What is Log4j & how does it affect our products?

Log4j is an open-open source, Java-based logging utility that is widely deployed and used across a variety of enterprise applications, including many cloud services that utilize Apache web servers. The security vulnerability recently reported affects Java-based applications that use Log4j, of which we do not utilize during the development of our software.

The security of our products is a top priority and critical to protecting our customers. Our development teams can confirm that neither Apache, Log4j, or Java are currently utilized within any of our products, specifically DocStyle Convert (formerly DocStyle Desktop), the DocStyle Ribbon, NOVO Compare, PuR MetaData for Outlook, PuR MetaData Desktop, and the PuR MetaData Admin Panel.

What are we doing to protect our systems and customers?

We are reviewing the Apache Log4j Remote Code Execution vulnerabilities tracked in CVE-2021-44228 and CVE-2021-45046 and assessing any indirect impact it may pose to our products. We have reached out to our third-party providers, particularly production system applications and services, primary product licensing, development applications, and website hosting services to assess their status, threat readiness strategies, and mitigation techniques.

How can I keep informed?

At this time, we have not detected any successful exploit attempts in our systems or solutions. Since this is an ongoing investigation, security updates or mitigation efforts will be communicated as they become available via https://www.docstyle.net/blog/. If you would like to be notified when we issue new guidance, we recommend that you subscribe to notifications on our website to be alerted of any changes to this or future advisories.

Official PDF download available here.

Let’s Talk Custom Styles…

Introducing custom styles for DocStyle! Since our proprietary IFR engine can identify and group paragraphs together, we build our styles from scratch. Now for the first time, we can assign predefined style names. Whether using DocStyle’s Word styling automation or coming from PDF (never been done before), users can define their own custom style names for specific types of content.

DocStyle can customize style names for any of the paragraph types listed within the Automatic Styles group. This can be accomplished by editing the application settings prior to the automated processes found within the Desktop client or the DocStyle Ribbon.

Imagine for a moment selecting a contract in PDF format and converting it to a styled Word document based upon the naming conventions within your own firm style sheet. Simple and subtle, yet powerful!

Introducing Bi-Directional Styling!

By design, DocStyle builds the formatting found within paragraphs into the style directly. The style is then applied to the paragraphs, leaving the document looking the same. However, what happens if you want to change the look of the paragraph to accommodate your own organizational standards?

Now DocStyle can do just that! Utilizing Style Match within the DocStyle Ribbon, advanced functionality is unlocked, including uploading a firm style sheet.

Formatting already included within the uploaded style coming from your style-sheet can now apply to the paragraphs in reverse. In other words, your paragraph formatting inherits the look of the predefined style.

Organizations can quickly and easily standardize content found within a document without modifying styles manually. Having the best of both worlds available now, we continue our mission of adding even more real value to the DocStyle platform!

What’s so important about Styles anyway?

Styles are the heart and soul of Microsoft Word. Unfortunately, many professionals who use and rely on Word everyday don’t understand the complexities of how to utilize them effectively. Most professionals use a Word Processing application as if it were a fancy typewriter. Applying Styles to paragraphs provides a way to quickly manage and edit similar content within the file. As we say on our website, “If you’re not using Styles, you’re not using Word!”

In a perfect world, styling a document one time from scratch should solve all our problems! However, what happens when the document gets away from you? Did the Attorney insert new content themselves and if so, was that content even styled properly? Perhaps you received a file from another firm, and they styled the document with their own custom style naming conventions? Sending a client, a contract to review that has “Smith & Smith Body Text” defining the core paragraphs when your firm is Reed & Jones, P.C. is not exactly a good idea. Maybe you’re not looking to simply style the document, but change the look and feel of the paragraphs yourself?

These hypothetical scenarios happen every day and cost organizations significantly. Using styles properly is a critical component to timely editing and collaboration of electronic documents. The new features listed above and others developed within DocStyle are designed to return time to professionals. At DocStyle we’re constantly developing intelligent automation so you can focus on the quality of your content.

Today we’re introducing a new spin on a classic feature by building off the IFR engine powering DocStyle. Generating a Table of Contents has never been easier, and to do so using DocStyle does not require any advanced Microsoft Word or document processing knowledge.

DocStyle will analyze the paragraphs within your document and group them together. Our automation design approach delivers a quick and easy way to simultaneously style paragraphs and insert a TOC field code.

DocStyle’s IFR engine can tell the difference between a regular body text paragraph and a numbered paragraph which should belong to a multilevel outline numbering scheme. By interpreting the formatting within the document, DocStyle can group together a list of similar paragraphs from which to choose.

In the past generating a TOC from scratch would require a user to apply styles to paragraphs within the document prior to generating the TOC. The Table of Contents would then be generated from the styles.

There have always been a few primary challenges with this process.  First, this skill-set has traditionally been reserved for power users and document processors.  Second, it takes a lot of time to build styles properly in a document before you can create a TOC.

By using DocStyle to generate a TOC, you are putting all the heavy lifting onto the software in order to connect the respective paragraphs of your document.  With DocStyle end users can create a TOC by using preexisting styles or from formatting directly.

Using our brand-new TOC feature located on the DocStyle Ribbon, all paragraphs selected will be automatically styled. End users are not required to style the document first, DocStyle will build formatting into the style for you, just as if you were styling the document from scratch!