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UWI.com Keeps the Data With the Form

Liz Levy

Born of the Internet age and offering one of the most innovative products for e.forms is UWI.com (Victoria, BC 250-479-8334 www.uwi.com). The company's InternetForms makes use of XML (Extensible Markup Language), an emerging standard that supports online capture from electronic forms. XML offers advanced functions for organizing and exchanging information on the Web.

UWI.com bases their InternetForms product on an open protocol they developed called UFDL (Universal Form Definition Language). The latest version of their product combines XML into their UFDL to create a format they call XFDL. XML enables this new format to describe the structure and content of complex forms. UWI.com hopes to create a standard by gaining approval for its XFDL format from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

InternetForms was designed for use on the Internet since inception. Its features and price model make it ideal for pure Internet users with large client bases. However, the software is also designed to work on 32-bit client/server applications with the same functionality. The InternetForms Viewer is a thick client, and users must be running on Windows 3.x, Windows 9x or Windows NT platforms.

UWI.com developed UFDL and now XFDL to overcome some of the limitations of HTML when dealing with forms. XFDL can store the form layout together with the data in a single, more compressed file. This is different than HTML forms that use a form template and that keep data separate. Using the InternetForms API, users can also integrate the forms with other applications, such as digital signatures. This lets them create and verify digital signatures encrypted in a form.

Combining the presentation of the form, the data submitted and digital authentication in an open system will create a more legally binding transaction according to UWI.com, though there is no legislation to support this. UWI.com works with VeriSign, makers of a public key infrastructure (PKI) called OnSite for authentication and security of documents. The PKI uses technologies including digital signatures, encryption and digital certificates.

InternetFormsı Designer is used to create XFDL forms in a graphical WYSIWYG environment. Tools are provided for easy form design. Intelligence features are provided to help you instruct users and establish mandatory, validated fields.

InternetForms can interface with ODBC databases including Oracle, Sybase and SQL Server, however, separately priced modules are required. The InternetForms Link module gives users access to ODBC databases on the server. InternetForms Viewer Link provides this on the Viewer. InternetForms Access gives access to large legacy databases on the server.

Another optional module is InternetForms Path, which provides web-based workflow in conjunction with Action Technologiesı Metro Workflow.

Being geared toward the electronic world, UWI.com is lacking when it comes to printing forms to paper. If mass output back to paper is required, this is not the package for you.

UWI.com offers three flexible pricing options. The Unlimited Users Plan is based on the number of InternetForms Designers and the number of forms (starting at $3,000). The Unlimited Forms Plan is based on the number of InternetForms Designers and the number of users (starting at $1,500). The User Form Plan combines both plans. The number of InternetForms Designers, internal users and external form pages determines the price.

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For more information on XML, XFDL and other emerging file formats, go to the World Wide Web Consortium site at www.w3c.org. Specific information on the XFDL specification can be found at http://www.w3.org/TR/NOTE-XFDL and XML at http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-xml.
Sample XFDL forms from UWI.com can be found at their web site. Go to http://support.uwi.com/forms/. Download the InternetForms Viewer to see different examples of eforms.
UWI.com has commissioned a report by Cohasset Associates, a management consulting firm specializing in the management of hardcopy and electronic records. Entitled ıElectronic Commerce Forms: Requirements, Issues and Solutions,ı the report describes some of the legal and business issues that arise in electronic forms approaches. The report can be found at www.cohasset.com/uwi.

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VeriSign and UWI.com are working with the Internal Revenue Service to develop a pilot program to test electronic delivery of tax returns complete with digital signatures. The system will be based on VeriSign's Public Key Infrastructure. UWI.com's InternetForms technology will enable taxpayers to download a tax form, locally prepare it, digitally sign the form and then submit it directly over the Internet to the IRS. Go to http://www.fcw.com/pubs/fcw/ 1998/0831/fcw-newsirs-8-31-98.html for more information.