Corvid Release v5.1
PDF Reports and Document Generation

Exsys Corvid^® Exsys Corvid v5.1 is now available adding special features for automatically building reports in the portable Adobe PDF format. PDF documents are ideal for many applications where it is expected that end users will want to print, save or distribute a system's advice. They are also very effective where you want Corvid systems to generate a document with complex formatting. They are highly portable and you can be sure all your users will get the same look-and-feel regardless of browser or operating system.

Many people think of Corvid as primarily for systems that provide specific advice on a diagnosis or action to take, but the same powerful Corvid Inference Engine can be used to help system users generate standard documents and letters, or provide a friendly interactive user interface to fill out complex forms. The capability of easily building PDF documents along with the ability to incorporate powerful decision-making logic makes these types of systems easy to build and very popular with end users.

Building PDF documents with Corvid was possible in previous versions, but was complicated and required a good knowledge of PDF syntax. With Corvid v5.1 all you have to do is create a document or form with your favorite word processor. This can include complex formatting. Corvid “double square bracket” codes can be included in the document. These are just Corvid variable names in [[ ]]. Corvid will automatically replace these with the values set or derived in the system. This approach makes it very easy to add system values and text into your document.  

Other special Corvid codes can also be used for more complex expressions or to conditionally include sections of text. Then just save the document as an RTF file and run a converter program to change that to the standard FO format. Incorporate the report file into your Corvid system - typically by just reading it into a Collection variable. Corvid will automatically replace the embedded codes to dynamically create your custom document. This can be displayed by calling a special program provided with Corvid v5.1, which will cause your browser to display it as a standard PDF file that can be printed, saved or sent to others.  

For more details on Exsys Corvid 5.1 contact us today.