  

# check the output 

h2. Conventions

* all fonts used in blocks must be present on the system generating the output pdf (our server)

* Blocknames must match a special syntax (also see [[Placeholders]]) 

* Blocks holding listings (invoice Items) have special custom blockfields

* Invoices MUST have first and second page for multipage invoices

h1. Blocks

A Block is placeholder which gets substituted with data/text from the system. 

It is not required to have a standard set of block in a template. There are a set of special blocks which give you enhanced control (invoice items table) via custom fields. Some of these options can also be made inside the user interface. 

If those fields are present but do not have their custom options set, we first try to use settings from the SalesKing user settings. If they are blank too, we take a set of default options from our system.

It is important to know this way of options detection, especially when you are wondering why something comes out like it does.

h2. Block name

The block name is the most important part which determines the matching data field from the application.

A block further carries information about how to output the data. 

h2. Block position

The data/text is rendered at the position of the block. Depending on the block properties (f.ex. type:textline, textflow, image, align) the actual placement of the text varies. 

h2. Block properties

The deep details of all block properties can be studied in the pdfLib API and the block manual. 

Therefore here just a list of options you are likly to use frequently:

* Font + Fontsize - be aware that the font must be present on our system!

* textflow - mutiline-text blocks must use this option which reveals more settings for the text flow

* alignment - text alignment in texflow boxes

* custom properties + values defined by the SalesKing - documented in detail

h1. [[PDFApi Invoice Templates]]

h1. Additional Resources

* "pdfLib Block plugin for Acrobat Writer":http://www.pdflib.com/de/download/pdflib-familie/block-plugin/

* "German pdfLib Manual":http://www.pdflib.com/de/developer/technische-dokumente/handbuecher/