Overview
A Library manual can hold more than one PDF and can be split into named page ranges. Versions are the PDF files of a manual; each can be limited to certain Location Groups. Sections are named page ranges, such as Brake system, that a Checklist question can open instead of the whole manual.
Together they let one Library entry serve many questions and sites without duplicate manuals. This article covers how Versions are chosen, how to set up Sections, and what happens when you change them. For the basics of the Library, see Creating and managing your Library.
At a glance |
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Who can do this | Super Users, or a Role with Manuals and Directories › Create (which includes View, Modify and Delete for your own content) |
Where | Library › a manual › Sections and Versions |
Works on | Backend (web) to set up. Versions and Sections open in the Mobile app and on RideOps. |
Availability | All organizations |
💡 Why this matters: Operators shouldn't scroll through 400 pages mid-inspection. A Section opens exactly the pages a question needs, and keeping every file of a document in one manual means an update reaches every linked question at once.
How the pieces fit
Term | What it is |
Manual | The Library entry, such as Coaster X Operator Manual. Checklist questions link to it. |
Version | One PDF of the manual, with a Version Name and an optional Limit To (Location Groups). |
Section | A named page range, defined once on the manual and shared by all its Versions. |
Section mapping | The Start Page and End Page of a Section in one Version's PDF. Mobaro saves those pages as a separate PDF. |
How a Version is chosen
Versions are chosen by Location Group only. A Version with no Limit To (Location Groups) applies everywhere; a limited one applies only where one of its Location Groups matches.
On a Checklist question: the app offers every Version with no limit, or limited to a Location Group containing the Checklist's Location. If more than one applies, the user picks.
In the app's Library: users see Versions with no limit, or limited to a Location Group containing one of their Locations. Super Users and Roles with Manuals and Directories › View see every Version.
On RideOps: Resources & Manuals shows the Versions matching the ride; where more than one applies, the user chooses with Select Version.
Versions without an uploaded file are skipped. For the user's view of all this, see Finding and using Library content in the mobile app.
⚠️ Heads-up: Mobaro doesn't pick a Version by the user's language or Role, and a Version can't be limited to Roles or User Groups. To keep a document from some people, put it in a separate manual in a folder published only to them — see Use permission folders in the library.
Set up Sections and Versions
1. Add the Sections
Open the manual in the Library. Under Sections, click Add Section for each part you want to link to, and enter a Section Name, such as Pre-opening checks or Emergency procedures.
2. Add a Version
Under Versions, a new manual already has one Version; click Add Version for more. Enter a Version Name, choose Limit To (Location Groups) if the file only applies at some sites, and upload the PDF under Upload File.
3. Map each Section
Click Edit Section Mappings. For each Section, enter the Start Page and End Page in this PDF and click Generate. Use Preview File to check the pages and Reset to redo one. Then click Accept Changes (the check mark).
4. Repeat for each Version and save
Map the Sections in every Version: page numbers often differ between files, for example between languages. A warning icon, Not all mappings are completed, marks a Version with Sections still unmapped. Save the manual.
To link a question to a Section, open the question in the Checklist editor, click Add Manual in its Manuals section, pick the manual and choose a Section or The Entire Manual. The question can't choose a Version.
What happens when things change
A Section isn't mapped in a Version: questions linked to that Section open that Version's whole PDF instead.
You replace a Version's PDF: its Section files are cleared and Section Mappings opens with the old page numbers. Check them and click Generate for each Section again, or questions open the whole file.
You delete a Section: questions linked to it now open the entire manual.
You delete a Version: its PDF is no longer offered anywhere.
🛑 Critical: Deleting a Section or a Version can't be undone. Questions linked to a deleted Section lose their page range, and you'd have to relink each one. To update a document, replace the PDF in its existing Version instead.
Limits
Manual files must be PDFs (Only PDF documents are allowed).
Password-protected PDFs can't be split into Sections. Remove the password before uploading.
Manual and Version names can't contain . / @ : ; or ~ (Cannot contain special characters).
A Section is one continuous page range. The End Page can't be before the Start Page, and both must exist in the PDF (Page numbers are out of range.).
Examples
Jump to the right pages. A 400-page water ride manual gets Sections for Morning startup, Restraint check, Pump system and Emergency evacuation. Each Checklist question links to its Section, so the operator lands on pages 87–92 instead of scrolling.
Different sites, different files. Two parks run the same ride model with different control systems. The manual has one Version per park, each limited to that park's Location Group, with Sections mapped in both. One set of Checklist links serves both parks.
Several languages. Upload a Version per language with a clear name, such as English v3.2 and Spanish v3.2. Where each language is used at different Locations, limit each Version to those Location Groups; where both are used at the same Location, users pick the one they want.
Best practices
Replace the PDF in the existing Version when the manufacturer sends an update, rather than creating a new manual or Version, so every linked question stays current.
Map every Section in every Version, and regenerate them after replacing a PDF.
Keep Sections to ranges an operator would otherwise have to hunt for; a Section covering the whole document adds nothing.
Keep one manual per document, not one per language or site.
Name Versions so users can tell them apart when more than one is offered.
Frequently asked questions
What do you use sections in the Library for?
To open only part of a manual. A Section is a named page range, such as Brake system. Link a Checklist question to it and the app opens just those pages, as a smaller file, instead of the whole PDF.
How do start and end page work when splitting a manual into sections?
They're the first and last pages of the Section in that Version's PDF, counting from the file's first page. Enter both in Edit Section Mappings, click Generate and check the result with Preview File.
How do I choose which version of a manual a question opens?
You can't. A question links to the manual and optionally a Section. The app offers every Version whose Limit To (Location Groups) is empty or matches the Checklist's Location; if several match, the user picks.
How do I update a manual with a new PDF?
Open the manual and the Version, click Remove on the old file and upload the new one. Section Mappings opens: check the page numbers, click Generate for each Section, accept and save. Every linked question then uses the new file.
Can I limit a version to a Role or User Group?
No. Versions can only be limited to Location Groups. To restrict who gets a document, put it in a folder published only to those people — see Use permission folders in the library.
Can a section cover pages that aren't next to each other?
No. A Section is one continuous range. For pages 10–15 and 50–55, create two Sections.