Advanced Pdf/HTML Templates

ADVANCED PDF/HTML TEMPLATES

May 2021

NetSuite Implementation, Consulting, and Support

Oracle NetSuite North America Solution Provider

2020 Partner of the Year

PRESENTER

Gillian L. Pearson

NetSuite Manager, Consultant

gpearson@eidebailly.com

208.383.4769

INTRODUCTION TO ADVANCED PDF/HTML TEMPLATES

Out of the box NetSuite uses the Basic

PDF layouts. Today we will discuss how

to make the move to using Advanced

PDF Templates. We will customize the

templates using the WYSIWYG Editor

and the source code mode. We will

also see some more advanced

functionality of Advanced PDFs. The

goal today is to get you to a point

where you aren’t afraid to give it a try.

• SAID = SuiteAnswers article ID

• Go to SuiteAnswers and search for

the ID number.

• I recommend you follow along in

your NetSuite account if you can.

Advanced PDF

Templates

WYSIWYG Editor

Source Code

Advanced Uses

ADVANCED PDF

TEMPLATES

BASIC PDF TEMPLATES

• Designed to be easier to modify and do

not require any HTML knowledge.

• More restrictive in the types of

customizations that they support.

• User interface is visual, with a drag-

and-drop style.

• Select from a pre-defined list of fonts

and apply styling like bolded, italicized,

or underlined text.

• Adjust the application of borders to the

fields and define the color(s) of the

body text, labels, borders, and fills.

• Element Size and Element Position

sections to apply precise sizing to each

element and position it on the page.

BASIC PDF

LAYOUT

ADVANCED PDF/HTML TEMPLATES – SAID 48703

Advanced PDFs:

• More customization capabilities than transaction form layouts, also known as basic layouts.

• Associate with custom transaction forms, to format printed and email versions of

transactions.

• Support all transaction and print types supported by basic layouts.

• Standard templates are provided for each supported print type and includes the company

logo.

• Template Editor supports current industry standards for HTML-based editing, including rich

text editing and HTML markup source editing.

• Preview as you make changes; detailed error messages are shown if it cannot be saved.

• Use SuiteScript to take advantage of customization capabilities.

• Can be included in bundles.

Important:

New enhancements are added exclusively to advanced printing. Transaction Form PDF/HTML

Layouts will be deprecated in a future release. You are encouraged to use advanced

templates and associate them with custom forms.

BASIC VS. ADVANCED PDFS

Basic PDFs allow for fast distribution of changes because

a single template can be used across many transaction

types.

Advanced PDFs require a separate template for each

transaction type. Due to this, it is best practice to start

with a single template and work through the branding and

formatting before moving on to additional templates.

WHICH SHOULD I USE?

Basic PDF Template:

• You are not comfortable working with

code.

• You want to make simple changes (bold

or add a field).

• You want multiple transactions to use the

exact same template.

Advanced PDF Template:

• You are comfortable working with code.

• You need to use conditional logic.

• You need to add additional information

to the template.

• You have very specific formatting

requirements.

• You are unable to access the fields you

need in the Basic PDF Template.

SETUP STEPS

• Enable Features – Navigate to Setup > Company > Enable

Features. On the SuiteCloud tab enable “ADVANCED PDF/HTML

TEMPLATES”.

This does not have to be provisioned, it is standard NetSuite and

usually enabled during configuration.

• Versions of third-party products used with Advanced PDF

Templates.

SETUP STEPS

Custom Form:

When creating a new custom transaction form or editing an existing one, you can

define whether you prefer to use a Basic or Advanced PDF template.

The option that you select dictates which PDF templates are available for selection

in the “PDF Layout” section. Selecting “Basic” limits the PDF Layout options to only

PDFs listed under Customization > Forms > Transaction Form PDF Layouts, while

selecting “Advanced” shows only those PDFs listed under Customization > Forms >

Advanced PDF/HTML Templates.

Transaction Forms:

• Used for all transaction record types.

• Sales Orders, Item Fulfillments, Invoices, Bills, Journal Entries etc . . .

