Your manuals live in Sopycat's library. To give one to someone who doesn't use Sopycat, save a copy in a common format and send it the way you normally send files, such as email, a shared drive or a printout. Sopycat doesn't upload anything. Every copy is a file on your computer.
Which format should I use?
| Format | Best for | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Printing, emailing, and a copy nobody will change | Manual header › Save as PDF | |
| Word document | Adding it to a bigger document, or letting someone edit it in Word | More options (⋯) › Save as Word document… |
| Web page | Reading on any computer or phone, with no special program | More options (⋯) › Share as a web page |
| Text file | Pasting into a wiki or another tool that takes plain text | More options (⋯) › Save as text file |
| Tutorial video (MP4) | People who would rather watch than read | The Tutorial video panel › Save as MP4… |
For people in your own office who use Sopycat, there is often no need to export at all. Point everyone at the same library. See Share a library with your team.
Where the files go
Every export opens a normal Windows save window, so you choose the name and the folder. Documents are offered in your Documents folder, and videos in your Videos folder. When it's done, Sopycat shows "Saved to" and the place it saved the file.
Save as a PDF
Library › open a manual › Save as PDF
- Open the manual.
- Click Save as PDF at the top.
- Choose a name and a folder, and save.
The PDF has the title, the summary, a line saying when it was updated, and every step numbered with its picture. It is Letter size with narrow margins. Other paper sizes such as A4 aren't offered.
Save as a Word document
Library › open a manual › More options (⋯) › Save as Word document…
- Choose More options (⋯) › Save as Word document….
- Choose a name and a folder, and save.
The Word file has headings for each step, full-width pictures, and keeps your formatting and links.
If you see "That file is open in Word. Close it there and save again.", you are saving over a file that is still open. Close it in Word, then save again.
Share as a web page
Library › open a manual › More options (⋯) › Share as a web page
- Choose More options (⋯) › Share as a web page. You can also find it on the manual's ⋯ menu in the Library.
- Choose a name and a folder, and save.
You get one file that ends in .html, with the pictures inside it. It opens in any web browser, on a computer or a phone. Send it by email or put it on a shared drive.
This doesn't make a link on the internet. It is a file, and people need the file to open it.
In regulated office mode, Share as a web page is hidden. See Regulated office mode.
Save as a text file
Library › open a manual › More options (⋯) › Save as text file
This saves the words as a Markdown file (.md), which many wikis and note tools accept, along with a folder of pictures next to it named after the file. Bold, colours and other formatting are not kept. Keep the file and its pictures folder together when you move them.
Save the tutorial video
A tutorial video is the screen recording played as one film, with your voice, a ring and number on each click, and a caption naming each step.
- If you recorded your voice, Sopycat makes the video by itself after it writes the manual.
- Otherwise, choose More options (⋯) › Make a tutorial video. This needs a manual that came from a recording.
The video appears in a Tutorial video panel on the manual, with a list of chapters. Click a chapter to jump to that step.
- In the Tutorial video panel, click Save as MP4….
- Choose a name and a folder, and save.
If you change the steps after the video was made, the panel says so. Click Make it again to update it. Hide folds the panel away and Show opens it again. To delete the video, choose More options (⋯) › Remove the tutorial video.
Check before you share
- Private details: look through every picture and blur anything private. See Blur something private.
- The video: blurs on a step's picture are carried into that step's part of the tutorial video. Watch it through before you share it, and make it again after changing a blur. See Blurs and videos.
- Typed text: anything you typed while recording may be in the step names and instructions. Read them through.
- Old copies: a saved file doesn't update when you change the manual. Save it again after changes, and let people know which copy is current.
Common questions
How do I print a manual?
Save it as a PDF, then open the PDF and print it.
Can I get a link to share?
No. Sopycat doesn't put your manuals online. Save a web page or PDF and share the file, or put it somewhere your team can already reach, like a shared drive.
Can I export several manuals at once?
Each manual is saved one at a time from its own page.
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