For those of you using the Chrome and Firefox browsers, you can now drag and drop files directly from your Desktop to Dialawg -- right in your browser! And if you have D-Drive enabled, you can upload multiple files at once.

This initial release introduces Forms as an extremely powerful, yet simple way of collecting organized information when security is a concern. Like everything else at Dialawg, we take all sorts of steps to protect your security including encrypting all transmission and storage. With Dialawg Forms you can collect sensitive information in a structured way that includes field validation as well as powerful reporting to view collected data in tabular form. Here are the big points to take note of:

• Everything is secured through our sophisticated infrastructure (HIPPA compliance and more)
• Users can attach any number of files to their submission, and you can provide validation rules
• Display headlines, instructions, textboxes, radio buttons, and more
• Provide validation rules for fields
• Send form requests to anyone (even without a Dialawg account)
• Send form submissions to anyone (even without a Dialawg account)
• Place forms on your Front Desk to collect data via a public link (take my example pop quiz)
• API fully supports both form requests and form submissions

Dynamic Forms Platform

Things get really cool when you get your hands a little dirty. By providing Dialawg with a public URL that can handle data posted as XML, your form can be ridiculously dynamic:

• Display different fields based on who is filling out your form
• Change your fields on-the-fly as the user makes their selections
• Route submissions to specific individuals based on field selections
• Accurately record how long it took a user to complete a form
• Perform complex, server-side validation of form data

Future

As we move forward, we expect to provide tools to make building forms easier. Currently, forms are built using a simple XML schema.

Learn more about Dialawg Forms. Take my example pop quiz, or try my sample choose-your-own-adventure.

Bug fixes in v3.5:

• Fixes to canceling an upload and then starting a new one
• Fixed confirmation dialog that was displayed when hitting ENTER in the file name textbox when uploading a file
• Fixed alignment of "remove" links for attachments in Front Desk

With our auditing capabilities and activity reports you can quickly see who has yet to view your file or message, but now you can go one step further and send your recipient a reminder notification. This even works when you send to out-of-network recipients (that is, recipients who do not have a Dialawg account).

Anyone who needs to send you something sensitive (passwords, tax documents, contracts, etc.) can quickly do so through our high-security infrastructure. Those Dialawg users who have upgraded to our D-Drive or Pro accounts can choose a vanity link as well as have the option to display their employer's logo at the top of the page. As we take privacy very seriously, Front Desk is disabled by default.

So the next time you need to collect information from your client or a social security number from your spouse, please don't use email; just send them to your Dialawg Front Desk page!

Try it now and send me a note: https://www.dialawg.com/me/colinmathews

The "Sent D-mails (Unread)" report displays a listing of which recipients have not marked your sent items as read. This will help you stay on top of folks who have not responded to your items. This report even provides you with a link to each d-mail and our new "send reminder" link (which we'll blog about soon) allows you to notify each recipient individually.

The "Recent Weekly Activity" report gives you a quick peek into your account. A history aggregated over the past several weeks shows Vault activity, login frequency, and the number of raw kilobytes that you have uploaded.

We made a quick mention of this feaure last week, but to nail it home we thought we'd give you some more details.

The problem
When using Outlook, your iPhone, or other mail programs to receive/send secure dmails from your Dialawg account, you may be used to clicking "Delete" to get rid of an item--or similarly, when connecting via D-Drive (by FileZilla, for instance). Because Dialawg's primary use is for highly secure documents and notes, and because we store file revisions, comments, etc. with each of your items, we have disabled the delete feature by default. This way no one accidentally trashes important data or old revisions of files. This is a particularly nice safeguard for folks who accidentally delete an entire folder of items.

Solution
The first solution we might suggest is, don't worry about deleting dmails. Each Dialawg account gets a generous space allotment, so you might not need to every worry about deleting an item again!

But I really want to delete some dmails
Ok, ok, we hear you.  If you're an advanced user who fully understands the risks of using the "Delete" feature of various programs such as Outlook, FileZilla, etc., you'll be pleased to know that you can enable this option. Log into Dialawg.com, click "Settings," and then "Applications." From here you can enable delete commands for Mail access, D-Drive access, or both. 

From your vault in Dialawg, you can now easily compare any two chunks of text. Just open the "More" menu, select "Compare Text" and enter the two different texts to compare. A new window will launch where you will be able to compare and merge the changes and then optionally save the document to your vault as a *.doc file.

