Ever since the release of the iPad, I have resolved to avoid printing documents of any kind on paper. With so many online and software solutions for creating managing, and reading documents, there’s little reason these days— especially in computer-centered environments—to use paper and ink. The website, SignNow and the ad-supported version of Sign-N-Send are two examples of how important documents can be signed and emailed without the need for ink and paper. Let’s check out their features.
SignNow
There are several online and mobile signature apps and services on the market today, but I don’t know of one that is as easy to use as SignNow.com.
First off there’s no online registration to go through. This site only requires your and/or recipient’s email for your signed document to be emailed to you or others. You simply click the Upload & Go button to import your document into the online web application.
I uploaded both a plain RTF document and a PDF, and each appeared in the online application without a problem. I would imagine that large multi-page documents might take longer to upload, but the site doesn’t indicate a page limit for uploading.
SignNow is so cool that it includes a “Try a Sample” document that you can use for practice. Now, here’s the catch, if you want to call it that: you are signing your document online using your computer mouse or trackpad. Thus, the signature is not going to be exactly how you might sign with a pen, nor will the print be as smooth.
I practiced signing with my mouse a few times until it matched as close to how my pen on paper signature would like. The results of trying to sign using my trackpad were not as good. But as the site points out, “Don’t Worry! Even if your signature looks weird, it’s still legally valid.”
The Try a Sample will give you all the practice you need. Just follow the instructions for drawing your signature. There’s also a Type Signature option that for many purposes could work just as well.
In addition, you can add typed text and a sticky note for telling a recipient of your document where to sign.
To complete the process, if you’re the only one signing the document, just provide your email address and the document will be emailed to you in PDF format. If you need a signature of one or more people, use the “Invite a Signer” option. For added security, you can include a password for the document you’re sending. You just need to let the recipient know the password.
Sign-N-Send
Sign-N-Send is a non-registration iPhone and iPad application that you can use for signing digital documents. To get a document for signing into Sign-N-Send you need to email it to your iOS device. As with other mail attached documents, you open the email, and then press and hold your finger on the attached icon. An option for opening the document in Sign-N-Send will appear.
Next, navigate to the page where it needs signing or filling out. Select the Pen tool at the top of the document. Select a pen color and write your signature with your finger or stylus pen.
You may have to practice a few times, so just tap the Eraser, Undo, or Clear button to erase pen marks and start over.
You can also select the Type tool to type text on the document as well.
Once you’re done, you can email the document, send it Dropbox or to another application that supports it, or print it wirelessly from your iPad.
Sign-N-Send also allows you to save and manage your documents for later use. You can also create documents with the application.
The free version of this app stamps your document with the Sign-N-Send ad at the top of the page, so if you like and need to use the app a lot, this free version is useful for testing. The non-ad version is $1.99.
Let us know what you think of these tools. If you have tried and liked similar online or mobile applications, please share them with our readers.
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