Criterion provides a flexible tab-based system for working on multiple files simultaneously.

Supported file types:

• .critx (native Criterion documents)
• .pdf (view-only)
• Image files (.jpeg, .png) (view-only)

Tab Management Features:

Within a .critx document, you can organize critical content using up to 8 apparatus boxes, with specific type constraints:

Box type limits:

• Maximum one box each of: Inner Margin, Outer Margin, Section Notes, and Page Notes
• Up to four additional boxes of Critical type only

Adding boxes: Click the “+” button next to the apparatus area to add a new box (default type: Critical)

Vertical reordering: Apparatus boxes can be reordered vertically via drag and drop. This order is persisted across sessions.

Expand/Collapse: Each box can be expanded or collapsed using the toggle button on its title bar.

Contextual menu (accessed via the “⋮” icon) offers:

• Change Type: only available if the box is empty
• Rename: customize the box name (the type in parentheses cannot be edited)
• Hide: toggle visibility in the editor (content remains in the document)<note tip>Hiding an apparatus box does not exclude it from print preview, PDF export, or layout rendering.</note>
• Delete: removes the box and all its content (confirmation popup if text is present)
• Export: exports the box content to Excel
• Show/Hide Note and Comment Highlights: toggles visual highlighting

The main text is structured into four predefined sections:

1. Introduction
2. Table of Contents
3. **Critical Text** (mandatory)
4. Bibliography

You cannot:

• Add new sections
• Reorder sections
• Collapse or resize the main text area

Context menu (right-click in the main text) provides:

• Update Table of Contents: Manually refreshes the ToC based on current heading structure
• Insert Bibliography: Inserts all citations used in the document at the cursor position
• Toggle Highlights: Show or hide visual highlights for notes, comments, and bookmarks

When creating a new document, users can select from:

• Recent Templates: A list of templates recently used or created
• Blank Template: A default template with basic structure and user-defined styles

Warning: It is strongly recommended to create a backup copy before performing the “Change Template” operation. Doing so may result in irreversible data loss.

1. Go to **Format > Change Template**
2. Select the desired template
3. If the new template has fewer apparatus types, a warning will appear showing which content will no longer be visible
4. Confirm to apply changes (irreversible)

To save your current document layout as a reusable template:

1. Go to **File > Save as Template**
2. Or use keyboard shortcut: **Ctrl+Shift+S** (Windows/Linux) / **⇧⌘S** (macOS)
3. The template is saved as a .TML file (JSON format) in the Criterion templates folder

Templates include:

• Document structure and sections
• Paratextual elements (headers, footers, page numbers)
• Custom styles and formatting rules

Access layout configuration via:

• Creating a new document: File > New > Blank Layout > Continue
• Editing existing document: Format > Layout

Configure general layout settings:

Main Text:

• Number of columns: 1 to 4

Apparatus:

• Maximum: 8 apparatus sections
• Types available: Critical (default), Page Notes, Section Notes, Inner Margin, Outer Margin
• Apparatus sections are always displayed in one column (LaTeX constraint)

<note warning>LaTeX Limitation: If you set up multiple columns in the main text, we recommend avoiding apparatus boxes containing content referenced in the text. Due to technical constraints with the reledmac package, this combination may cause rendering errors in print preview.</note>

For global page settings, use File > Page Setup:

• Paper size and orientation
• Header/footer positions
• Document margins

Settings here override defaults and are consistent with Layout Setup configuration.