TDX Knowledge: Remove Extra HTML Formatting from an Article

While you can use a variety of editors when drafting a knowledge base article, Google Docs is the most common choice because it is readily available and easy to use.  

The TeamDynamix (TDX) article creation and editing interface is what's called a rich-text editor. Rich-text editors are online interfaces for editing rich text within web browsers, presenting the user with a "what-you-see-is-what-you-get" (WYSIWYG) editing area. These types of editors are helpful because they remove the need for you to directly format your text in the valid HTML markup language.

Because the TDX editor recognizes and uses HTML formatting, if you draft in Google Docs (another online text editor) and then copy and paste directly into a TDX article, extra HTML formatting is often retained. An example of what you may see in uncleaned HTML code are span tags or document references, such as <span style="font-size: 10pt;"> or <id="docs-internal-guid-">. You can see some examples of added HTML format codes if you paste the text from a Google Doc directly into the TDX editor and then click the Source button.

Span tags and other extra HTML code can cause formatting inconsistencies and issues, particularly if the article is published to the Technology Help website. If you are publishing to the Technology Help website, you must first clean your article's HTML.

Again, since this is a rich-text editor, you will see some HTML markup code when looking at the Source view of your TDX article. What you need to do is remove the problematic additional HTML code added by Google. The easiest way to remove extra HTML formatting is by using keyboard shortcuts to paste the text without formatting. 

Alternatively, another recommended way to remove extra HTML formatting is by using your computer's default text editor application before pasting into the TDX editor. For Windows, that default editor is Notepad; for Macs, it's TextEdit; the default for Linux/Unix systems depends on the desktop environment (for example: gedit for GNOME, Kate for KDE, pluma for MATE, etc.). 

In this article:

• Preparing to Clean a Google Doc Article
• Removing Extra HTML Formatting with a Default Text Editor
• Entering the Cleaned Content in a TDX Article
  • Using Keyboard Shortcuts
  • Using Default Text Editors
• Making Final Edits to Your Article
• Additional Resources

Preparing to Clean a Google Doc Article

1. In a browser window, open the drafted Google Doc article.
2. Select/highlight everything except for the article title and then copy the text selection.
3. Once you have copied the desired text, either:
   1. Move on to the next section to remove extra HTML formatting with a text editor; OR
   2. If you do not want/need to use a text editor first, move on to entering the cleaned content in a TDX article using keyboard shortcuts.

Removing Extra HTML Formatting with a Text Editor

1. Open your computer's default text editor application. 
   • For Windows, it's Notepad; for Macs, it's TextEdit; the default for Linux/Unix systems depends on the desktop environment (gedit for GNOME, Kate for KDE, pluma for MATE, etc.)
   • If you're not sure what or where the default editor app is, you can search your computer's applications for "text editor". 
2. Open a new, blank file. 
3. Paste the text copied from the Google Doc into this new text file.
   • For Macs + TextEdit: do NOT use the keyboard shortcut for pasting text without formatting (Shift + Command + V) as it will turn the lists into actual symbols and numbers, making subsequent editing harder. Instead, use the keyboard shortcut for standard pasting (Command + V) or use the mouse to right-click then select Paste. 
4. Select/highlight everything that's in the text editor window and then copy the text selection. 
5. Move on to the next step of entering the cleaned content in a TDX article using default text editors.

Entering the Cleaned Content in a TDX Article

Using Keyboard Shortcuts

1. Create a New Knowledge Base Article and keep it open in edit mode.
2. With everything from the Google Doc copied to your clipboard, paste the text into the Body field of the TDX article without formatting using your OS's keyboard shortcut.
   1. For Windows: Shift + Ctrl + V
   2. For Macs: Shift + Command + V
3. Move on to the next step of making any necessary final edits to your article.

Using Default Text Editors

1. Create a New Knowledge Base Article and keep it open in edit mode.
2. With the content from your OS text editor copied to the clipboard, paste the text into the Body field of the TDX article.
3. Move on to the next step of making any necessary final edits to your article.

Making Final Edits to Your Article

1. Set the article Title. Refer to Guidelines for Writing Knowledge Article Subjects (Titles).
2. Add any images. Refer to Add an Image to an Article.
3. Make Images Accessible Using Alternative Text. 
4. Update Table of Contents and Other In-Page Links.
5. Configure any links for pages external to the article to open in a new window. See Create Links in an Article.
6. Set and format any article Headings, which includes removing any bold formatting. Refer to Use Headings for Proper Article Structure.
7. Format Nested Numbered Lists.
8. Save your article.

Additional Resources

• Draft and Format Content in a Google Doc