SmartSearch 3.0 – What’s New?
Summary
The first question from our partners regarding this release has been, why 3.0?
With the last release being 2.3.1, it is a legitimate question as to why
we would make this jump in numbering. The answer is simple; the management
team at Square 9 Softworks all agreed that this release marked a completely
new direction for SmartSearch. The fundamental difference being that SmartSearch
3.0 now allows our clients to build on the core strengths of SmartSearch
as a content repository expanding fully into business process automation.
The cornerstone of this release is Work XChange, a powerful,
yet easy- to- use, workflow module which incorporates the same drag
and drop design interface
as our Capture Workflow. With the Work XChange option, SmartSearch now provides
conditional routing, notifications, escalations and data updates on documents
within the database. The opportunity for expanding workflow automation while
driving even higher investment returns is virtually limitless. Our Professional
Services Group is now working to assist our partners and customers with training
series’ for identifying high impact areas for improvement .
As has been our practice for many releases, SmartSearch 3.0
was developed with a strong emphasis on customer requested enhancements.
We regularly poll our
customer base to understand how we can improve SmartSearch to fit their evolving
needs. Examples of customer requested enhancements in version 3.0 include
features like Field Ordering, Column Sizing, Document Merging and the
ability to email
PDF files with an index field as a filename. Additional highlights include
a range of tools for enhancing the search capabilities within SmartSearch,
support for Windows 7 and support for 64-bit architecture on both client
and server operating systems.
Below you will find a full list of the features now available
in SmartSearch 3.0. We encourage everyone to take advantage of these
new features and to
continue leveraging the power of SmartSearch to automate your document
intensive processes.
The team at Square 9 would like to thank you again for your continued support
of SmartSearch. We look forward to hearing from you as to how we can help
increase the value of your investment.
Enhanced Search Capabilities
Root Level Searches – you can now create queries at the root
level of SmartSearch allowing you to search on content in any and all
archives with the results being presented in a tabbed interface.
Present Tabs with Results Only – with this feature enabled,
the results grid will only present tabs which represent archives where
a result was found. This eliminates the need to open each tab to determine
whether the search found a match.
Select Archives to Search – by permitting the user to select
the Archives to be searched, the ability to customize queries and generate
document reporting is greatly enhanced.
Multi Value Searching – if you have ever wanted to search on
multiple values within a single search prompt than this feature will
help you accomplish that task. A virtually unlimited number of values
can be entered into a single prompt (such as vendor name) and all matching
results will be returned.
Document Merging
An added boost to productivity is now available with the Merge
Documents feature. Any records within an Inbox or Archive can be
merged into a single record which can then be easily distributed.
Simply select the documents you wish to merge from the results grid
and click the Document Merge button. You will be prompted on where
the new document will reside and the merge will be initiated using
the index data from the first record selected as the index data for
the new record.
Field Ordering
A long requested feature has been added, providing a major enhancement
to the way the Field Catalog is presented during Archive creation or
modification. The new interface allows users to select fields from
the field catalog and reorder them using the provided up and down arrows.
Column Sizing
With the 3.0 release, columns within the result grid can be sized
as in previous versions but now can be saved per individual user
preferences.
Emailing a Record with a File Name
Records emailed from SmartSearch can now be named using an index
field for that record. Users can also use the default setting of square9-000.pdf
as the filename if a field value is not designated.
Document Views
The Document Views feature automatically sub-categorizes the contents
of an Archive based on a pre-determined field value (i.e. status) to provide
business intelligence. These fully customizable views deliver a quick “snapshot”
of document activity and can be easily exported to Excel for reporting
purposes.
Work XChange - Document Workflow
The SmartSearch Content Management suite now delivers a new tool
for document process automation through its Work XChange document workflow
component. As an optional module within SmartSearch 3.0, Work XChange
takes a graphical approach to creating and maintaining workflow automation
through a highly intuitive drag & drop
design tool featuring Workflow Activities.
Document Workflow activities include rules based:
User Initiated & Automated Workflow
Actions
Notifications & Escalations
Document Routing
Document Checkpoints
Metadata Updates
User Initiated & Automated
Workflow Actions
Work XChange features two types of workflows for process automation:
User Initiated Workflows require a physical “Action” by the
user to trigger an event. These fully customizable actions are integrated
directly
into the SmartSearch Document viewer and feature a conditional
display, which only presents Actions when a pre-determined criterion
is met. User
Initiated Workflows may also be executed from the results grid
allowing for the processing of multiple transactions.
Automated Workflows run in an unattended manner based on pre-determined
criteria. These processes require no user intervention and happen
automatically behind the scenes. Automated Workflows can be used in
tandem with User
Initiated Workflows to address a number of workflow activities
including:
Document retention scheduling
AP Invoice Routing & Approvals
Human Resources Credentialing
Participants
Users designated as part of the workflow process are defined as
participants within Work XChange. The participant may also be a group of
users or an individual who are selected for automated notification whenever
a workflow action is required. In the event a participant is out of the
office, a delegate can be defined so that notifications can be re-routed.
Notifications & Escalations
Work XChange provides automatic email delivery through SMTP based
on a condition being met. Outbound messages can be custom formatted and
even include embedded SmartSearch metadata within the message.
Document Routing
With this activity, documents are routed automatically to the
appropriate party based on either a user initiated action or a condition
being met. Documents can be routed based on a simple rule or more complex
rule with multiple conditions and actions.
Document Checkpoints
Document checkpoints search an Archive or Multiple Archives for
validation that all criteria have been met in order to initiate the workflow.
A prime example would be in a loan process
Has the loan application been received?
Has the flood certification been received?
Has the appraisal been received?
If all conditions have been met the document could be automatically
routed to underwriting to begin processing.
If all conditions have not been met the documents would
wait in queue with status notifications or escalations being managed
through Work XChange.
Metadata Updates
Metadata updates automatically change a field value based on a
condition being met. Metadata updates support both pick lists and date
math (i.e. Set Date Approved Field to @today).
SmartSearch v3.0 Technical Notes
Certifications
SmartSearch 3.0 is certified to run on the following Operating
Systems:
Server: Client:
Windows XP Professional (32-bit only) Windows XP Professional
(32-bit only)
Microsoft Server 2003 (32 & 64-bit)
Vista (32 & 64-bit)
Microsoft Server 2008 (32 & 64-bit)
Windows 7 (32 & 64-bit)
Database:
Microsoft SQL 2005 Express
Microsoft SQL 2005 Full Edition
Microsoft SQL 2008 Full Edition
Important Tech Notes for Version 3.0
Users running Windows Server 2003
On Windows 2003 server, the settings to allow SmartSearch to
work on 64-bit versions of this OS require a server change that will
make all
applications using IIS to run in 32-bit mode. Customers should
only make this change if they are sure that no other applications will
be impacted
by running in 32-bit mode. In layman’s terms, if you have
a 64-bit server running web applications on the 2003 server OS that requires
64-bit processes,
you cannot run SmartSearch on this server or it will not allow
the other applications to function correctly.
