The KnowledgeTree service lets organizations manage and collaborate on documents, and specializes in collaboration within Microsoft Office. It offers features that documents anywhere; manage, co-author and share documents; make documents secure; and manage document lifecycles. The company says that it is interested in competing with the enterprise-oriented document management system offered by Box.net. The app also has have some similarities to cloud file sync provider Dropbox, and to document security service WatchDox, although security is not its primary focus.

The new Android app is part of a new release called KnowledgeTree Cloud 2.0. The app lets users:

• View, manage and securely access documents
• Sync documents between the cloud and the desktop
• Manage document workflow and versioning

The interface of the pre-release version of the Android app that the company sent me to try out is pretty bare-bones. You can search documents through the app’s search function, and view and edit documents using whatever tools are installed on your device; the app does not include a viewer.

Setup and security are not as friendly as I would like. The service seems to have separate passwords for the app itself, the KnowledgeTree account, and the cloud-based vault. Unfortunately, the app’s screens provide no explanation of what the differences are. It’s too easy to go back too many screens, and be forced to log in again. While I can appreciate the need for security, busy mobile workers will probably not appreciate multiple logins. Also, it does not appear to be possible to create a KnowledgeTree account from within the app; that must be done from the company’s website.

If your company is already using KnowledgeTree, of course, mobile access via the new Android app will be useful. If you are not a KnowledgeTree user, you can try it at no charge for 14 days. KnowledgeTree has several plans, beginning at $86 per month for 20GB of shared storage and unlimited users.

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Contract Templates and Wizards

The hardest part in getting contracts in place is the drafting of the agreement itself. Unless you already have a lawyer who has created your documents for you, finding the best template can take a lot of time and effort. No matter how good a contract template is, it’s rare to find one that perfectly suits your situation. The good news is that there are some useful resources that can do this for you at the fraction of a cost of hiring a lawyer. Do-it-yourself solutions such as FastDue and RocketLawyer are good places to start, and we’ve covered both of these in the past.

RocketLawyer has a collection of business legal forms ranging from consulting agreements to articles of incorporation. You fill out a simple questionnaire and a document is customized based on your answers. Other features include e-signature and the ability to collaborate on documents. Google Docs users can also use free RocketLawyer templates, but you’ll have to customize them yourself. If you want to know more about RocketLawyer, start by reading Imran’s review.

FastDue also provides templates for contracts and agreements, although not as many as RocketLawyer. One advantage, though, is the variety of forms on offer, including past due notices, invoices, expense reports, and receipts. The forms also include interactive messaging, allowing your clients and colleagues to make comments directly on the document itself.  The free service offered is enough for a freelance contractor, but you can sign up for the premium service if you want something more robust.  Thursday covered FastDue’s services in a previous article if you want to learn more.

Sending and Signing

Once you have your contract ready, it’s just a matter of sending it and having it signed. Some contract creation wizards offer free e-signature functionality as part of the service, but there are plenty of other e-signature apps. Here are some of them:

• EchoSign. There are two ways to sign a document via EchoSign. Users can simply type in their initials or, if they prefer an “old school” analog approach, they can print the document, sign it and fax it in. EchoSign can also integrate with Google Docs and Zoho Writer.
• DocuSign. Just like EchoSign, DocuSign is a web based e-signature service. Additional features include CRM integration the ability to embed your signable documents within your web site. It also offers mobile signing if you want to use your cell phone or BlackBerry.
• E-lock. E-lock has signature solutions for both the web and your desktop. The desktop application integrates with MS Excel, MS Word, and Adobe Acrobat.

For colleagues and clients who prefer a written signature rather than a digital one, you could send your contracts via online faxing solutions such as MyFax and eFax. To make the process easier, I just pull up one of my scanned signatures on file and paste it into the document. Then, I export the entire contract as a PDF and send it off as an e-fax, avoiding any printing on my end.

There are a couple of disadvantages to e-signing, however. Some people might not read their contracts thoroughly. To prevent this you should attach a note emphasizing the importance of reading the entire document or even discuss it on the phone paragraph by paragraph, if needed. Also, you need to make sure that e-signatures are legally valid in the states and countries where each signatory resides.

With all these available tools, we no longer have an excuse to take contracts for granted. Getting the right document and the necessary signatures is only a few clicks away.

How do you manage your contracts and other legal documents? What tools do you use?

Photo by stock.xchng user wagg66

Some new features on all the paid accounts include the denying people the ability to take a screenshot of any documents sent through Watchdox. I tested this out by trying to take a Skitch screen grab of a protected document, and it immediately went into “curtain” mode, blurring the content.

Another nifty new feature is the “Spotlight” mode which actually prevents anyone from taking a clear digital photo of a document when enabled. The company considers this an “extreme feature,” but it’s an effective one nevertheless. Documents protected with Spotlight look like they have colored vertical bars over them. Only a small portion of the document is “spotlighted” and readable at one time — the rest is illegible.

The company also continues to improve the document viewer, which now includes a “PowerPoint presentation slide mode” that you can toggle for easier document review.

Business accounts allow for multiple users on the same account, with a company-wide administrative function. Coming soon will be the ability for the administrator to add users, remove users and change individual permissions from a central management dashboard. Business level users can access a full audit trail of all users to pinpoint how a document has distributed using Watchdox.

There is currently an MS Outlook plugin so that you can send a document securely via Watchdox with just one click, and the Gmail add-on is pending.

Confidela says it is getting some traction from industries requiring high levels of document security including finance, legal, healthcare, and manufacturing, but emphasize the value of using Watchdox security for company price lists, client proposals, contracts and human resources documents, such as hiring offers.

In a nutshell, with Watchdox, you can control, track and protect your documents at a high level for $14.95/month (charged annually) for the Pro level for a single user and $29.95/month per user for a Business account, with a minimum of 10 users. For a business license covering less than 10 users, you can contact the company directly for a custom package. Larger custom packages are also available via the company. If you need to secure and keep track of documents, it’s a well-designed service, although I have to say that I haven’t incorporated it into my workflow yet.

How are you securing sensitive documents that you distribute online?

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