Welcome to the EPC Group SharePoint 2010 training guide.  This guide is designed to help the SharePoint 2010 user audience become familiar with the new SharePoint environment.  This training manual covers all of the basic concepts that your organization will need to know in order to become a productive user of SharePoint 2010.  As you complete the Training Guide, remember to apply the concepts you have learned to your own work

This course assumes you have a basic understanding of Microsoft Office applications and familiarity with navigating web sites.

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

·         Understand the purpose of SharePoint 2010 within EPC Group (Your Organization)

·         Identify the various components on a EPC Group SharePoint page

·         Browse and navigate a SharePoint site

·         Set up a SharePoint site, adding and modifying content

·         Create and manage SharePoint alerts

·         Add, edit, and delete documents contained in the document library

·         Work with document versioning

·         Modify and create columns

·         Create views

·         Work with discussions and surveys

·         Assign user roles and permissions to site users

·         Manage and monitor site settings

·         Customize your Site

Follow through each of the exercises in the Training Guide and allow time to practice each topic on your own. 

This Training Guide is yours to keep.  Please add your own notes if you wish.  This workbook contains valuable information you can refer to at a later date.

Each page in your book is divided into sections.

The CONCEPTS section explains the topic presented in that lesson.  Each new feature will be shown in CAPS AND BOLD.  If two words are shown separated by a comma (e.g., FILE, OPEN), the first one is a menu title on the menu bar, and the second one is a command listed on that menu.

All exercises to be completed are in the PRACTICE section in bold text, with the appropriate keystrokes listed.  Text to be typed appears italicized.

At the bottom of many of the pages, you will find NOTES.  These notes give you additional information about the skills, including information not in the manufacturer’s manuals.

You may use this Training Guide in several ways:

1.       As a learning tool during class. 

2.       As a Quick Reference Guide.

3.       As a self-study course workbook.

The following documents are referred to in this Reference Guide.

·         SharePoint Best Practices for Site Owners (see also Appendix B)

·         SharePoint 2010 Glossary (see also Appendix A)

·         File Types that Cannot be used in SharePoint 2010 (see also Appendix C)

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to understand the concept of SharePoint 2010 and its uses.

·         Why use SharePoint

·         What is SharePoint

CONCEPTS:  The Features provided in SharePoint 2010 allows your company to quickly respond to the fast pace at which business needs change. Utilizing SharePoint 2010 employees have the ability to streamline communication in a collaborative atmosphere, saving time and resources.

With the wide usage of the internet, e-mail, PDAs, and smart phones, there is no shortage of methods for transmitting and sharing information, and there is certainly no shortage of places where information can be stored.  In fact, many associates report that they are often overloaded with the amount, relevance, and disparity of information that comes to them daily, and that it is a challenge to find the right information at the right time.

Because e-mail is so familiar and accessible, teams often make use of it for managing and collaborating on documents.  This can result in difficulty tracking and managing multiple versions of documents sent via e-mail, difficulty finding information that resides in multiple inboxes, maxed-out storage capabilities, and a strain on corporate servers.

In addition, with the various options available to associates for storing and publishing information, it can be difficult to know which tool to use when sharing, storing, and archiving information.  For example, network drives and email each with their own benefits and purpose, are not intended to meet the needs of team members working together on draft documents.  Multiple teams, global locations, different preferences and working styles across groups, and complex communication needs all necessitate a comprehensive system for document management and collaboration that will scale to meet the needs of these diverse teams.

CONCEPTS: Let’s look at the solutions SharePoint provides for using features designed specifically for collaboration, document management, and information access – features that complement and round out the tools already in place at your organization.

Key Concept:	Explanation:
Collaboration       Keep teams and departments in sync.	SharePoint encourages collaboration between team members by creating a user-friendly and easy-to-use environment where people can share calendars, task lists, documents, issues, and discussions.
Content Management         Make it simple to author and manage content and documents.	The content management tools include document libraries, document check-in and check-out capabilities, automatic version control, and integration with Microsoft Office software.  Due to the capabilities of SharePoint to provide a high-degree of structure and organization to information, you can easily locate documents that are most relevant to your team using the intuitive search tools.
Team Productivity         Increase team self-sufficiency and effectiveness.	Associates will find that team productivity increases because they are always up-to-date with the most current happenings, document versions, and deliverables.  SharePoint users become more efficient in sharing and retrieving information than non-SharePoint users.
Information Security       Make the right information available to more people.	Associates are in control of the security of the information within their SharePoint sites.  People designated as “Site Owners” have the ability to grant users broad access to the site or specific access to items within the site.

What is SharePoint

CONCEPTS:  With SharePoint 2010 having so many capabilities, this can be a challenging question. SharePoint 2010 is best described as a business collaboration portal or platform. SharePoint is able to accomplish an enormous number of scenarios for companies of any size in any industry.

SharePoint has the capability to be used as a web content management system for structured and branded corporate intranets and or rich internet sites. It can be used as a quick flexible solution in creating ad hoc sites and can also be used as a business intelligence front end with rich dashboards, charting and graphical capabilities.

Another valuable use for SharePoint is its records management system with policies that have to comply with regulations such as 508 compliance. It can be used for informal document sharing spaces to put content to be collaborated on in an unstructured manner.

SharePoint can also be used as a search solution for sites in an intranet, documents within an organization, and business data stored in a range of different systems. You can use SharePoint to search multiple systems, surfacing the results in a single interface that will be familiar and easy to use for anyone who’s used internet search engines. On top of that, SharePoint’s people search capabilities can be used to connect to subject matter experts.

SharePoint can be social networking product. If the thought of social networking inside a business scares you, it can be a business networking solution. It allows people to follow the work their colleagues are doing and keep up to speed with activities of shared interest.

SharePoint can be used as a project management foundation, providing task list and organization elements so that people can keep up to speed. It can also be used as a portal for a full-blown project management solution using Microsoft Project. It can be used for formal projects or to allow people to collaborate and interact in a fun and informal manner.

SharePoint can be a framework for building line-of-business applications or for surfacing other applications. It can be used for business process automation and simplifying data entry through the workflow and electronic forms capabilities.

SharePoint can be a portal for surfacing existing applications or allowing employees to access information in a range of sources. It can be a portal for new, highly-interactive Silverlight applications. It can be a portal into the organization for partners and customers.
 

CONCEPTS:  In a nutshell, SharePoint is essentially a collection of team collaboration web sites.  These sites are structured in a virtual hierarchy, with the organization’s PORTAL Home page acting as the top of the hierarchy and the entry point to all other sites.  As sites are created, they are organized hierarchically within a SITE COLLECTION.  A site collection is made up of one TOP LEVEL SITE and can optionally include SUBSITES and WORKSPACES below the top level site.

When requests are submitted to SharePoint Application Support for a new site to be created, a top level site is built.  If you create additional sites below this top level site (sometimes referred to as the parent site), you are creating subsites (sometimes referred to as child sites or web sites).  Your top level site and any subsites or workspaces created below the top level site constitute your site collection.

The site structure will determine the WEB ADDRESS (i.e., URL) for a site, which can be used to access a site within the Citrix browser.

Site Type:	Sample URL:
(Example) EPC Group Intranet Portal	http://intranet.epcgroup.net
(Example) Top Level Site	http://intranet.epcgroup.net/sites/hr
(Example) Subsite	http://intranet.epcgroup.net/sites/hr/expenses

 

Section Two:  Getting Acquainted

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

·         Use the Company Portal

·         Search for information

·         Use the Site Directory

·         Understand the parts of a SharePoint site

·         Navigate in SharePoint

·         Understand the use of Web Parts

 

CONCEPTS: The SharePoint 2010 portal home page is the gateway to SharePoint sites that are listed throughout the site.  Through its search capabilities, links, and site listings, the Portal offers a unique experience by compiling and organizing information from disparate sources into one easy-to-use interface. 

- The first item of note is the new look and feel of SharePoint itself in 2010.  Here's what the home page of a Team Site looks like:

- The pagewelcomes you to the SharePoint Portal with important information for getting started.  You will find links that help you find a site and obtain additional information to help you begin your day using SharePoint in your daily work routine.

- Clicking within the tabdisplays a Search page, which givesyou tools for finding information across sites. You can search for sites within the Portal as well as for content within sites. The search page returns results in a format that allows you to sort and filter the information.

CONCEPTS:  Most company’s today face the common issue of having information in multiple locations throughout the company. To help resolve this issue SharePoint 2010 Search provides an interactive and visual search experience. Visual cues help people find information quickly, while refiners let them drill into the results for insights.

