Squiz Labs Blog - The latest news from the R&D division of Squiz®

Squiz Matrix Newsletter #430

It's been a wet and windy week here in Sydney and we at Squiz Labs have been chilled to the bone. We've got the heaters on and the coffee machine is in overdrive!

Unfortunately, what we don't have is any new features or enhancements to report this week. Sorry!

This may possibly be because the Matrix dev team has developed a mild yet debilitating case of frostbite in their fingers, preventing them from coding to their usual lightning-speed standards... or, you know, it could be because of bug fixing, client work and other important commitments.

Whatever the case may be, be sure to check out next week's newsletter, as we'll have info on our June releases of Squiz Matrix and hopefully also some new functionality to report.

Until then, stay dry, Matrix aficionados!

Squiz Matrix Newsletter #429

This week we have two minor enhancements, including a new option on the Custom Form's Save as XML submission action to sort submission answers by form order. Continue reading below for more information on all this week's developments.

Save As XML Submission Form Action: Sort Submission Answers Option

Due for release in versions 4.14.3 (June 3rd 2013)

The Save as XML submission action on a Custom Form exports form submissions as an XML structure, allowing you to specify the XML type (simple or complex) and the submission details to store.

Previously, Squiz Matrix would order submission details on the saved XML file based on the asset ID of the form questions. This, however, may not be how the questions were sorted on the form.

This minor enhancement adds a new Sort Answers field on the Save as XML submission action.

When this setting is enabled, submission details will be listed in the order specified on the form. By default, this setting will be disabled.

Comma-Separated List of Addresses on Email Forms Within Matrix

Due for release in versions 4.14.3 (June 3rd 2013)

A number of assets throughout Squiz Matrix allow you to configure emails to be sent to your users, for example, on a Custom Form or the Send Email trigger action.

As part of this configuration, you are able to define the addresses that the email is sent to - this is done in multiple To fields.

Previously, these fields did not support multiple email addresses; only one address per To field was allowed. This could cause some potential issues when keyword replacements were used in these fields, returning more than a single email address.

This minor enhancement adds support for a list of comma-separated email addresses in each single To field during the set-up of an email within Squiz Matrix, including those returned on keyword replacements.

Squiz Matrix Newsletter #428

Have you had a chance to check out our May releases of Squiz Matrix yet? We launched our 4.12.6 and 4.14.2 releases earlier this week with some great new additions, such as a new PayPal Payflo Pro payment gateway in the E-Commerce package and a new option on the Custom Form to provide form content in an accessible format.

You can view the release blog post for more information on these releases, including patch notes, download links and installation guides.

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This week we have two new features to report, including the ability for public users to save incomplete submissions on a Custom Form. Continue reading below for more information on all this week's developments.

Custom Form: Allow Public Users to Save Form Submissions

Due for release in versions 4.16.0 (July 1st 2013)

Squiz Matrix's Custom Form allows logged-in users to Save and Exit their form submission, retaining the content of their incomplete submission, which they can return to finish at a later time.

Previously, however, this functionality was not available for public users. This feature extends the Save and Exit function to also include public users, allowing them to save the content of a form submission to complete later.

When a public user saves their submission and exits the form, they will be sent an email, containing a link to return to the form and a password, allowing them to access and complete their submission. 

This feature can be enabled and configured via the new Public User Incomplete Submission section on the Form Contents screen of the Custom Form's Form Contents asset.

The settings available allow you to configure the format of the Submission Retrieval Email for a public user, as well as the Submission Retrieval Message (displayed when the user Saves their form content) and Password Verification Form (when returning to a previously saved form).

Performance Improvement to system_integrity_invalid_links.php

Due for release in versions 4.12.7 and 4.14.3 (June 3rd 2013)

The system_integrity_invalid_links.php script within Squiz Matrix will remove significant links under a specified asset ID that are invalid, i.e. where one or both sides of the link do not exist.

Previously, this script used the following queries to trigger a full table scan of sq_ast, which was a potentially lengthy process.