I find this particulary handy whenever collaborating on text that gets slightly changed by multiple people. Just copy-paste the text from anywhere and compare the differences!

Note: every new Dialawg account gets unlimited comparisons during their free trial; comparing text and files is only then available on the D-Drive or Pro subscription plans.

Another small, but strong release focuses on some minor improvements and a few nice features.

Features:

• Audit logs for deleted dmails (see below)
• Now our comparison engine (powered by TextFlow) allows you to quickly compare two chunks of text: just copy-paste and click 'Launch Comparison'
• Preferences are now enabled to allow deletion when connecting via mail programs or D-Drive. Deleting dmails is permanent and also deletes any previous file revisions and comments, so we want to be sure it was intentional. By default, you cannot delete dmails when viewing in Outlook, iPhone, FileZilla, etc. Under Settings > Applications, you can now enable deletion if desired.
• Matter folders in D-Drive now allow sub-folders
• Document comparisons are now launched a bit more smartly based on the browser you are using (fullscreen is no longer being used in Internet Explorer to minimize confusion when you end up wanting to just close the window)
• A note when uploading files is now displayed explaining that the uploader may hang at 95% while the encryption process completes

Bug Fixes:

• Fixed a major problem with our server in not always sending out emails correctly

Feature: Deleted Dmail Audit Logs

Whenever you delete a dmail, we save a PDF of the audit log for your convenience. All dmail-specific data has been cleared aside from the title, but you can view dates and actions that were taken. These audits can themselves be easily deleted if you desire (specifically useful for folks with very strict data retention policies). 

As promised, D-Drive now has the power to quickly share files with others. This is a super cool feature that will really save you time. Before we get into that, I'd like to list the changes in this release as we usually do:

Features:

• D-Drive share folders (see below for details)
• Compare/merge/edit with TextFlow now has better crash support so that you don't lose your work in the event of a server error

Bug Fixes:

• Downloading files from the "messages-backup" folder failing
• User registration problems when the user's business has not yet been verified
• Corrected recipient list on self-destruct notification emails to include customers without Dialawg accounts

D-Drive Share Folders

In your D-Drive settings you can now create as many share folders as you like. Each share folder has a name and a list of recipients. Your recipients can be other Dialawg customers, or people without accounts (just enter their email addresses). 

In your SFTP client (FileZilla, etc.), you will see these folders under your "share" root folder. Dragging files into this folder will automatically share them with the recipients you selected when you created that folder. They'll each receive your file on the Dialawg website, their iPhone®, Outlook®, via email notification, or any of the various ways that you can connect to your Dialawg account. 

If your client uses D-Drive, they can create their own share folder for sharing files with you. Now you can each drag files back and forth with each other in a highly-secure and efficient environment!

Example Uses:

• Create a folder "Accounting" and share quarterly reports with your entire accounting department
• Create a folder "Samuel Jones" and share case documents with your client 
• Create a folder "Smith Family" to make sure everyone in the family has access to important documents 

More info on D-Drive is here: https://www.dialawg.com/info/DDrive.aspx

When sharing highly sensitive files and notes with others, Dialawg understands the common need for that data to expire. That's why we created self-destruction options. After sharing a d-mail, simply select an option from the "Self-Destruct" list to have your item be permanently destroyed after 5, 30 or 90 days. You and your recipients will receive an email notice about 24 hours before destruction and another after the item has been destroyed. Only you as the sender can set these options (self-destruct options are also available via the API).

On-Demand Self-Destruct
If you want to destroy a d-mail for your recipients at any time of your choosing, you'll want to check the box to "reserve on-demand self-destruction" or set your preferences so that this option is always enabled. Your recipients can easily see that you have reserved this and know that the item could be destroyed without notice.

Difference Between Delete and Self-Destruct
The "delete" function within Dialawg is personal to your account. So, if you have shared a file with a friend and choose to "delete" the d-mail from your account, your friend will still have access to the file. This is how self-destruction is different: it permanently destroys your d-mail for all recipients.

One Pro-tip on this matter: if you as the sender "delete" a d-mail before your recipients mark it as read, then your deletion acts as a self-destruct. That is, it is permanently destroyed and your recipients will no longer have access. This is nice for those uh-oh moments when you wish you hadn't clicked send.