You can perform either a SIMPLE or an ADVANCED search, depending on how specific you want to be about your search results. 

STEPS                To perform a simple search of the Portal:

1.       On the Portal Home page, click on the  tab.

2.       Type the search criteria in the Search box; e.g., type policies to display a list of files or sites containing the word. 

3.       Click on the , or press ENTER.

4.       View your search results.  Search results are listed with the name of the item returned along with the author, the date the item was last modified, and a view of sections in the item containing the entered text.

5.       To open a particular item in the results list to which you have security access, click on its title 

NOTES:  As you can see above, you are able to re-sort the search results by the Result Type, Modified Date, Author, or Site by clicking within the quick launch bar.

CONCEPTS             Prior to working with a site’s contents, let’s take a look at the basic layout and elements of a typical SharePoint site.  Most SharePoint sites will initially have a common look and feel.  Standard site templates are used to create new sites to ensure that all sites include some basic elements consistent across SharePoint sites, and to allow for easy navigation and organization of information.

The HOME PAGE is the main landing page of a SharePoint Portal, which typically contains several distinct areas and may vary from one organization to the next, but generally all have:

·         Title of site

·         Top Links Bar located at the very top of a SharePoint page

·         Quick Launch Bar located on the left-hand side of the page

·         Content area which occupies the majority of the page

·          drop-down menu (not always available to all permission levels)

·         Search Tools located in the upper left of the site screen

NOTES: The title of the site appears on every page, displaying in different locations above the content area

 - You can create your own list of “favorite” links by tagging them with Social Ribbon controls via the I Like It and Tags & Notes buttons above search.

Orientation to a Site

CONCEPTS:  The CONTENT area of a Home page is the main body of the page.  This section contains the elements of a site that will be used to facilitate project collaboration or information sharing; e.g., announcements, events, links, etc.  As you navigate to different pages from the Home page, the subject matter of a site’s content area constantly changes to reflect that page’s focus.  Sometimes the content of a page may display a single item; e.g., a discussion board page which only allows you to perform tasks that are related to the discussion.  Other pages may have a broader range of choices; e.g., a page that displays all the lists and libraries available to a viewer.

The QUICK LAUNCH BAR, normallylocated on the far left-hand side of the site, provides most of your navigation needs for accessing lists and libraries.  The Quick Launch Bar is customizable, so its appearance may vary from site to site.  However, in most cases, this menu will provide links to key content and site management tools, as well as links to any subsites and workspaces in the site collection.  The Quick Launch Bar typically contains the following links:

Quick Launch Bar	Description:
	Libraries – Displays all sites, lists, and libraries in this site
	Site Pages – Use this library to create and store pages within the site.
	Shared Documents – Links to all document libraries.
	Lists – Links to all lists contained in the site.
	Discussions – Links to discussion boards.
	Sites – Links to any subsites in the current site collection (if present).
	Surveys – Links to survey web page used to collect feedback.
	People and Groups – Links to a page where you can manage your site user groups.
	Recycle Bin – Links to a page where you can restore items that you have deleted from the site.

The  drop-down menu is the primary access point to commands for creating pages, libraries, and lists, for editing pages, and for managing site settings.  (See “Administering Your Site” in Section Eight for more details.)

You can use the SEARCH box to access content within the current site (the site name appears to the left) by typing your criteria in the box.  Results will be displayed on a separate page. 

CONCEPTS:  SharePoint provides several navigational aids for identifying where you are on a site and giving you quick access to specific locations on a site.  NAVIGATION BARS and BREADCRUMBS are especially useful for showing you where you are in the hierarchy of your site or site collection.  Plus, regardless of where you are on your site, you will always have one-click access to the Home Portal.

Some navigational aids include the following: 

·         Quick Launch Bar (see previous page)

·         Tabs in the Top Navigation Bar

·         Breadcrumb Trail

The TOP NAVIGATION bar generally contains a tab; i.e., a hyperlinked title, for the top level site and, if they exist, for each subsite, workspace, or page in the site.  To navigate from one site to the next, simply click on a tab name.

NOTES: As shown above, once a web page has been created, you can create a tab that links to the URL of that page by choosing SITE ACTIONS, SITE SETTINGS, TOP LINK BAR, NEW NAVIGATION LINK.  Also, if a subsite is created, you have the choice to check an option that allows the tab to be created.

CONCEPTS:  BREADCRUMBS help to answer questions that many users encounter frequently when browsing the web: “Where am I?” and “How do I get back to where I was?”  A breadcrumb trail is a series of links indicating your location on a site and linking you to other sites that have been accessed in the site collection. 

Global breadcrumbs  displays the location of the current page in the overall site hierarchy.

Local Breadcrumbs:  These breadcrumbs appear in the page title of all and indicate the links to pages being accessed as you navigate within a site.  You can click on any of the links in the breadcrumb navigation to go to that location.  (Note:  The first link of the content navigation breadcrumb is the same as the last link of the global navigation breadcrumb and as you navigate down into lists the last link becomes your View.)

NOTES: Do not be surprised if you come across a site in which subsites are not displayed on tabs next to the Home tab, as advanced settings allow Site Owners to choose to not display subsites in the Top Navigation bar.

          *Another way to navigate quickly is to use the LINKS list.  See “Using the Links List.” *

CONCEPTS:  Each SharePoint site is pre-populated with a number of site components – each designed to store and manage information in specific ways.  These site components, known as WEB PARTS, are the basic building blocks of any site.  They form the containers for various types of content:  announcements, lists of links to other SharePoint sites or outside web sites, calendars of events, and libraries of shared documents. 

Web Parts can be customized and arranged differently on the page, and most importantly, populated with the information your team needs in order to collaborate most effectively.  Even though Web Parts vary greatly, each Web Part has some of the same features, including a Title Bar indicating its purpose and, in most cases, a link to add new content.

The template you choose to build your site will determine the basic frame for your page.  This frame is made up of ZONES – areas into which Web Parts are placed.

For now, we will assume that you are working with a template that contains all the Web Parts you need.  Later, you may wish to move or delete existing Web Parts, change their appearance, or add new Web Parts to an existing page from the Web Parts Gallery.

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

·         Work with out of the box site and workspace templates

·         Understand the use of lists in a SharePoint environment

·         Add content to a list

·         Edit and delete content in a list

·         Sort and filter lists

·         Work with announcements, events, contacts, and tasks

·         Modify a column view for a list

·         Set and manage alerts

CONCEPTS:  To help lay a consistent foundation for site creation, multiple SharePoint site TEMPLATES are currently available out of the box.  Templates are specially designed to address different types of business needs (e.g., project work or department collaboration) and include different components to help address those specific needs. 

Team sites are an easy place for your team to store and share information relevant to an entire team whether that is something as large as an entire department or division or something as small as a special team.  Using the TEAM SITE TEMPLATE, you can create a site useful for centralizing and coordinating your team activities using SharePoint’s storage and collaboration features; e.g., announcements, calendar, document library, etc.

The BASIC MEETING WORKSPACE template looks the most different from the others, and it contains the fewest features.  The purpose of this template is to allow meeting attendees to be informed of the meeting objectives, attendees, and agenda, as well as to have access to any documents that are relevant to the meeting.

About Lists

CONCEPTS:  In the SharePoint environment, LISTS serve as the core elements of a site and are configured to help your team keep track of important current information.  The majority of the information viewed and stored in a site is in the form oflists; e.g., announcements, calendar items, tasks, links, etc.

Lists can be formatted to have different appearances in SharePoint, but they all share common features.  All lists store their data in columns and rows, similar to an Excel spreadsheet or a Word table, and can be easily sorted and filtered.

Each ROW in a list represents a list item or record.  The individual data fields in a list are called COLUMNS.  Columns can be configured to store varying types of data, including text, links stored in the site, numerical and currency values, date and time, yes/no options, hyperlinks, etc. 

The type of data captured in each list and the columns of information that are used make each list unique.  For example, a Tasks list contains a required title column to describe the subject of the task, as well as other columns that contain information about the specific task; e.g., “Priority,” “Status.”  A Discussion Board, however, contains a required subject column, as well columns such as “Body,” “Created By,” and “Modified By.”

In this section, we will take a look at several built-in templates SharePoint provides for creating lists that are most applicable for team collaboration.  Once a list is created, columns can be added or deleted to meet your needs.  (See “Working with Columns and Views” in Section Five.

NOTES:  There are 21 built-in, default list templates that SharePoint provides.