SELECT * FROM sq_ast_lnk a WHERE a.minorid NOT IN (SELECT assetid FROM sq_ast)

UNION SELECT * FROM sq_ast_lnk b WHERE b.majorid NOT IN (SELECT assetid FROM sq_ast) AND b.majorid <> '0' 

$sql = 'SELECT count(*)
FROM sq_ast a
WHERE a.assetid NOT IN (SELECT minorid from sq_ast_lnk)
AND a.assetid NOT IN (SELECT majorid from sq_ast_lnk)';  

This minor enhancement modifies the queries within this script to utilise the index of sq_ast instead of scanning the full table, resulting in improved performance.

SELECT * FROM sq_ast_lnk a WHERE NOT EXISTS (SELECT assetid FROM sq_ast WHERE assetid = a.minorid)

UNION SELECT * FROM sq_ast_lnk b WHERE NOT EXISTS (SELECT assetid FROM sq_ast WHERE assetid = b.majorid) AND b.majorid <> '0' 

$sql = 'SELECT count(*)
FROM sq_ast a
WHERE NOT EXISTS (SELECT linkid FROM sq_ast_lnk WHERE minorid = a.assetid OR majorid = a.assetid);';  

Squiz Matrix Versions 4.12.6 and 4.14.2 Released

Our May releases of Squiz Matrix are now available for download. Versions 4.12.6 and 4.14.2  each contain some nifty new additions, so please be sure to check them out!

Please note that, as of last month, the Squiz Matrix site is no longer available. Release notes, installation guides and our VM download can now be found on the Squiz Matrix User Manual Library.

Version 4.12.6 of Squiz Matrix is the latest release of our 4.12.x branch, released late last year. This release contains two minor enhancements and twenty-seven bug fixes.

Squiz Matrix 4.14.2 is the latest release of our 4.14.x branch, launched earlier this year. This release contains eighteen new feature and enhancements, as well as twenty-nine bug fixes. Some of the features set to be introduced in these release include a new PayPal Payflo Pro payment gateway in the E-Commerce package and a new option on the Custom Form to provide form content in an accessible format.

• View the release notes for v4.12.6
• View the release notes for v4.14.2

These releases are currently available via the public CVS repository (http://public-cvs.squiz.net/). You can checkout these versions by running the checkout script as follows:

./checkout.sh mysource_4-12-6

./checkout.sh mysource_4-14-2

For more information on checking out from CVS, refer to the Squiz Matrix Manual Installation Guide.

The latest Matrix Automatic Upgrade scripts are also available for download on the Squiz site.

A fully functional evaluation of version 4.14.2 of Matrix is available for download on the Squiz Matrix User Manual Library as a virtual machine image. For more information on installing a VM image, refer to the Virtual Machine Setup Guide provided.

Please be sure to follow the relevant user guides when updating or installing your systems. 

Squiz Matrix Newsletter #427

Do you feel that chill in the air? We've moved into Autumn and are beginning to feel the start of that Winter chill. It's not quite gloves, coat and scarf time, but it's getting there! But don't fret, we've something that's sure to leave you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside...  new releases of Matrix, this Monday!

We're pretty excited with our upcoming May releases, versions 4.12.6 and 4.14.2, purely because they contain some really worthwhile functionality. Some of the features set to be introduced in these release include a new PayPal Payflo Pro payment gateway in the E-Commerce package and a new option on the Custom Form to provide form content in an accessible format.

Visit the Squiz Labs blog on Monday 6th for all the latest on both these releases, including download links, patch notes and more.

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This week we have one minor enhancement to report, the extension of our accessible Custom Form feature to also include security CAPTCHAs.

Custom Form: Accessible CAPTCHA

Due for release in versions 4.14.2 (May 6th 2013)

In issue #425 of the Squiz Matrix Newsletter, we reported on the new accessible Custom Form feature coming soon to Matrix. This new feature will give users the option of presenting accessible HTML on their forms and display questions in a semantic format, along with a number of additional accessibility features.

This minor enhancement extends this functionality to also include the CAPTCHA of a Custom Form.

When the Accessible Format option is enabled on a Custom Form, any enabled CAPTCHAs will present users with a new Use Accessible Validation option. Clicking this option will allow users to input their email address, to which a validation email will be sent. Clicking the link in this email will validate and submit their form.

Like the accessible format feature, this enhancement also extends to the eCommerce Form Page asset.