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# Adding a Send Text Message Task Step

## Where Should I Use a Send Text Message Step?

The Send Text Message tool is an Output category tool, therefore would typically be used as the last step of a task, or as near to end as can be.

Example

The following example shows a process flow using a Send Text Message step:

This could be from a school where parents are alerted to certain events, such as, a "snow day" or special assemblies.

The message contents are constructed in a separate file and placed in a nominated folder. The File System Event step is monitoring the folder, and triggers the task when a new file is created or modified. The Import Flat File step imports the file contents into a recordset. Because the Send Text Message tool can only consume documents and not recordsets, the Format as Text tool is used to convert the recordset first.

## Adding a New Task Step

To add a new Send Text Message step to an existing task, do the following:

1. Open the relevant task (for creating new tasks, see Creating a New Task).
2. Either:

|  | Click and drag the Send Text Message icon from the Task Browser to the task Design area.

|  | Click on the Environment tab in the Task Browser. Right-click on Steps and select New > Output > Send Text Message.

|  | From the task's Design tab, right-click on empty space and select New > Output > Send Text Message.

3. In the General tab, enter a Name and Description for the step.
4. If a data source is being used, select Read documents from a source, and choose a document from the Document Source drop-down.
5. Go to the Main tab.
6. Click To and choose message recipients (Select Recipients dialog box).
7. Select the type of text message to send:
   1. If the Message Only option has been selected in the Message Contents area, then the message can be typed into the Message text box. Recordset columns or variables can be dragged and dropped into the message from the Task Browser as required.
   2. If the Document Output option has been selected in the Message Contents area, then the message consists of the document or report from the chosen Data Source in the General tab.
8. If required, select Memory to define a Repository to memorise some or all of the recordset used by this step in the Memory Definitions dialog.
9. Go to the Options tab and choose the errors options required.
10. Click OK to save the new step and close the dialog box. An icon for the step is displayed on the Task Plan.

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