template-filling

name	template-filling
description	Systematically find and fill placeholders in Word document templates. Use when the user provides a template with placeholders like {{name}}, [INSERT DATE], <COMPANY>, or similar markers, and wants them replaced with real values. Ensures no placeholder is missed across body, headers, and footers.
metadata	{"author":"talk2view-word","version":"1.0"}

Template Filling

When to use

• User says "fill in this template" or "populate the template"
• Document contains placeholder patterns ({{...}}, [INSERT ...], <...>, ___, XXXX)
• User provides a list of values to insert into a document
• User asks to "personalize" or "customize" a standard document

Key rules

1. Scan the ENTIRE document before replacing anything

Placeholders can appear in three places:

• Document body — most common
• Headers/footers — often overlooked
• Tables — cells may contain placeholders

Always do a full scan first. Never start replacing until you have a complete inventory.

2. Detect the placeholder pattern

Common patterns:

Pattern	Example
Double curly braces	{{client_name}}
Square brackets	[INSERT COMPANY NAME]
Angle brackets	<DATE>
Underscores	___________
ALL CAPS markers	COMPANY_NAME, XXXX

Read the document and identify which pattern is used. Don't assume — check.

3. Replace all occurrences, not just the first

search_document with replace_with replaces ALL matches. This is what you want — a placeholder like {{client_name}} may appear multiple times (in the body, in a table, in different paragraphs).

4. Verify zero remaining after each replacement

After replacing a placeholder, search for it again to confirm count is 0:

search_document(query="{{client_name}}")
// Should return: { "count": 0, "matches": [] }

5. Headers and footers require separate handling

search_document only searches the document body. Placeholders in headers/footers must be replaced with set_header_footer. For multi-section templates where the header/footer is identical across sections, apply in ONE call using section_indices:

set_header_footer(
  type="header",
  text="Acme Corporation — Website Redesign Proposal",
  section_indices=[0, 1, 2]
)

If the footer needs page numbers AND brand text, fuse via prefix_text/suffix_text on insert_page_numbers — don't call set_header_footer on the same footer afterwards (it would clear the numbers).

Step-by-step: Fill a template

Phase 1: Inventory

1. Read the full document:

   get_document()
   

2. Identify the placeholder pattern. Scan the text for {{, [INSERT, <, ___, etc.

3. Search for each placeholder to get a count:

   search_document(query="{{client_name}}")
   search_document(query="{{date}}")
   search_document(query="{{project_title}}")
   

4. Check headers and footers by looking for placeholder text in the full document text. Since headers/footers are not in the body text returned by get_document, ask the user if there are placeholders in headers/footers, or proactively check by looking at the document context.

5. Build a replacement map:

   {{client_name}}    → "Acme Corporation"     (found 3 times)
   {{date}}           → "March 15, 2026"       (found 2 times)
   {{project_title}}  → "Website Redesign"     (found 1 time)
   

Phase 2: Replace

6. Replace each placeholder one at a time:

   search_document(query="{{client_name}}", replace_with="Acme Corporation")
   search_document(query="{{date}}", replace_with="March 15, 2026")
   search_document(query="{{project_title}}", replace_with="Website Redesign")
   

7. Handle headers/footers if they contained placeholders:

   set_header_footer(type="header", text="Acme Corporation — Website Redesign Proposal")
   set_header_footer(type="footer", text="Confidential — March 15, 2026")
   

Phase 3: Verify

8. Search for any remaining placeholders. Search for the pattern markers themselves:

   search_document(query="{{")
   search_document(query="}}")
   search_document(query="[INSERT")
   

9. If count > 0, you missed one. Read the document around that location and fill it.

10. Report to the user: List which placeholders were filled and how many replacements were made.

Handling missing values

If the user provides values for some placeholders but not all:

1. Fill what you can
2. Report the remaining unfilled placeholders with their locations
3. Ask the user for the missing values

Never guess placeholder values. If the user didn't provide {{phone_number}}, don't invent one.

Common mistakes

Mistake	Why it's wrong	Fix
Replacing placeholders one at a time without inventory	You miss some and don't know until the user spots them	Full scan first, then replace
Forgetting to check headers/footers	Placeholder remains visible on every page	Check and handle separately with set_header_footer
Not verifying after replacement	A partial match or encoding issue could leave remnants	Search for the placeholder pattern markers ({{, [INSERT) after all replacements
Guessing missing values	User gets wrong data in their document	Report unfilled placeholders; ask for values
Replacing too broadly	search_document(query="name") replaces the word "name" everywhere, not just {{name}}	Use the full placeholder string including delimiters