Variables help you quickly say the same thing in multiple locations. We’ve extended the customer-facing variables feature for reusable text in Technical Team bundles.  


This article will focus the changes we’ve made for variables in bundles. For a more general introduction to variables, see the customer-facing article on variables.  


Note: Currently in bundles, you can only use variables in the guidance.


What does a variable look like in Chorus bundles?

All the legacy reusable text has been exported from the old Word documents and imported into Chorus as variables for the NBS Technical organization. The guidance has been updated to include these variables.


In edit mode

  • Variables are styled as “chips". The variable name has a lilac border and the ~ tilde icon before it. 
  • The variable names are taken from the legacy Word documents:
    {Document code and title} § {Heading from within the Word doc}. 
  • The ~ tilde icon is the character you use to open the variable menu. 
  • If you hover your mouse over the variable, the tooltip will show the variable value.
     

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 In preview mode

  •  The variable value is shown in full, including any formatting and links.
  • There is no indication that this text is a variable – it looks the same in preview as it will to the customers when the bundle is published. 


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Broken variables

If a variable is deleted, or its name is changed, the variable will change and show as an error:  

  • In edit mode, the variable will show in red with the warning triangle icon.
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  • In preview mode, the variable value is replaced with and error message in square brackets:
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Add a variable to bundle content

  1.  In your bundle, select a clause, heading or section title. You can now edit the guidance. 
  2. In the right hand guidance panel, place your cursor where you want to add reusable text. 
  3. Type the ~ tilde character. This is available on most keyboards.  
    1. On the UK standard keyboard layout, it is on the same key as the # hash character:
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    2. On US keyboards, it is above the single quote key:
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  4. The variables menu will open. All available variables are listed A-Z by title:A screenshot of a computer Description automatically generated
  5. Keep typing to filter the menu. You can filter by any words or characters in the variable title or value:
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  6. Select the variable you need from the menu. The menu will close and the variable will be added to your guidance:
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  7. Save your changes. 

Delete a variable from bundle content

There are two ways to delete a variable: 

  1. Place the cursor after the variable and select the backspace button on the keyboard,
    or
    Drag to select the whole variable and select the backspace button or delete button on the keyboard. 
  2. Save your changes using the Save button next to the clause or section title. 


Note: If you drag to select the variable, there is no highlight to show that the variable has been selected. This is a known limitation.

Who can update variables?

Please see the separate article on variable management. 


Known limitations 

  • In bundles, variables are currently restricted to the guidance panel. 
  • Copy & paste doesn’t work – you’ll get an odd broken link warning. Please add from the ~ tilde menu. 
  • In preview mode, the variable text is shown exactly as the customer will see it when the bundle is published. This means it can be difficult to skip this text when checking edits to surrounding guidance. 
  • When the variable is selected, e.g. by click+drag, there is no highlight style.