

What’s in an Image?
The AMS Connect software has been used by many of our clients as a tool for managing employee data and information. With capabilities to tailor the software into a functional HRIS (human resource information system) system, users have the ability to convert employee personnel files from hard copies to electronic, creating confidential and personnel files for each employee, customized to that individual based on the documents stored (e.g., creating additional sub files as needed, such as a confidential medical files). We recently released an enhancement that allows the AMS Connect’s Database module Image Field types. This means that when you add this field, you can place the image into your list or record view just like you would any other field within your database. For example, if you were using the software as an HRIS system, when you attach this field to the record, you can upload an image for each employee, for each file you create for each individual to store employee information and documentation. When adding an image to a record in your database, you have the option to rotate the image as needed. The system can support any photo type (e.g., jpg, gif, png, bmp, etc.) and the site will automatically size the image to the maximum dimension of 1024. Not only is this new update advantageous when using the software for internal purposes such as employee files, but the new Image Field types allows you to further customize your client and customer’s data. Contact us today if you have any questions about this new feature or how to implement it into your own databases.
Home Page Enhancements
The ability to completely customize the extranet site, creating a tailored look and feel that directly reflects your organization, is a unique feature of the AMS-Connect software that is highly advantageous to our clients. With the opportunity to create a Home Page that includes colors, logos, fonts, and various other elements that are unique to the company, employees and clients alike can navigate securely through a site that truly feels like their own site.
We have recently applied several enhancements to the AMS-Connect software that have impacted the Home Pages of the intranet/extranet sites. This update adds the following capabilities:
- Image support;
- Home Page Content for the Site Home Page (not just the Workspace Home Pages); and
- Site Home Pages are now managed under Site Layouts so that different Home Page setting can be applied to different layouts (previously there was one Home Page setting for the entire site — note: that menu option is now gone).
Working with Home Page content directly through the site via online editing is now fully supported, though the legacy option of customizing your Home Page content utilizing a Word document is still supported.
Not only are these enhancements beneficial from an aesthetic perspective, the updates improve the process of tailoring your workspace customize your site aids in your branding, communicating to your customers and clients who you are and what you have to offer. With the ability to modify your workspace to match your organizations website, your customers have a sense of security which is a top priority of AMS-Connect.
Please feel free to contact us via email or phone if you have any questions regarding this update or how to apply the changes to your own Home Pages.
Custom Client Connection
We recently discussed the aspect of branding and how the AMS Connect software can help you establish and present your brand through our customized extranet site, resulting in the successful management of your business and providing a connection with your clients that is uniquely yours. Not only is the AMS Connect software completely brandable and customizable in this regard, it also allows you the opportunity to develop solid relationships with your clients and customers.
Strong client connections mean security. AMS Connect understands the need for your customers to feel like their data is safeguarded and protected by you. From an end-user perspective, your customers can relax feeling that when they retrieve or upload documents, or work on tasks utilizing our project management feature, they have never left software outside of the control of your organization.
This brandable and customizable aspect of our software provides you with a site that is under your complete control. From login credentials to the look and usability of the site, you can be the administrator of your own site. Unlike many file and collaboration sites, AMS Connect is branded to you rather than branded to whoever the site provider is. AMS Connect also gives you full power to manage the site rather than handing over risky security protocols to a faceless organization with unreadable end-user agreements.
AMS Connect’s top priority is your data security as well as the reliability of your customized site. All of this provides your clients with the security of knowing that you are working directly with them rather than with or through an unknown or potentially risky document sharing space.
Contact us today to see how our truly secure and customizable collaboration can help build your brand and relationship with your clients.
Version 6.7 is Coming
We are listening to you and regularly updating our secure extranet software accordingly. Our goal is to provide our customers the most secure, flexible and usable extranet software in the market. As part of this goal we are always looking for ways to improve not only the stability and security of the software but also the end-user experience. To that end we are in the final stages of beta testing of our latest version of the AMS Connect software. Listed below are some of the major enhancements you can expect to see once you upgrade your site to version 6.7.
- Drag and drop functionality – This functionality now allows for files to be dragged onto folders or document lists, or within the Add document screen for upload. From Add document, dropped files can also be removed before submitting to remove any inadvertently added.
- Additional “Display as” options – You are now able to select “Secure PDF” and “Image” within the document profile.
- Secure PDF option will allow the owner to apply a password to any document that can be converted to PDF (password will be available to users viewing the document).
- Image option will render the Document as a paged set of images for end users with limited permissions. This feature is an improvement over the former security of Adobe “FlashPaper” and will prevent downloading or copying the text from the document.
- Document Expiration Date – you now have an optional Retention setting (depending on your Workspace Preference setting) that would allow document to be automatically deleted from the system when that date elapses. Once your workspace is set up you can now select “Document Expires” with a “Document Expiration Date”.
In addition to the above enhancements, AMS Collaborator will be adding a complete update to the notes and discussion features within the AMS Connect software. Final testing and verification are expected to be completed by February 2017.
AMS Collaborator has scheduled two live demos for the new features at 9:00 AM Pacific Time on Tuesday January 17th and Thursday January 19th. The live demo is anticipated to take approximately 15 minutes. Please email info@ams-connect.com if you would like to join one of our demos.
Don’t forget to contact AMS Collaborator to schedule your AMS Connect site for upgrade.