CONCEPTS:  Libraries are also a type of list, for which the specific purpose is to store and maintain documents.  Libraries extend list capabilities to include document management features, such as version control and check in/check out capabilities.

Lists can appear as either WEB PARTS on a page, or the names of lists can be shown as HYPERLINKS in different locations on the page; e.g., on the Quick Launch Bar.  List names that appear as hyperlinks require you to click on them in order to view or add items.  The picture below shows a web page that has two lists showing as Web Parts (Announcements and Calendar) and the names of six lists located on the Quick Launch Bar beneath the “Lists” heading (e.g., Contacts, Tasks, Risk Management).

NOTES: When a list appears as a Web Part, you will see a link beneath the specific Web Part area that allows you to add a new item to the list without having to open the list first.  For example, if you were looking at the Announcements Web Part, the link would say “Add new announcement.

Lists can be stored as custom list templates, allowing you to make your own custom lists available as a starting point for inclusion in multiple team sites.

CONCEPTS: There are many types of lists that you can use in SharePoint. The following table provides descriptions of some of the commonly-used list types:

Button:	List Type and Description:
	ANNOUNCEMENTS lists are used for posting news, status reports, and other relevant messages for the members of your team or project.  You can keep your announcements list current by assigning expiration dates to announcements.
	CONTACTS lists are used for keeping track of people and organizations.  You can use contacts lists to record names, phone numbers, and e-mail information.  You also can add contacts to a list quickly by importing them from Microsoft Outlook.
	DISCUSSION BOARD lists are used to facilitate discussion among your department or project team members; e.g., capturing real-time issues/resolutions.
	CALENDAR lists are used to manage activities and can be used to share important dates with your department or team.  You can use calendar lists to keep track of important appointments and occasions as you would in a calendaring program such as Outlook.
	ISSUE TRACKING lists are used in Project templates for keeping track of problems or other issues on which your team needs to focus.  You can categorize and prioritize issues, assign them to team members, and associate them with related issues.
	SURVEY lists are used in to capture feedback in the form of public, as well as private, surveys, forms and quizzes.  Data can be exported neatly and easily into an excel sheet.  Branching logic, alerts and RSS are easily implemented.
	LIBRARIES are used to store documents (of all types) that are relevant to your department or project.  Libraries also keep track of document versions and allow users to check out a document for editing.
	LINKS lists are used to store URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) as hyperlinks to destinations that are important to your department or project.  Links can be created to other SharePoint sites, specific web pages, etc.
	TASKS lists let you create “to do” lists that are relevant to your department or team.  Tasks can have due dates and can be assigned to individuals.

CONCEPTS: The way you access and view a list may vary depending on how the Site Owner sets them up.  As discussed earlier, lists can either appear as Web Parts on a page, or the names of lists can be shown as hyperlinks in different locations on the page; e.g., on the Quick Launch Bar.  List names that appear as hyperlinks require you to click on them in order to view or add items.

STEPS       To access a list on a SharePoint site, choose one of the following methods:

· If a link to the list has been placed on the Quick Launch Bar, click on the name of the list.

· If the list appears as a Web Part on a page, click on the title bar of the list Web Part

· Click on the LISTS heading on the Quick Launch Bar.  All of the lists in the current site appear.  Each list is designated for a specific purpose and contains a different combination of columns and views.  Scroll through the list until you find the list you want to access, then click on the list name

·Click on the  link at the bottom of the Quick Launch Bar to go to the All Site Content page, which lists links to all lists, libraries, discussion boards, sites and workspaces, surveys, and the Recycle Bin for the site (see “Using the Recycle Bin in Section Four”)

Once accessed,VIEWS are used to present list items in ways that users can best work with the information.  A view determines the specific columns shown, the order that items are displayed, and the format used to present the information. 

NOTES:  Due to space constraints on the main web page, Web Parts may display only a limited number of list items.  Clicking on the title bar for the list (e.g., the title “Announcements”) displays the details of all the announcement list items.

CONCEPTS: Once the appropriate list is created, you can begin to add content to the list in the data form on the NEW ITEM PAGE.  While each list displays different types of data, you follow the same basic steps to add, edit, and delete items from each list type.

On the New Item page, the NEW ITEM TOOLBAR is provided to allow you to attach a file to an item or to check spelling.  In addition, you can save the item you are creating or return to the list view page without saving your changes.  The commands on the list’s toolbar will vary depending on the type of list with which you are working.

STEPS:To add an item to a list:

1.       Choose one of the following options:

For lists that appear as Web Parts on the Home page, click on the ADD NEW item  link at the bottom of the list (e.g., Add new announcement), then proceed to Step 3.

If your list appears as a link, click on its name, then proceed to Step 2.

If the name of your list does not appear, click on VIEW ALL SITE CONTENT, click on the name of your list, then proceed to Step 2.

2.       Click on  at the bottom of the list, then proceed to step 3 or alternatively Select Items from the List Tools header above the Ribbon  and click on New Item

3.       Enter the desired information for the list item.  Information that is required has a red asterisk next to it.

4.       (Opt.)  To attach a file to the new item, on the New Item toolbar, click on , click on BROWSE to locate the file, then click on OK.

5.       (Opt.)  If you want to spell check your text, click on the SPELL CHECK button.

6.       Click on OK.

NOTES:  Members and Site Owners are allowed to add items to existing lists.  To ensure quality control, content approval can be required for items to be added. 

Other choices may appear if you click on the  next to the NEW button; e.g., New Support Issue or New Vendor.  (If you click on the  and only see NEW ITEM as a choice, this is the only option for your list.)

CONCEPTS: To ensure your data is correct and up-to-date, you may need to modify or delete data in lists.  The same basic steps are followed for editing/deleting information in each list type (the actual fields, however, may differ).

There are several ways to edit and delete items in a list, including hovering the mouse over a list item and choosing EDIT ITEM from a drop-down menu, or clicking on the list item name and using the EDIT ITEM option on the toolbar that displays as you view the details of any list item.

STEPS                      To edit an existing item in a list:

1.       If the list is not already open, click on its name on the Quick Launch Bar.  If the name of your list does not appear, click on ALL SITE CONTENT, then click on the name of your list.

2.       Choose one of the following options:

Point to the item, click on the  that appears to the right of the list name, then click on EDIT ITEM.

Click on the list item name to open the item, then click on the toolbar.

3.       Make changes as desired, then click on OK.

NOTES:  To modify large amounts of information, you may find it easier to export the list information to Excel and make your edits in the spreadsheet interface.  On the list page, click on LIST heading in the ribbon and then select EXPORT TO EXCEL

You can also choose to edit an item in Datasheet View.  On the list page, click on the LIST heading in the ribbon and then, then click on DATASHEET VIEW

Depending on how your list is set up, attachments may not be allowed for list items.

CONCEPTS: An important responsibility of a Site Owner is to maintain a clean site.  This means ensuring that site users remove outdated items and content that is no longer relevant. 

Site Owners can edit and delete any item.  Also, depending on how the list is configured, Members may be able to edit any items, or may be able to edit only his/her own items, or may not be able to edit any items at all.

STEPS:   To delete an existing item in a list:

1.       If the list is not already open, click on its name on the Quick Launch Bar.  If the name of your list does not appear, click on ALL SITE CONTENT, then click on the name of your list.

2.       When the item appears, do one of the following:

Point to the list item, click on the  that appears, then click on DELETE ITEM.

To delete an event from a graphical display of a calendar, click on the item in the calendar, then click on DELETE ITEM.  To delete a recurring item, click on EDIT SERIES, then click on DELETE ITEM.

In a survey, ensure that you are viewing the responses in a list, instead of an overview or graphical summary of responses.  Point to the item, click on the  that appears, then click on DELETE RESPONSE.

3.       Each time you delete an item, you will be prompted with a warning. 

4.       If you are sure you want to send the item to a Recycle Bin, click on OK.

NOTES: When you delete a list item, it is sent to the Recycle Bin for the site where it can be restored, if necessary.  (See “Using the Recycle Bin” in Section Four.)

CONCEPTS: A more versatile option for editing list content is to work in DATASHEET VIEW, a spreadsheet-like environment useful for displaying and editing list data.  Displaying the content in a grid of rows and columns, you can use familiar Excel features, such as adding rows, using fill options, applying filters, copying and pasting data, etc., allowing you to make multiple edits efficiently and quickly.

To edit items in a Datasheet view, on the list page, click on the LIST Heading in the List tools Ribbon, then choose DATASHEET VIEW.  The list will display like an Excel spreadsheet ready to be edited.

