We are happy to announce that vTools.Meetings version 4.0 and vTools.Voting version 1.3 were released today.

vTools.Voting 1.3 is a maintenance release. It introduces the following changes:

– Look and feel compliant with the latest IEEE web presence guidelines.;
– Code compatibilty with Rails version 2.3.5;
– New version of the WYSIWYG editor (TinyMCE) used for composing email and election instructions;
– Fix for a logic flaw in email timing. In our help manual we instruct users to wait for one hour after election activation, before sending an email. This ensures that necessary mailing list has been created and email can be sent to it. When an email is sent to the voters before the mailing list is created, it never arrives. To prevent this from happening, the Voting system now enforces a rule of waiting for one hour after election activation before an e-mail to voters can be sent.

vTools.Meetings 4.0 is a major release that introduces a number of enhancements to the existing functionality as well as new functionality:

L31
– L31 form now has only those fields that are necessary for issuing L31 rebates and IEEE data mining;
– It is now possible to use existing L31 reports as templates for new L31 reports;
– E-mail summary sent to the form submitter now has full details of the submitted report;
– L31 search now allows custom searches based on key words, date ranges, organizational units, societies, etc;
– L31 search results can now be exported in a CSV format for further analysis in a spreadsheet (MS Office Excel, Open Office Calc, etc).

Payments user interface
– Payment interface now provides ability to specify and collect tax. This work allows us to run a credit card payment pilot in regions 8, 9, and 10;
– Payment interface now allows specifying zero price levels;
– Price level applicability is now clearly labeled;
– Quick online help on using payment functionality is now available directly from the payment setup screen;
– It is no longer possible to delete existing registrations or meetings with registrations. Intead, meeting organizer is now required to cancel registrations or the meeting to ensure data integrity;

General
– Calendar pickers are now of a pop-up “click to select” type;
– There is now ability for a meeting attendee to indicate that (s)he has special needs such as access or diet. Such requests are clearly marked on the registration statistics screen and described in a CVS data export file. Additionally, special requests are e-mailed to the meeting organizer as they are made;
– Registrations now have timestamps;
– IEEE logo is now compliant with the IEEE web presence guidelines;
– Printing name tags and meal tickets is now customizable;
– Calendar now has full support for .ics format;
– Payment functionality internal mechanism is now more robust;
– Security enhancements;

Bug fixes
– Internet Explorer no longer shows a warning on PayPal payment page about vTools image coming over unsecured http;
– Spelling errors.

You can provide us with your feedback on vTools.Meetings version 4.0 and vTools.Voting version 1.3 releases HERE.

Thank you,
vTools Team