(directly plagarized from Cory Anderson’s Customizing NetSuite presentation)

SETUP STEPS

• Navigate to Customization > Forms > Transaction Forms

• If you already have a custom form you are using, you can edit that form, or

you can customize a standard form.

• The printing type is the area we will focus on.

SETTING THE STAGE

Prior to updating any template, I like to see my starting

point/baseline and understand what I am going to be modifying.

Hopefully, you have a mockup of the desired result, or notes on the

changes to be made, as well as a test transaction to use.

• Print the transaction with the standard template.

• Open the test transaction and ensure that it is using the appropriate custom form.

• Save and print the transaction.

• If you have to update the form, when you save you will be notified that no

changes have been made, save anyway.

SETTING THE STAGE

To be

updated

Standard PDF

Template

Note: After the test

transaction is opened, keep

it open, this will make

viewing changes easier.

DEMONSTRATION

TIME

CREATING A TEMPLATE

No matter how you plan to update the template, you first have to create

it. You will be selecting an existing template to customize to your needs.

Navigate to Customization > Forms > Advanced PDF/HTML Templates

Find the transaction type of the template and click Customize if using a

standard template and Edit if using an existing template.

CREATING A TEMPLATE

Click Template Setup. Enter a name for the template.

Use a naming convention to keep consistency.

You can also enter a description or update the margins if needed.

Click Save, then Save again.

CREATING A TEMPLATE

This is a good time to go back to your Custom Form and update your

Print Template to your new Custom Template.

• Navigate to Customization > Forms > Transaction Forms

WYSIWYG EDITOR

(WIZZY-WIG)

WYSIWYG EDITOR

There are two main ways to edit Advanced PDFs in

NetSuite.

WYSIWYG Editor:

• Literally stands for “What

You See Is What You Get.

• Visual way to make changes

in your template.

• Not as flexible or intuitive

as the Basic PDF Template.

WYSIWYG EDITOR

Toolbar

Field

Text

Image

Table

Page

Number

Total

Pages

End of

Page

Horizontal

Line

Header

Footer

DEMONSTRATION

TIME

SOURCE CODE

The second way to edit Advanced PDFs in NetSuite.

Source Code:

• FreeMarker Code

• More flexibility around formatting.

• Conditional logic.

• If you are comfortable with HTML or cutting and pasting from Google.

SOURCE CODE EDITING TO CUSTOMIZE ADVANCED TEMPLATES – SAID:

48809

Line 1 - XML version

Line 2 - DOCTYPE

Line 3 - BFO wrapping element – This is NOT an HTML declaration

Line 4-8 – standard HTML head and body

Line 9 – elements must always be closed in XML

Important:

When using advanced templates, you must follow the syntax and usage guidelines

included in the documentation for BFO, FreeMarker, and CKEditor. For more

information, see the

BFO website, FreeMarker website, and the

CKEditor website.

SOURCE CODE EDITING TO CUSTOMIZE ADVANCED TEMPLATES – SAID:

48809

BFO Elements (Big Faceless Organization):

Page Numbers <pagenumber /> <totalpages />

Headers, Footers, and Background Maros <macrolist>

Bar Codes <barcode codetype=“qrcode” value=${item.name} />

FreeMarker:

Reference Fields

field - ${record.field}

label -

${record.field@label}

example - ${record.entity@label}: ${record.entity}

Customer: The Treasure Chest

Sublists and Other Lists

${record.item[1].itemName}

<#list record.item as item></#list>

Additional Information

${customer.email}

SETTING THE STAGE

To be

updated

Standard PDF

Template

Note: After the test

transaction is opened, keep

it open, this will make

viewing changes easier.

