ODT Template Engine for PHP¶

The ODT Template Engine generates fully editable OpenDocument Text (.odt) files from PHP applications.

It combines LibreOffice-authored templates with PHP data, programmatically constructed ODT elements, and an addressable model for native named document structures.

Start here¶

Three complementary ways to make a document dynamic¶

1. Simple Template Processing¶

For simple values and lightweight template logic, place expressions directly inside the ODT template:

{{customer_name}}

{{#foreach:items}}
{{name}} – {{price}}
{{#endforeach}}

This keeps the surrounding structure in LibreOffice while PHP supplies values, conditions, and repeating data.

2. Structured ODT Construction¶

When PHP should own a dynamic content subtree, build native ODT elements and insert them into a placeholder:

use OdtTemplateEngine\Elements\Paragraph;
use OdtTemplateEngine\Elements\RichText;

$paragraph = new Paragraph();
$paragraph->addText('Generated from PHP', [
    'bold' => true,
]);

$richText = new RichText();
$richText->addParagraph($paragraph);

$template->setElement('content', $richText);

RichText, paragraphs, lists, tables, images, frames, and text boxes can be composed as native ODT structures.

3. Writer-native Document Model¶

When LibreOffice should remain the structural designer but PHP needs stable semantic handles, address named structures already present in the document:

$inspection = $template->inspect();
$bookmark = $template->bookmark('ApplicantName');
$experience = $template->section('ExperienceEntry');
$table = $template->table('SkillsTable');
$frame = $template->frame('ProfilePhoto');

The current addressable model covers sections, bookmarks, named tables, and named drawing frames. Supported operations are intentionally type-specific: named sections provide cloning and data-bound instantiation, bookmarks support bounded text replacement, named tables support bounded Writer-owned row population, while frame targets expose typed descriptors and participate in the bounded mapped image-replacement path.

See Addressable Native ODT Structures and Named Sections.

LibreOffice remains the visual template designer¶

The three models are complementary rather than competing. A professional document can keep page layout, stable tables, frames, styles, and repeatable prototypes in LibreOffice while PHP supplies values, generates genuinely dynamic subtrees, and instantiates named native structures.

A useful rule of thumb is:

Keep durable office-document design in LibreOffice. Move only genuinely dynamic structure and data into PHP.

Real-world examples¶

The canonical professional examples are ownership-oriented rather than chronological:

S01b Professional CV · Structured Template keeps page design, Frames, styles and repeatable native Sections in LibreOffice while PHP supplies application data and bounded generated regions.
S03 Structured Professional Report demonstrates Writer-native inspection, mapping, preflight and bounded automation against a professional report template.

Use the Sample Guide for the canonical L/C/B/S learning path and ownership-oriented examples.

The samples can also be executed through the public Sample Explorer.