Articles Guide

User Guide

BriefSpec

Introduction

Articles are BriefSpec’s Knowledge Repository. They capture what your team learned while resolving work—especially Service Requests and Defects—so the next person does not have to rediscover the same solution.

Each article has a unique Article ID, a title, rich content, optional tags, a status of Draft or Published, and an author. Articles can be linked back to the Service Request or Defect they came from, liked by teammates, downloaded as PDF or Word, and searched with AI when that feature is enabled for your workspace.

This guide explains how to open Articles from the sidebar, create knowledge articles from project work, browse and filter the repository, use AI Search, and manage an article through draft, publish, edit, and delete.

Accessing Articles

Open the main BriefSpec sidebar and select Articles (document icon). The menu item sits with other workspace modules such as Projects and Test Case Library.

You arrive at the Articles landing page for your tenant.

Who can use Articles

Users who can sign in to the Tenant and who have access to the Articles module can browse and read articles. Creating articles is done from a project Service Request or Defect using Generate Knowledge Article. Managing an existing article (edit, publish, change author, delete) is limited to the article author (or a user who has been assigned as author).

Creating Knowledge Articles

Articles are typically created from inside a project, not from the Articles sidebar list. The recommended path is to generate an article from a Service Request or a Defect after enough detail exists (description, resolution, comments).

From a Service Request

Open the project and go to the Service Requests area.

Open the Service Request you want to turn into knowledge.

Click Generate Knowledge Article (AI-assisted action on the Service Request screen).

BriefSpec opens the Create Article dialog, titled Create Article · From <Service Request ID>.

From a Defect

Open the project Defects area and open the defect.

Click Generate Knowledge Article.

The Create Article dialog opens the same way, linked to the Defect ID as the source.

Create Article dialog

When the dialog opens, BriefSpec uses AI to draft a knowledge article from the source record (title, description, resolution, and comments where available). While generation is running, wait for the draft to appear.

After generation completes, you can:

Preview — view the drafted article as readers will see it.

Edit — change the title, body, and tags in the rich-text editor.

Regenerate — ask AI to produce a new draft from the same source.

Save Article — store the article in the Knowledge Repository as Draft.

The generated article has

Problem Summary

Root Cause

Resolution

Verification

Notes

Tags

If an article already exists for the same source

If a knowledge article was already created for that Service Request or Defect, BriefSpec shows Article already exists. Generating again will override the existing article content, images, and tags. Choose Cancel to keep the current article, or Yes, generate again to replace it. When an existing Published article is overwritten, it is moved back to Draft so the new content can be reviewed before publishing.

Viewing and Managing Articles

From the sidebar Articles page you can browse the full Knowledge Repository for your workspace. The default view is the Articles tab (list). When AI Search is enabled for the tenant, a second tab labeled AI Search appears beside it.

List columns

The Articles table typically includes:

ARTICLE ID — unique code (for example ART-…). Click to open the article.

TITLE — article headline.

STATUS — Draft or Published. Authors can change status from the list.

TAGS — first tag shown as a chip; additional tags summarized as +N more.

SOURCE — linked Service Request or Defect display ID, when present.

VIEWS — how many times the article has been opened.

LIKES — count like or unlike

ACTION — Open, Edit (drafts you manage), Download and Delete (authors only).

Status filter and search

Use the status dropdown to show All statuses, Draft, or Published.

Use Search articles… to find text across the repository. Press Enter or leave the field to apply.

Open Advanced Filters for rules on

ARTICLE ID,

TITLE,

STATUS,

AUTHOR,

SOURCE TYPE,

SOURCE ID,

TAG,

CREATED DATE,

UPDATED DATE,

VIEWS, and

LIKES.

Combine rules with AND or OR.

Click a sortable column header (ARTICLE ID, TITLE, STATUS, VIEWS, LIKES, and others) to sort ascending, descending, or clear the sort.

Empty states

If no articles exist yet, the page shows No articles yet with the message: “Articles capture what your team learned so the next person does not have to rediscover it.” If filters hide everything, you see No matching articles with guidance to remove a filter or widen your search.

Publishing and unpublishing from the list

If you are the article author (can manage), the STATUS cell is a dropdown. Choose Published to make the article available as published knowledge, or Draft to move it back for further editing. Other users see status as a read-only pill with the note that only the article author can manage the article.

Likes and downloads

Click the thumbs-up control on a row to Like or Unlike. Anyone who can read the article can like it.

Click Download to export Download as PDF or Download as Word. Downloading does not count as a view.

Article Detail

Click an Article ID (or open from AI Search citations) to view the full article. Use Back to Articles to return to the list.

Preview and Edit

Authors can switch between Preview and Edit while the article is in Draft. Published articles are view-only until the status is changed back to Draft. Non-authors always see preview mode.

Preview — read the rendered article, tags, author, and metrics.

Edit — update Title, body (rich text), and Tags. Click Save when finished.

Images can be embedded in the body (image files only, max 10 MB each).

Status on the detail page

Authors can set Draft or Published from the detail toolbar. Publishing confirms the article is ready for the team; moving back to Draft unlocks editing again.

Change author

Authors can reassign ownership with Change author. Select another tenant user and confirm. After reassignment, management rights follow the new author.

Delete article

Authors can delete an article from the list ACTION column or the detail toolbar. Confirm the delete dialog to permanently remove it. Only the article author can manage (including delete) the article.

AI Search

When AI Search is switched on for your workspace, the Articles page shows an AI Search tab next to Articles. Use it to ask natural-language questions across your Knowledge Repository instead of scanning the list manually.

Indexing

Before answers are available, articles may need to be indexed. A banner may say that articles are being prepared, that indexing has not started yet, or “Your articles are indexed and ready. Ask anything below.” Indexing can start automatically; you can keep working while it finishes.

Asking a question

Open the AI Search tab.

Type in Ask anything about your articles… (or use Voice input where available).

Press Enter or click Send. While the answer streams you may see Searching your articles.

The assistant replies as Article Assistant and may list Reference articles. Click a citation to open that article.

Use New conversation to clear the chat, or Stop if you want to cancel a long answer.

When AI Search cannot answer

You may see messages such as:

AI search isn’t switched on for this workspace yet.

Your articles are still being prepared for AI search. This usually takes a few minutes.

I couldn’t find anything in your articles that answers this. Try asking it a different way, or add an article that covers it.

This workspace has used its AI allowance for now, so I can’t answer until it resets.

Article Lifecycle at a Glance

Draft — newly saved or returned for editing. Authors can edit content and tags.

Published — shared as finished knowledge. Content is view-only until moved back to Draft.

Liked / viewed — engagement metrics help the team see which articles are useful.

Downloaded — PDF or Word export for offline sharing; does not change status.

Tips for Good Knowledge Articles

Generate the article after the Service Request or Defect has a clear resolution, so AI has enough context.

Review and edit the AI draft before publishing—add screenshots, exact steps, and tags.

Keep titles specific (what broke and what fixed it) so search and AI Search work better.

Publish only when the guidance is accurate; use Draft while content is still being validated.

Reassign the author if ownership of that knowledge area moves to another teammate.