CODE UPDATES

<td rowspan="3" style="padding: 0;"><#if companyInformation.logoUrl?length

!= 0><img src="${companyInformation.logoUrl}" style="float: left; margin:

7px" /> </#if> ${companyInformation.companyName}<br

/>${companyInformation.addressText}</td>

Sized the logo so that it was slightly smaller

<#if companyInformation.logoUrl?length != 0><img

src="${companyInformation.logoUrl}" style="float: left; margin: 7px; height:

75%; width: 75%;" />

</#if>

</td>

Separated the address into its own cell, then removed the duplicated companyName, and

the words “United States” if it is included in the address

<td rowspan="3">${companyInformation.addressText?replace("United

States","")}</td>

CODE UPDATES

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.billaddress}</td>

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.shipaddress}</td>

Removed the “United States from the shipaddress, but not the billaddress

<td colspan="3">${record.billaddress}</td>

<td colspan="3">${record.shipaddress?replace("United States","")}</td>

CODE UPDATES

<tr>

<td colspan="3" style="font-size: 8pt; padding: 6px 0 2px; font-weight: bold; color:

#333333;">${record.billaddress@label}</td>

<td colspan="3" style="font-size: 8pt; padding: 6px 0 2px; font-weight: bold; color:

#333333;">${record.shipaddress@label}</td>

<td colspan="5" style="font-size: 12pt; background-color: #e3e3e3; font-weight:

bold;">${record.total@label?upper_case}</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.billaddress}</td>

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.shipaddress}</td>

<td align="right" colspan="5" style="font-size: 28pt; padding-top: 20px; background-color:

#e3e3e3;">${record.total}</td>

</tr>

Removed the Total Box

<tr>

<td colspan="3" style="font-size: 8pt; padding: 6px 0 2px; font-weight:

bold; color: #333333;">${record.billaddress@label}</td>

<td colspan="3" style="font-size: 8pt; padding: 6px 0 2px; font-weight:

bold; color: #333333;">${record.shipaddress@label}</td>

</tr>

<tr>

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.billaddress}</td>

<td colspan="3" style="padding: 0;">${record.shipaddress?replace("United

States","")}</td>

</tr>

FINAL PRODUCT

CUSTOMIZED

PDF TEMPLATE

DEMONSTRATION

TIME

TIPS AND TRICKS

Advanced PDFs now have the ability to use “Save & Edit”,

so that you no longer get sent back to the list of templates

and have to reopen it.

By keeping your printed transaction tab open, you can

refresh the tab each time you save an update to the

template without having to reprint each time.

When you have a template that is working and you need

to make modifications, save a backup before making

major changes.

TIPS AND TRICKS

The advanced templates have always

“versioned”, but now you can use that

version to “undo” changes you have

made.

Find the version at the very bottom

and determine which version you want

to go back to. Go to the URL and add

“&version=5” at the end of the

existing URL.

DEMONSTRATION

TIME

ADVANCED USES

• Call a template based on

the value of a field.

• Assign values for variables

within a template.

• Call another PDF to attach

terms and conditions.

• Create terms and

conditions within the

template on added pages.

SAVED SEARCH PDF

• Client required details on a

customer statement.

• Created a saved search with

the necessary fields.

• Created a PDF Template for

the saved search.

CONDITIONAL STATEMENT

Remit To based on

combination of:

• Customer’s preferred

language

• Country of the

customer

• Currency of the

invoice

This template uses:

• Conditional

formatting for the

aging

• Creation of variables

• Calculations for the

totals

CALCULATIONS

• Count sheet with bar

codes

• Additional lines for

each of the lots

• Handle many

subsidiaries and

counts, so that needed

to be displayed.

BAR CODES

• Used tags to format

the terms and

conditions

TERMS & CONDITIONS

• Created by a

developer to display

in a matrix format

• Beyond my abilities

MATRIX DISPLAY

This presentation is presented with the understanding that the information contained does not constitute legal, accounting or other professional advice.

It is not intended to be responsive to any individual situation or concerns, as the contents of this presentation are intended for general information

purposes only. Viewers are urged not to act upon the information contained in this presentation without first consulting competent legal, accounting or

other professional advice regarding implications of a particular factual situation. Questions and additional information can be submitted to your Eide

Bailly representative, or to the presenter of this session.

QUESTIONS?

eidebailly.com

THANK YOU

Gillian L. Pearson

NetSuite Manager, Consultant

gpearson@eidebailly.com

208.383.4769

eidebailly.com

Find us online: