Use Component Manager to Work with Components
Using Component Manager allows you to work with individual components in a HotDocs template, including copying components between component files, creating new components, and editing existing components.
You can open and close Component Manager as needed, or you can leave it displayed as you work in the template, switching between the two windows. One advantage of leaving Component Manager open is the ability to view all the components in your template at once, and edit them simultaneously as needed.
To work with individual components in a component file
- Open Component Manager. (See Open and Close Component Manager.) The Component Manager window appears.
- Perform any tasks, as described in the following table:
| To | Do This |
| Sort components in Component Manager either by alphabetical name or by component type | Click the  Sort Components button and then choose either Sort by Name or Sort by Type.
To sort component lists that appear in the Dialog Editor and Computation Editor, right-click on the list and then choose your sorting option from the shortcut menu. |
| Display Component Manager side by side with the template development window | Adjust Component Manager to the width you want and click the  Arrange Windows button. HotDocs adjusts the size of the template development window so that both windows can be viewed in full. |
| Save changes you have made to the component file | Click the  Save Components button. |
| Specify certain assembly and interview preferences for the template and component file | Click the  Component File Properties button. (See Change Component File Properties.) |
| Use Component Manager to insert a variable in the template text | Place your cursor in the template where you want the variable, select the variable from the Components list, and click the  Insert Variable button. (See Create and Insert a Variable Using Component Manager.) |
| Create a new component, including a variable, dialog, or clause | Click the Components drop-down button, select the type of component you want to create, and click the  New Component button. |
| Make changes to an existing component | Select the component from the component list and click the  Edit Component button. (You can also double-click the component.) |
| Remove a component from the component file | Select the component in the component list and click the  Delete Component button.
The component is removed from the component file and any associated dialogs, but references to it in the template and other components (such as scripts, prompts, or dialog text elements) will not be updated. If you've referred to this component in any of these ways, you must manually update these references or your template may not work. |
| Assign a new name to a component | Select the component(s) and click the  Rename Component button. (See Rename Components in a Single Template.) |
| Make a duplicate copy of a variable or group of variables | Select the variable(s) and click the  Duplicate Variables button. (See Make a Duplicate Copy of a Variable.) |
| Bring all open Component Editors to the front | Click the  Restore All button. HotDocs brings all open Component Editors to the front so you can view and edit them. |
| Minimize all open Component Editors to the Windows taskbar | Click the  Minimize All button. All open Component Editors are then minimized. However, you can still access them by clicking their icon in the Windows taskbar. |
| Close all open Component Editors | Click the  Save and Close All button. All changes made to components are saved and all open Component Editors are closed. |
To access the Component Manager toolbar using the keyboard, press F10.
You can open a component file for another template while viewing the current component file. Once opened, you can edit components or assign other properties. To do this, click the 
Expand button, and then select the component file. Once open, edit the component. You can also copy components between the open component files. See Copy Components From One File to Another.
For information on searching and replacing text strings in the component file, spell checking components, and printing lists of component properties, see Search Component Files, Print a List of Components, and Spell Check Components.