Quote Originally Posted by Antonio1986 View Post
Many thanks especially pushvv and it-ogo!
Because at my level I was not taught the "Preposition + тот, как " I couldn't understand many expressions.
I will not ask how "До того, как" or "перед тем, как" are translated? The translation is simply: "before".
Two conclusions:
1. The "До того, как" or "перед тем, как" are used when I want to combine ACTS that occured on consecutive time periods (ACTS = phrases including verbs).
2. I can also use the "после того, как" and I found the example in internet: "В Киеве мужчина угнал автомобиль соседа после того, как тот отказался его продать".
I don't know if there are other prepositions, except "До, перед and после" used with the form"Preposition + тот, как "?
Virtually any preposition.

You can think about it as following. Preposition requires an expression in some specific case (case gives an additional information). But verbs can't take cases so verbs are unacceptable immediately after a preposition. You have to transform a verb construction into something that can take cases.

Namely:
1. Produce a noun. She had left (immediately) before I arrived. - Она уехала перед моим приездом. - She had left before my arrival.
2. Make a complex sentence and use "то" (which can take cases) to connect clauses. She had left (immediately) before I arrived. - Она уехала перед тем, как я приехал. - She had left before the event that I arrived.

As far as I remember contemporary grammar classifies that constructions as conjunctions: "то, как", "то, что", "то, где", "то, куда" etc etc.

Examples with different prepositions.
Я думаю о том, как мы будем жить дальше.
Все указывает на то, что предатель - Филби.
Дело в том, что я тебя больше не люблю.