Using the RTF editor

Use the rich text format (RTF) editor to format the text in fields. It provides commonly used functions, such as formatting text, creating tables, inserting links, and creating and linking bookmarks. The RTF editor reduces the efforts of formatting the text by providing a What-You-See-Is-What-You-Get (WYSIWYG) interface. You can use the RTF editor in fields that have the RTF  icon next to them. 

For information on RTF editors for Progressive Web Applications (PWA), see Adding-rich-text-fields-in-Progressive-Web-Applications.

Features of the RTF editor

The RTF editor has the following features:

• Supports all use cases for rich-text fields in BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management applications. 
  • When the article content uses standard HTML markup, the RTF editor renders the article without any loss of formatting.
  • Helps you edit the existing articles.
• Supports rich-text field editing capabilities.
• Maintains formatting when you copy content from Microsoft Word, Microsoft Outlook, or HTML and paste it into an RTF-enabled field. 

Functions available in the RTF editor

The functions are available in both the inline fields editor and the pop-up editor.

Function	Action	Type
	Select the font type and point size from the list.	Text
	Make the selected text bold, italicized, or underlined.	Text
	Select the text color and text background from the list.	Text
	Show the More Text drop-down toolbar options.	Text (More)
	Make the selected text strikethrough, subscript, or superscript.	Text (More)
	Select the text Inline class and style, and clear formatting.	Text (More)
	Insert special characters and insert a horizontal line.	Text (More)
	Align the paragraph evenly on the left.	Paragraph
	Show the More Paragraph drop-down toolbar options.	Paragraph (More)
	Align the paragraph evenly on the center, right, and justify.	Paragraph (More)
	Create an ordered or unordered list.	Paragraph (More)
	Set the paragraph format and style	Paragraph (More)
	Increase or decrease paragraph text line height	Paragraph (More)
	Increase or decrease paragraph indent	Paragraph (More)
	Increase or decrease quote	Paragraph (More)
	Insert a link to any URL, to a bookmark, or to an email. Click the unlink icon to remove a link. For more information, see Adding and removing links.	Insert Link
	Insert an image into the  RTF  field. For more information, see Adding an image.	Insert Image
	Insert a video into the RTF field. Important: For this toolbar menu to be available, you must enable the following CCS (or config.properties) setting to true, which allows <iframe> tags into the markup (disabled by default). arsystem.rtf_allow_iframe	Insert Video
	Insert a table into the  RTF  field. For more information, see Adding a table.	Insert Table
	Show the More Rich (Insert) drop-down toolbar options.	Insert (More)
	Create a bookmark in a document that is referred through a URL. For more information, see To create a bookmark.	Insert (More) Bookmark
	Create a link to a BMC Helix ITSM Knowledge Management article. Note: This toolbar button is only available in RTF fields when working in Knowledge Management.	Insert (More) Link Knowledge Article
	Add an expandable section to provide additional information.	Insert (More) Expand Collapse section
	Show the More Misc drop-down toolbar options.	Misc (More)
	Undo and redo to remove the last (approximately 30) changes made in the RTF editor or reverse the undo action.	Misc (More)
	Select all text in the editor.	Misc (More)

Adding and removing links

You can perform the following actions by using the Insert Link icon:

Goal	Action	Screenshot
Link to a web page	Click the Insert Link icon .​​​ In the URL field, type the URL of the web page. For example, www.bmc.com In the Text field, enter the link text. Click Insert.
Link to a Bookmark	Click the Insert Link icon . Click the Link to Bookmark drop down icon  to display the list of available bookmarks on the page. Select a bookmark from the list. Click Insert.
Link to a knowledge article	Click the Link Knowledge Article icon . Enter a published knowledge article ID. (Optional) Alternatively, click Search to find a knowledge article. Click OK. Important: This option is only enabled when working within an RTF field in the BMC Helix ITSM Knowledge Management.
Link to an Email message	Click the Insert Link icon . In the URL field, type the email address using the ‘mailto’ protocol. For example: mailto:you@example.com To add a Subject and a Body details in the email, enter the following parameters: mailto:you@example.com?subject=Feedback&body=My%20Feedback Important: Make sure spaces and special characters are URL encoded. Click Insert.
Remove links	Select the link that you want to remove to open the Edit Link window. Click the Unlink icon .

To create a bookmark

1. Select the text in the pop-up editor for which you want to create a bookmark.
2. Click the Insert Bookmark toolbar button .
3. In the Bookmark Properties dialog box, enter a name for the anchor or bookmark.
   ​​​​​​
4. Click OK.

The following screenshot illustrates the bookmarked text displayed with a red flag icon  that prepends the text.

To edit the bookmark name or remove the bookmark, double-click the bookmark icon to display the Bookmark Properties dialog box.

To add an image to a Rich Text field

You can add images in the following ways:

• Copy and Paste method
  1. Select the image and type Ctrl + C.
  2. Place the cursor to the desired insert location.
  3. Type Ctrl + P.
• Insert image method
  1. Click the Insert Image button , and perform one of the following actions:
     • If the Rich Text field has an associated attachment pool field (to store image attachments),  drag and drop an image.
       (Optional) Alternatively, click to select from a local File Explorer dialog.
       Important: This option will not appear if there is no associated attachment pool field.
       
     • On the URL tab , type or paste the URL of the image.
       
  2. Click Insert.

To edit image properties after insertion

You can edit the image properties in the following ways:

• Image properties method
  1. Click the edit image icon on the top left corner of the image.
     
  2. (Optional) Type the alternative text of the image.
  3. (Optional) Add a link URL to the image.
     When the image is clicked, the URL opens in a new browser tab.
• Drag and resize method 
  Resize the image using the drag handle on the bottom-right corner.

To add and edit a table

1. Click the Insert Table button  to insert a table in a Rich Text field. 
2. Hover the cursor to determine the initial number of rows and columns.
   
3. Click to set the number of rows and columns.
4. (Optional) To edit the table properties, click a cell in the table to open the Edit Table pop-up.
   
5. Click a button in the Edit Table pop-up.

   Button	Description
   	Insert table header
   	Insert table footer
   	Delete table
   	Insert or delete table rows
   	Insert or delete table columns
   	Add table styles
   	Merge or split table cells
   	Change table cell background color
   	Change vertical alignment (top, middle, bottom)
   	Change horizontal alignment (left, center, right, justify)
   	Highlight cell

    

Shortcut keys in the RTF editor

Use the shortcut keys to navigate and execute operations quickly and easily. The following tables list the shortcut keys available in the RTF editor:

General RTF shortcut keys

Troubleshooting

In some cases, the resize handle arrow on the bottom of the RTF editor dialog box disappears. Solution: Close and re-open the RTF editor. The resize handle appears.