A few things to keep in mind as you view list content in Datasheet view:

A row corresponds to a list item.

A column corresponds to a list field.

The drop-down arrow in the column heading is used to sort and filter data.

In the Datasheet view, a task pane is available for providing quick access to common commands such as cutting, copying, and sorting, as well as easy access to useful commands such as exporting data to Access.  You can open the task pane by either clicking on the small arrow as shown below:

NOTES: All the list items are displayed on one page in this view, regardless of how large the list is.  It is, therefore, not practical to use this view to edit very large lists.

You have the option to display totals for data in a list by using the TOTALS command on the LIST Ribbon menu.

CONCEPTS: As lists get longer, it can become more difficult to find the information you want.  SharePoint lets you SORT lists by different headings to change the order in which items appear and FILTER lists so they only display items that meet certain criteria.  You can also combine sorting and filtering to show you the items that interest you in an order you find useful.  For example, you can filter a list of tasks so it only displays tasks assigned to a specific person, then sort them in order of due date, with the earliest tasks listed first.

In order for you to sort or filter items, the list must have column names visible in a row of headings under the page toolbar.  If the list is in a different view, like a monthly calendar, you must first change to the list view.  You can sort a list by any column that appears in a view, and you can enter filter criteria for most columns.  When you change the sort order or filter criteria, icons appear next to the headings to indicate how the list has been sorted or filtered.  An up () or down arrow () next to a column indicates that the column has been sorted in ascending or descending order, respectively.  A funnel icon  next to one or more columns indicates that a filter has been applied to the column(s).

 

You can easily change or remove filters and sorting options by clicking on the drop‑down arrow beside the column headings.

STEPS                      To sort the entries in a list:

1.       Open the list you would like to sort.

2.       (Opt.)  Choose a list view, if necessary, by clicking on the ALL <Items>choice in the VIEW drop-down menu (e.g., ALL EVENTS, ALL CONTACTS).

3.       Move the mouse pointer over the heading by which you would like sort.  The pointer changes to a hand, and if the heading contains text, the text is underlined.

4.       Click on the heading.  The list is sorted in descending order by the heading you clicked, and a  appears next to the heading.

5.       (Opt.)  Click on the same heading again to sort the list in ascending order.

To filter the entries in a list based on criteria you specify:

1.       Open the list you would like to sort.

2.       (Opt.)  Choose a list view, if necessary, by clicking on the ALL <Items>choice in the VIEW drop-down menu.

3.       Hover over a column heading to show the  for that column.

4.       Click on the  for the column heading to display the values listed.

5.       Make a selection from the filter choices at the bottom of the menu.  A funnel icon  appears next to the column you filtered, and the list only displays items that match your choice.

6.       (Opt.)  Click on the  to filter by an additional column or to remove the filter criteria from a column.  Choosing CLEAR FILTER FROM <Heading> removes any filter that has been applied to that column.

CONCEPTS:  Often, organizations keep employees up-to-date about pertinent company information through e‑mail communications, postings on bulletin boards, video text displays, etc.  Similarly, SharePoint provides the opportunity to keep team members informed and up-to-date by posting pertinent information on an ANNOUNCEMENTS LIST.

The Announcements list displays the five most recent announcements by default, allowing employees to easily read latest news.  Additional items on the Announcements list are also available for viewing on the Announcements page.  To display a complete list of announcements, just click on the Announcements title.

On the Announcements page, announcements will appear in a single view called All Announcements, which includes the title of the announcement and the last time it was modified.  As new announcements are added, the word “New” displays next to them.  This flag disappears one day after it is posted.

As you fill out the form to create or edit an announcement, when you click in the Body field, toolbar buttons are available for formatting, inserting hyperlinks, inserting images, etc.

NOTES: Expiration dates can be set for displaying announcements on the Home page.  After the expiration date, the announcement is only available when the All Announcements view is selected.

A required field such as the “Title” column cannot be removed from the list, but can be renamed.

STEPS                      To add a new announcement:

1.       On the site’s Home page, click on the ANNOUNCEMENTS heading.  If the Announcements Web Part does not appear, click on ALL SITE CONTENT on the Quick Launch Bar, then click on ANNOUNCEMENTS.

2.       Click on either ADD NEW ANNOUNCEMENT at the bottom of the list of announcements or select ITEMS in the List Tools Ribbon and click NEW ITEM to open the ANNOUNCEMENTS:  NEW ITEM page.  A data form appears ready to be filled out.

3.       In the Title field, type the title of the announcement.  This field is required.

4.       (Opt.)  In the Body field, type the text for the announcement and format it as desired.

5.       (Opt.)  In the Expires field, type the expiration date.  Use the mm/dd/yyyy format (e.g., 08/01/2007), or click on the CALENDAR icon to choose a date.

6.       (Opt.)  Click on the ATTACH FILE button on the toolbar.  Browse to the location of the document, select the file(s) to attach, then click on OK.

7.       If you want to spell check your text, click on the SPELLING button.

8.       Click on OK.

NOTES: A built-in announcement automatically displays for a new site, which can be edited or deleted.

CONCEPTS: The CALENDAR LIST is a useful collaboration list for providing team members a shared view of important information, including availability, deadlines, and milestones.  The events that appear can be either one-time or recurring (an event that happens more than once over a period of time).  Events can appear in a list view or in a Calendar view.

The Calendar list contains several default views, which allow the viewer to display the items in various ways.  They include the following:

ALL EVENTS:  The view which displays all items (in groups of a 100) in a list.  Recurring events for different events are each displayed as a single list item.

CALENDAR:  This default view displays all events (from the current date forward) in a calendar format, allowing the viewer to use the Daily, Weekly, or Monthly views.

CURRENT EVENTS:  Displays only the events that occur from the current date forward in the order in which they occur.  Recurring events are each displayed as separate list items.

NOTES: Meeting workspaces can be created as events are added or edited, thereby allowing you to more easily plan the details of your event.

STEPS                      To add an event:

1.       On the site’s Home page, click on the CALENDAR heading.  If the Calendar Web Part does not appear, click on ALL SITE CONTENT on the Quick Launch Bar, then click on CALENDAR.

2.       Click on EVENTS heading in the Calendar Tools Ribbon and then select NEW EVENT to open the CALENDAR:  NEW ITEM page.

3.       In the Title box, type a heading for the event.  This field is required.

4.       In the Location box, type where the event will be located.

5.       In the Start Time box, click on the calendar  and select a date, then select a time in the boxes for hour and minutes.  This field is required.

6.       In the End Time box, click on the calendar  and select a date, then select a time in the boxes for hour and minutes.  This field is required.

7.       Type text in the Description box, as desired.

8.       (Opt.)  If the event lasts all day (with no specific beginning and ending time), checkmark the All Day Event box.

9.       (Opt.)  If the event is a recurring event, specify how often it occurs in the Recurrence section.

10.    (Opt.)  If you would like to create a Meeting Workspace site for this meeting, checkmark theWorkspace box.

11.    Click on OK.

NOTES: Another option for adding an event in the Calendar view is to navigate to the day of the week, hover over the number and click to display a day view.  Next, hover over the time in the far left column and click.  The New Item page appears with the date and start time filled in (the end time would still need to be adjusted).

Do you want to view your SharePoint calendar in Outlook?  Using the CONNECT TO OUTLOOK option on the CALENDAR menu on the Calendar Tools Ribbon, SharePoint creates a linked read-only list that appears in your Outlook navigation pane.

CONCEPTS: The CONTACTS LIST in SharePoint is used for maintaining pertinent information about people (e.g., business addresses and phone numbers) that may be useful to team members.  When it is accessed, the Contacts list displays in a single view called All Contacts, showing the last name, first name, company, business phone, home phone, and e‑mail addresses for each contact.

By default, a link to the built-in contacts list appears on the Quick Launch Bar.

SharePoint provides the option to establish a link between SharePoint and Outlook.  While this link is not dynamic, linking a SharePoint contacts list with Outlook creates a separate Contacts folder in Outlook that displays read-only contact information from SharePoint.  All modifications must be made in the SharePoint Contacts list.  As new contacts are added to the Contacts section in SharePoint, the new contacts will appear in Outlook the next time Outlook is launched.

NOTES: The Contacts form provides many fields for entering data.  The default list view, however, only displays a few of the form fields.  You can choose to display more fields by creating a custom view.  (See “Working with Columns and Views” in Section Five.)

STEPS                      To add a new contact:

1.       Click on the CONTACTS list link on the Quick Launch Bar.  If the Contacts link does not appear, click on ALL SITE CONTENT on the Quick Launch Bar, then click on CONTACTS.

2.       Click on either the ADD NEW ITEM option below the current list entries or click ITEMS in the List Tools Ribbon header and then select NEW ITEM to open the CONTACTS:  NEW ITEM page.  A data form appears ready to be filled out.

3.       In the Last Name field, type the contact’s last name.  This field is required.

4.       Fill out any additional fields, as desired.

5.       Click on OK to save the contact.

CONCEPTS:  A commonly-used list in team collaboration sites is a TASKS LIST.  It is especially useful for ensuring that team members know what their responsibilities are and what deadlines need to be met.  A Tasks list is used to assign tasks, giving them a priority, status, and a due date.

When it is accessed, the Task list displays in a single view called All Tasks, showing the Title, Assigned To, Status, Priority, Due Date and % Complete for each task.

By default, a link to the built-in Tasks list appears on the Quick Launch Bar.

STEPS                      To add a new task:

1.       Click on the TASKS list link on the Quick Launch Bar. 

2.       Click on ITEMS from the List Tools heading Ribbon and then select NEW ITEM on the ribbon to open the TASKS:  NEW ITEM page.  A data form appears ready to be filled out.

STEPS                      To add a new task (continued from the previous page):

3.       (Opt.)  In the Priority box, choose a priority for the task from the drop-down menu.

4.       (Opt.)  In the Status box, choose a status from the drop-down menu.

5.       (Opt.)  In the % Complete box, choose a % complete for the task. 

6.       (Opt.)  In the Assigned To box, type the name of the person the task has been assigned to using their last name, first name format (e.g., Doe, Jane).  Alternately, you can click on the ADDRESS BOOK icon to choose a name from the Global Address Book.

7.       (Opt.)  Click on the CHECK NAMES button to validate the name that you have typed.

8.       (Opt.)  Type text in the Description box, as desired.

9.       (Opt.)  In the Start Date box, type in a start date or click on the calendar  to choose a date.  In the End Date box, type in a start date or click on the calendar  to choose a date.

10.    Click on OK.

NOTES:Task can be archived by exporting the list to a spreadsheet.

In addition to the All Tasks view, there are also “pre-built” views for filtering tasks due today, displaying only active tasks, and showing tasks sorted by the person assigned to the task.

CONCEPTS: To make it easy to share links among team members, SharePoint provides a LINKS LIST.  Using this list, you can quickly and easily post hyperlinks to Web pages of interest to your team, as well as to internal and external sites or documents and list items.  In addition, you can also create links to list views and include them in this list.  For example, if you have a custom calendar view called, “Vacations,” you could create a link to the view that would appear in the Links list.

When you add a new link item to a list, you are asked to enter the URL (the address for the destination page), provide a title (a friendly name) that accurately describes the link, and include a description of the content of the page to which the URL points.  Additional columns can be added, and the order in which the links appear in the Summary of the Home page can be changed.

Once links are added, you can re-order the list at any time to better meet the needs of your audience.

NOTES:The title that you assign to a Links list appears in most views and is configured to link to the URL provided.

STEPS      To add an item to the Links list:

1.       Click on the HOME tab for your SharePoint site.

2.       Navigate to the page to which you want the link to point.  Copy the URL from the Address bar.  (This step is necessary because you will need to paste the URL in the New Link window.)

3.       Click on ADD NEW LINK located beneath the Links list.

4.       Paste the URL that you copied in step 2 into the URL box.

5.       (Opt.)  Click on the CLICK HERE TO TEST link to test the URL that you pasted.

6.       Type a short description for the URL.  This description is what shows in the Links list on the Home page.

7.       (Opt.)  Type any relevant notes about the URL in the Notes area.

8.       Click on OK.

STEPS                      To change the order of an item in a Links list:

1.       Click on the HOME tab for your SharePoint site.

2.       Click on the LINKS heading to navigate to the desired Links page.

3.       Click on the ITEMS heading in the List Tools Ribbon, then choose CHANGE ORDER.

4.       Under Position from Top, click on the drop-down arrow next to the number for the item you want to re-order, then choose the desired number.  All other items will automatically adjust their position based on your selection.

CONCEPTS             There may be times when you need more columns to show than are initially displayed in the default view of a list.  For example, in a Tasks list, it might be helpful to have a column for “Created By” so members of your team know who assigned them a task.  Oftentimes, the additional column already exists within SharePoint and just needs to be selected to add it to the view for that list.

STEPS                      To display other columns or reorder columns in a list view:

1.       Click on the list you wish to modify.  For example, if you want to modify the Tasks list, click on the TASKS LIST.

2.       Click on the down arrow next to VIEW, then choose MODIFY THIS VIEW.

3.       In the Edit View window, scroll down so you can see the list of available columns from which you can choose.  The checked boxes indicate which columns are currently being used in the view and the Position from Left drop-down menus indicates the order of the columns on the page.

STEPS      To display other columns or reorder columns in a list view (continued from the previous page):

4.       Checkmark the boxes for any additional column(s) that you would like to include in the list, or deselect those columns you do not wish to view.

5.       Specify the order of the new columns by using the POSITION FROM LEFT drop-down menus.

6.       Click on OK to finish creating the list with additional fields.

Setting Up Alerts

CONCEPTS             The content in your SharePoint lists will continuously be changing as items are added, changed, and deleted.  If you want to stay up-to-date with the information in your SharePoint lists and to be notified when something changes on one of the lists, you can set one or more ALERTS for the list.  These e-mail notifications can be sent to your Inbox immediately when a change is made or on daily or weekly intervals. 

Alerts can be easily customized so you are notified when specific actions occur within a list; e.g., notify you when a new item is added to a list, when an existing list is modified, when items are deleted, or when discussions are updated.  You can also specify the alerts to notify you based on who makes the change.

Some of the options for setting an alert for the Tasks list are shown below.  (Note:  The alert options for each type of list vary slightly.)

Each alert can only contain one set of criteria, so you may end up creating multiple alerts for the same list.  For example, you may have an alert for your Tasks list that is sent to you once per day for any new tasks that have been added to the list, while you may have another alert for the Tasks list that notifies you immediately if a task has been assigned to you.  Giving the alert a descriptive title will become very important if you want to be able to easily tell the alerts apart from one another.

STEPS                      To create a new alert:

1.       Click on the list for which you want to set the alert.

2.       Click on ITEMS heading in the List Tools Ribbon, and then choose ALERT ME.

3.       In the Alert Title section, type a title in the box.  This field is required.  The title should be specific enough to help you differentiate it from any other alert notifications that you might already have set up.

4.       The Users box will already have your name filled in.  If you want the alert to go to someone other than yourself, enter their name, using their last name, first name format (e.g., Doe, Jane).  Alternately, you can click on the ADDRESS BOOK icon to choose a name from the Global Address Book.

5.       In the Change Type section, select the desired option under Only Send Me Alerts When.

6.       In the Send Alerts For These Changes section, select the desired option under Send Me An Alert When.

7.       In the When To Send Alerts section, select the desired option.

8.       Click on OK to activate the alert.

9.       Repeat steps 1-8 for each alert you want to create.

NOTES: Alerts are not automatically deleted when users are removed; they remain until they are manually deleted.  See “Managing Alerts for All Users.”

In addition to setting alerts for yourself, a user can send alerts to other people.  In the Send Alerts To section in the Users dialog box, you can specify that you or any other user should receive an alert.

Managing Your Own Alerts

CONCEPTS:  Alerts can be created by any user that has appropriate rights to create them; therefore, Site Members will normally create and manage their own alerts.  It is recommended that users regularly monitor their alerts to ensure they are not receiving outdated or non-essential information.

STEPS                      To view alerts that you have set for yourself:

1.       Click on any of your lists.

2.       Click on the ITEMS heading in the List Tools Ribbon, then click ALERT ME and select MANAGE MY ALERTS.

3.       In the New Alert window, beneath the New Alert title, click on the VIEW MY EXISTING ALERTS ON THIS SITE link.

The My Alerts on this Site page appears. 

4.       Click on the ADD ALERT button to create new alerts, or click on the DELETE SELECTED ALERTS button to remove an alert.

5.       After viewing, adding, or deleting alerts on this page, use the breadcrumbs to navigate to another page in the SharePoint site.

Managing Alerts for All Users

CONCEPTS:  Site Owners have the ability to view all alerts that have been created by all users for their SharePoint site, and can remove alerts that are no longer valid.

It is recommended that Site Owners view all the alerts that have been set for their site on a regular basis.  This is especially important for ensuring that alerts are deleted for users who have been removed from a site; otherwise, they will continue to have access to site information.

STEPS                      To view all alerts that have been set for the site:

1.       Open the site on which you want to view the alert settings.

2.       On the site’s Home page, click on , then click on SITE SETTINGS.

3.       Under the Site Administration heading, click on the USER ALERTS link.

4.       On the User Alerts page, click on the drop-down arrow next to DISPLAY ALERTS FOR, then select a user name.

5.       Click on UPDATE to view that user’s alerts.

6.       Choose the alert that is no longer needed.

7.       Click on the HOME tab to return to the site’s Home page.

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

·         Work with document libraries

·         View documents

·         Add documents to the library

·         Copy and move files

·         Edit documents (using Check Out/Check In)

·         Use version control

·         Use the Recycle Bin

Overview of Document Libraries

CONCEPTS: A primary reason for working in a SharePoint site is to ensure that your team can securely share, store, and find information that has been placed in a centralized location.  DOCUMENT LIBRARIES are provided for just that purpose.  They also offer some important and useful document management features that make it easier and more productive to collaborate with others on “working” documents.

If you’ve ever worked on a document collaboratively with other people, you may have seen how difficult it can be to keep track of the changes different people make, and how easy it can be to accidentally lose important work when two people try to save different versions of a document to the same location.  SharePoint is designed to help ensure the integrity of documents stored in its libraries.  In a SharePoint library, you can easily see who last worked on a document, when they last modified it, and whether someone is working on a document now.  You can also track changes made to a document over time and easily reverse changes, if necessary.

In a short time, your team’s document library will become a place where team members can go confidently to find the latest and greatest important in-process documents, check them out and work with them, and check them in so others can work with them, also.\

NOTES: Just like other lists; e.g., Announcements and Tasks, a document library is just another type of list, with document information displayed in columns and rows, thus allowing for efficient searching and filtering capabilities.

CONCEPTS:  All SharePoint sites built come with a default document library.  The SharePoint Site template contains a library entitled SHARED DOCUMENTS.  To navigate to the library, just click on the respective DOCUMENT LIBRARY link on the Quick Launch Bar.

When you first open a document library, you will see the site displayed in its default VIEW, called the ALL DOCUMENTS view. 

The ALL DOCUMENTS view uses a simple table format to display like items in a list.  In this view, the filename, type, and modification information for all documents appear.

You can choose to display the library in a number of different ways.  To change to a different view, click on the  next to, and select the appropriate option from the drop-down menu.

Once a Library is selected or created, you will notice the Library Tools menu appears in the ribbon menu.  It has Documents and Library options.  The Documents menu allows you to create a new document, upload documents, create folders in the library, check-out, check-in files, etc.  The Library menu option has several options to manage your library, for example you can edit your library in SharePoint Designer and change different library settings.

Adding Documents to a Library

CONCEPTS: As soon as a library has been created, you can start populating it with documents.  While there are multiple ways to accomplish this, let’s explore two primary methods:  using the NEW DOCUMENT option to create new documents that will be added directly to the document library, and the UPLOAD option for loading existing documents.  Let’s first look at creating new documents to be stored in a document library.

Every SharePoint document library has a default document template on which new documents will be based as they are created.  For example, the default Shared Documents library automatically opens Word when the NEW DOCUMENT option is chosen and uses the document library as the default location for saving the file.

STEPS  To create a new document using the default documentation template for the document library:

1.       On the Library Ribbon Menu, click on, then clickin the Documents Menu, and click on NEW DOCUMENT.

2.       Click on OK when the Windows Internet Explorer warning box appears.  Depending on the default template chosen when the library was created, a Microsoft Office Application (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Visio) will open with a blank document ready for you to edit.

3.       When you have finished making changes to the document, select FILE, SAVE AS.

4.       Enter a name for your document in the Save As dialog box, then click on SAVE.  Notice, by default, the location to which your document will be saved is your document library.

STEPS  To create a new document using the default documentation template for the document library (continued from the previous page):

5.       Click on SAVE.

6.       Close the document and verify that it now appears in your Shared Documents library (or the specific library you chose, in this case Template Documents).

CONCEPTS:For documents that already exist, the UPLOAD DOCUMENT option on the Document Library menu can be used to upload an existing document from your local computer or network into the document library, regardless of the application used to create the file.

STEPS             To upload a single document to a document library:

1.       On the Library Ribbon Menu, click on , then click  in the Documents Menu, then select UPLOAD DOCUMENT.

2.       Click on BROWSE to locate your file.

3.       In the Choose File dialog box, navigate to the document you would like to upload, then click on OPEN.

4.       (Opt.)  Select the checkbox next to ADD AS A NEW VERSION TO EXISTING FILES if there is already a document in the library with the same name and you want to save the document as a new version of it.

5.       (Opt.)  Enter any comments you would like to associate with this version of the document.

6.       Click on OK to upload the file.

NOTES: Depending on the columns listed in the library, you may be prompted with an Edit Item page.  On this page, you can edit the filename, title, and any other column information that is available for the library; e.g., status of document – draft, approved, etc.  If the library does not contain additional columns, the Edit Item page will not be shown.  Instead, you are returned to the library page.

STEPS To upload several documents to a library at once (continued from the previous page):

1.       On the Document Library Ribbon Menu, click on , then click  in the Documents Menu, then select UPLOAD MULTIPLE DOCUMENTS.

2.       In the Upload Document page, navigate to the desired folder(s) and checkmark the boxes next to the files you want to upload.

3.       Click on OK to upload the files.

NOTES:   As much as possible, avoid changing the name of your documents once they are uploaded into SharePoint.  Because SharePoint assigns a unique URL (which includes the original file name) to each file that is uploaded, changing the file name will cause links to the original file to break.

There are restrictions on the file types that can be uploaded into a SharePoint document library.  Uploading one of the restricted file types will result in an error being displayed.

CONCEPTS: Document libraries no longer include an EXPLORER VIEW in 2010, which allowed users to create a view of a document library that actually used Windows Explorer “behind the scenes” to let you perform drag and drop style file manipulation. 

For SharePoint 2010, the Explorer View has been replaced with and icon in the Library toolbar to OPEN WITH EXPLORER.  This opens your library in a separate window using the full Windows Explorer.

While working in Explorer allows you to copy and move files easily without having to delete them from one location and upload them to another, it is important to avoid having multiple copies of the original file in circulation.

STEPS:  To move an existing file from one document library (the source) to another document library (the target):

1.       In your browser window navigate to one of the two document libraries you wish to transfer documents to or from. In the Library Ribbon Menu click on , then click  in the Library Menu.

This will open Explorer and allow you to work with the files in the library in a Windows Explorer window.

2.       Open a new browser window and navigate to the second document library.  Repeat step 1, above, to change the view to the Explorer View for the second document library.

3.       With both document libraries open in Explorer View, resize the windows so you can see both libraries side by side.

4.       To move the file (without retaining a copy of the file in its original location), drag the appropriate file from the source document library and drop it in the target document library.

CONCEPTS             If you want to take a book from a public library, you must check it out first.  Likewise, you work with documents stored in a SharePoint document library by checking them out. 

SharePoint’s CHECK OUT feature lets you work on a document secure in the knowledge that nobody will accidentally overwrite your changes, and vice versa.  The purpose of the check-out system is to ensure that only one person can work on a document at any one time.  Imagine that you and a co-worker are collaborating on a document that you’ve agreed to store in a mutually accessible location; e.g., a network share.  You copy the document to your local hard disk, work on it for a few hours, then copy it back to the network share, overwriting the version that is already there.  Unfortunately, a few minutes before you copy the document back to the share, your co-worker also makes a copy of the shared document and begins working on it.  If she saves her copy back to the network share after you do, all your changes will be lost. 

The document “checkout” system in SharePoint helps prevent this from happening.  When you check a document out, no one else will be able to work on it until you check it back in.  Other people will be able to read or edit copies of the most recent versions of the document; but until you check the master copy back in, they will not be able to update the document in the library or see the changes you have made.  This ensures that somebody else will not accidentally overwrite changes that you have made to the document.  And like your public library, a SharePoint document library keeps track of who has checked out which documents and when they checked them out, so you can tell which documents are available to edit.

Although there are many different ways to work with shared documents in SharePoint, the following diagram outlines the recommended basic process for working with documents while ensuring that their integrity will be maintained:

STEPS                To check out a document:

1.       On the Document Library page, verify that the document has not already been checked out by you or someone else.  If the document is checked out, the name of the person who checked it out will appear to the right of the document name under Checked Out To, and the File Type icon will appear with a green arrow.

2.       Move the mouse pointer over the name of the document you want to check out so a border appears around it, click on the , and choose CHECK OUT.

3.       Notice your name appears in the Checked Out To column in the library listing.  The document is now ready to be edited.

CONCEPTS:  After you check a document out, you can now starting working with it.  If the document is a recognized file type; e.g., an Office application, the drop-down menu next to the file name in the document library will include an EDIT IN <Name of Application> choice.  For example, a Word document will have an option to Edit in Microsoft Office Word in the drop-down menu.  Selecting this choice will open the document in its native application. 

STEPS                 To open and edit a Microsoft Office document that you have checked out:

1.       On the Document Library page, verify that you have checked out the document by looking for your name in the Checked Out To column.

2.       Move the mouse pointer over the name of the document you checked out and want to edit so a border appears around it, click on the , and choose EDIT IN [Name of Application].

3.       If a dialog box appears, click on OK to accept the download.  The document will open in its native application.

CONCEPTS:   After making any changes to the file, saving the file will save the updated document back to the document library; however, the changes will not be reflected in the master copy of the document until you check it back in.

STEPS                      To save the revised document to the document library:

1.       Make desired changes to the document as you normally would.

2.       Click on FILE, SAVE.  This will save the document with the same file name to the same location in the document library.

3.       Make edits to document, saving periodically as you work.

4.       When you are finished working with the document, you can either click on the CHECK IN link on the task pane or simply close the document.  You will be prompted, if you close the document, on the action you want to perform before closing:  Check in file, keep the file checked out, or discard changes and undo check out.  (For further explanation, see the following pages regarding Checking In a Document.)

CONCEPTS: You’ve checked out a document, edited and saved it, and now it is time to check the document back in to the library.

When you choose FILE, CLOSE from within an Office application, the following dialog box appears allowing you to either check in the file, to make your changes available for other people to see the latest edits. Or leave it checked out so you can keep working on it, or choose CANCEL to exit the CLOSE all together and bring you back to your document.

When you choose YES, you are then given the option to type comments about the changes that you made to the file.  This helps people understand what changes occurred while you had the file checked out.  Check-in comments are especially helpful if several people work on a file.  If versions are being tracked, the comments that you make become part of the file's version history, which is helpful if your file will have several revisions.

Note: Tpically, you should check in only the files that you checked out.  You will receive a warning if you check in a file that is checked out to someone else.  If you check in the file, you overwrite any changes that the other person made to the file.

When using the CHECK IN command for a document from within the document library, you will be prompted to choose which type of version you are checking in if both major versions and minor versions are being tracked.

STEPS                      To check a document back in to the document library:

1.       From within the Office application, save and close the file.  The Check In dialog box will appear:

2.       Choose whether to check in the file, keep the file checked out, or discard changes and undo check out.

3.       Click on YES.

4.       (Opt.)  Type comments about the changes that you made to the file.

5.       Click on OK.

CONCEPTS: As multiple site users collaborate on a document’s content; it can become difficult to know which version is the most current.  In addition, when more than one person is responsible for editing a document, there is a risk that information will be lost in the process.  To protect important documents and ensure critical data is not lost as documents evolve, SharePoint’s VERSIONING capabilities can be enabled on each Library.

Versioning provides the following benefits:

A history of all versions created for a document, including the version number, the date the document was changed, the name of the person who changed it, and comments the person made about the version.

The ability to view previous versions; This capability helps to safeguard important information in case a document is accidentally changed or a mistake is made in the current version.  If you are dissatisfied with changes that have been made to a document, you can restore an older version. 

The ability to discriminate between versions; This capability helps to differentiate between versions with substantive changes and versions that include only minor changes.

With the versioning feature, SharePoint will create a new copy of the document every time it changes in the library and assigns a number in the VERSION HISTORY to indicate the type of version being stored.  MINOR VERSIONS represent small edits (e.g., fixing a spelling error) and are assigned by default when you check in a document.  Through a process called PUBLISHING, you can also create a MAJOR VERSION of your document, one that represents a significant change (e.g., deleting large amounts of text).

NOTES: Site Owners have the ability to configure several settings that affect versioning, including whether to track major or minor versions and how many versions to retain.  They can also configure settings that interact with versioning, such as requiring content to be approved or files to be checked out.

Version Numbering

CONCEPTS: As versions are created in SharePoint, they are automatically numbered in either decimal or whole number increments, depending on whether the new version is major or minor.  Major versions are represented by whole numbers (e.g., version 1.0 and version 2.0), and minor versions are represented by decimals (e.g., version 1.1 and version 1.2).  The first version of a file will always be minor version number 0.1.  Subsequent versions may be major or minor.

The current version is highlighted, and the version number (2.0) represents a major version.

The version number (1.2) represents a minor version.

The version number (1.0) represents the first version of the document.

Creating Versions

CONCEPTS: When major and minor versioning is enabled, versions can be created in a number of different ways, depending on whether a document is checked out before being edited.  By default, a version is stored as a minor version unless you designate the version as major version when checking a document back in or by publishing a major version in a separate step.

 A new version is created when:

A file is first created in or uploaded to the document library.

A file is uploaded that has the same name as an existing file in the library and the “Add as a new version to existing files” checkbox is selected.

The properties of a file are changed.

A file is checked out, changed, and checked back in:  SharePoint creates a new version of the file when you check the document back in that reflects all the changes you made to the file since you checked it out.  If you save the file one or more times while you are working on it, SharePoint does not modify the library’s copy of the file or create a new version.  (Note – you have the option to specify whether the version is a major or minor version)

A file is opened (without checking it out first), edited, and saved:  SharePoint creates a new version the first time you click on SAVE.  Each subsequent time you save the file, SharePoint updates the (new) current version in the library, but does not create any new versions as long as you are working on the file.  This allows you to save frequently while editing the document – a highly recommended practice – without creating dozens of new versions.  (Note:  The version is tracked as a minor version; the file must be published to become a major version.)

The following depicts when a user publishes a major version from an existing document.

NOTES:  Each version of a document contributes to the total space used on a site.Using Version History

CONCEPTS:  When you restore an old version of a document, SharePoint creates a new version that is an exact copy of the version you are restoring.  This “rolls back” the document to the version you are restoring but keeps copies of the newer versions in the document’s VERSION HISTORY so you can go back and see the changes that were rejected.

STEPS                      To view, restore, or delete versions of your document:

1.       On the Document Library page, move the mouse pointer over the name of the document, click on  next to the document, and then click on VERSION HISTORY.

2.       On the Versions History page, move the mouse pointer over the name of the document, click on the , and choose either VIEW, RESTORE, or DELETE.

3.       In the confirmation dialog box that appears, click on OK to complete the action.

NOTES:The document will need to be checked out prior to performing a Restore.

CONCEPTS: SharePoint gives you two opportunities to manage deleted items by providing two recycle bins that deleted items go into before they are permanently deleted.

At the 1^st level, when you delete an item from a site, the item is sent to the site’s END USER RECYCLE BIN.  If you click on RECYCLE BIN on the Quick Launch Bar, you can see all of the items that you have deleted from your site.  This may include documents, folders, or list items, such as Calendar events or links.  The first level Recycle Bin is automatically emptied every 30 days.  Until that time, you can safely restore a deleted item.

At the 2^nd level, when an item is deleted from the 1^st level end-user Recycle Bin or the Recycle Bin is emptied, it is transferred to the SITE COLLECTION RECYCLE BIN.  Content can be restored by a Site Collection Administrator from either Recycle Bin.  After the Site Collection Recycle Bin is emptied, the deleted material cannot be recovered.

NOTES:  If you restore an item that originally resided in a folder that has since been deleted, the folder is recreated in its original location, and the restored item is placed in the folder

It is important to note that content in the Recycle Bin affects the site collection’s storage quota.

STEPS          To restore deleted items from the Recycle Bin:

1.       On the Quick Launch Bar, click on RECYCLE BIN.

2.       Select the checkboxes of the items you want to restore, click on RESTORE SELECTION, then click on OK.  The restored items are returned to the location from which they were originally deleted.

To restore deleted items from the Site Collection Recycle Bin:

1.       Click on , then click on SITE SETTINGS.

2.       On the Site Settings page, under Site Collection Administration, click on RECYCLE BIN.

3.       On the Site Collection Recycle Bin page, on the left pane under Select a View, click on DELETED FROM END USER RECYCLE BIN.  The list now shows you items that were first deleted by users and then deleted from the end user Recycle Bin.

4.       Select the checkboxes of the items to be restored, click on RESTORE SELECTION, then click on OK.

NOTES:As mentioned, the first level Recycle Bin is automatically emptied every 30 days.  If an item is deleted from the 1^st level Recycle Bin before the 30 day-limit, the deleted item is still available in the 2^nd level Recycle Bin.  However, the total size of the deleted items must remain below a given percentage (50% by default) of a site’s total quota.

Sending Links to Files in SharePoint

CONCEPTS:Once a document is uploaded or created, if you need to e-mail the document to someone, it is a recommended best practice to SEND A LINK to the document that is located on SharePoint rather than sending it as an attachment in an e-mail message.  When the recipient clicks on the link, a read-only copy will open.  This helps avoid having multiple copies of the original in circulation. 

STEPS                      To send a link to a document located in the SharePoint Library:

1.       Open the document library that contains the document to which you want to send a link.

2.       Move the mouse pointer over the name of the document to which you want to send a link so a border appears around it, click on the , and choose SEND TO, then click on E-MAIL A LINK.

3.       When Outlook opens it should automatically view as a blue link, if not press ENTER at the end of the text to change it to a link.

4.       Complete and send the e-mail, as usual.  Recipients can click on the link to open the stored document directly from the e-mail.

NOTES:  Another option for sending a link is to right-click on the name of the file and select COPY SHORTCUT.  Open a new e-mail message, paste the URL into the body of the message, then press ENTER to reformat the pasted text as a link.

If the intention is to have the person edit the document, it is recommended that you send a link to the library referencing the document to be checked out and edited, rather than sending an attachment or link to the document.

A Word About Folders

CONCEPTS:  Many of us are used to working with files and folders to organize and search for our documents.  In SharePoint, you still have the option to create folders in SharePoint libraries to help arrange how documents are stored; however, this is the more restrictive way of organizing content.  Instead of using folders to organize a document library, it is recommended that you create custom views and filters that can be used to categorize the document lists.  This is the “SharePoint way” of organizing information and it supports more options for displaying documents and searching them.

If you choose to use folders to help manage documents, carefully evaluate the number of folders created and ask “Could this information be better tracked in a custom column?

Although folders (also called containers) are not required to use large lists and libraries, you can still use them to help organize your data and improve the efficiency of your data access. When you create a folder, behind the scenes you are creating an internal index. This internal index is also created for the root folder, or top-level of a list or library. When you access items in a folder, you are effectively using this internal index to access the data. Bear in mind that if a folder contains subfolders, each subfolder is counted as an item (but not any items in that subfolder).

Even when the total number of items in a list or library is very large, a view of a single folder is at least as fast as a view that filters the total number of items by using an indexed column. In some scenarios, it may be possible to distribute all of the items in a list or library into multiple folders such that no folder has more than five thousand items.

STEPS                      To create a folder:

1.       On the Library Ribbon Menu, click on, then clickin the Documents Menu, and click on NEW DOCUMENT.

2.       On the New Folder page, enter a name of the folder, then click on SAVE.

3.       The folder will appear in the library just like a list item, but will have an icon that looks like a tabbed manila folder.

NOTES: Some arguments for not using folders include:  folders do not support workflow and information management policies; alerts cannot be set per folder, only per list or item.

Using Site Columns, you can easily group documents in your document library by a specific column.  See “Adding Additional Columns to a List.”

                          When lists are initially created, they do not allow folders to be created.

Objectives

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

·         Understand the use of columns and views in SharePoint

·         Change the order of columns

·         Add additional columns to a list

·         Create custom columns

·         Create and modify views\

Overview of Columns

CONCEPTS: The power of lists lies in the ability to set up a structure that best represents how your information will be displayed and stored.  Creating COLUMNS, the individual data fields in a list, gives Site Owners a great deal of flexibility in determining the data and content stored in their site, as well as helping to organize list information.  To help guide which columns are necessary, it is important to understand what content is stored within the site and what users will need to know about it. 

The template that is used to create a list or library determines the columns that initially exist in the default view; e.g., Title, Assigned To, Status, Priority, Due Date, % complete, and predecessors for the Tasks list.

In addition to the columns you initially see in a list, there are even more columns from which to choose that are not seen by default.  Any of these additional columns can be added when you customize the view of the list.

There may be times when these columns do not meet your needs and you need to add new columns to capture pertinent information for a list or library.  There are several options for adding new columns to your lists, including choosing from a gallery of pre-configured columns set up in SharePoint or creating a custom list column.

CONCEPTS: Each column has a specific type of data associated with it.  Columns can be configured to store varying types of data, including text, links data stored in the site, numerical and currency values, date and time, yes/no options, hyperlinks, etc.  By default, SharePoint offers the following column types:

Select this:	To display this:
Single line of text	Columns that collect and display small amounts of text in a single line, including text only, combinations of text and numbers, and numbers that are not used in calculations; e.g., phone numbers.
Multiple lines of text	Columns that collect and display one or more sentences of text; e.g., comments, address blocks.  Used also for rich text editing capabilities and for adding images, tables, and hyperlinks to columns through the use of the Advanced List Text Editor.
Choice (menu to choose from)	Columns that display a list of pre-determined options; e.g., status, department name.
Number (1, 1.0, 100)	Columns that provide a box in which you can type a numerical value, allowing for mathematical operations to be performed.
Currency ($,¥, €)	Columns that provide a box in which you can type a monetary value; e.g., salary.
Date and Time	Columns that store calendar or date and time-of-day information; e.g., start time, due date.  (Note:  Cannot enter a time value without a date.)
Lookup (information already on this site)	Columns that make it easy for you to select information that is already stored on the site.  Unlike the Choice type, the Lookup type provides the choices dynamically by presenting the values as links that point to another list on the site.
Yes/No (checkbox)	Columns that store true/false information; e.g., approved.
Person or Group	Columns that display the name of users or SharePoint groups.
Hyperlink or Picture	Columns that display a hyperlink to a web page or display an image from the Web; e.g., a logo.
Calculated (calculation based on other columns)	Columns that display information that is based on the result of a formula.  The formula can use information from other lists and columns, dates, numbers, and standard mathematical operators.

CONCEPTS:When a list or library column is created, it is added to the list in the order in which it was created.  This order may not be ideal for users, however, as they enter new information into a list, edit an existing item, or when they click on a single item to view it in full page.  SharePoint provides an intuitive way to change the order in which columns are displayed in the New Item and Edit Screen forms to make it more user friendly for the users – a change that does not actually alter the list view of the columns. 

STEPS                      To change column order:

1.       From the main page locate the LIST TOOLS TAB and click on the LIST.

2.       From the LIST TOOLS TAB, locate and click on MODIFY VIEW.

3.       In the Columns section of the Customize List page, click on COLUMN ORDERING.

4.       On the Change Field Order page, change the position of a column by selecting a different number from the drop-down menu under the Position from Top heading.  The page will automatically refresh each time you select a number to display items in the new order.

5.       Repeat step 4 as needed, and then click  to close the Change Field Order page and return to the Customize List page.

CONCEPTS             Once you have added a column to your list, you can modify certain settings, such as the adding more choices to a drop-down menu.  The options you will have depend on the column type and the type of list.

STEPS                      To modify the properties for an existing column:

1.       Click LIST   on the LIST TOOLS TAB, and then click on LIST SETTINGS.

2.       In the Columns section, click on the name of the column you want to edit.

3.       On the Change Column page, modify the name for the column or specify a different type of information that will be stored in this field.  Note:  The options you have in this page will depend both on the list and the column you are editing.

4.       Change any additional column settings, and then click on OK to return to the Customize List page.

CONCEPTS:   If the default list or library does not contain the columns you need to capture information, you can add additional columns.  One option is to add a column from the extensive list of pre-configured columns (referred to as SITE COLUMNS) that SharePoint provides to enable users to enter specific types of information.  Using this central gallery of columns ensures there is consistency in the labeling of column headings and the capturing of “like” data.

STEPS                      To add pre-configured site columns to a list:

1.       Click the LIST TOOLS TAB   on the toolbar, and then click on LIST SETTINGS.

2.       In the Columns section of the Customize List page, you will see a list of all columns currently available for the list.  Below the list, click on ADD FROM EXISTING SITE COLUMNS.

STEPS                To add pre-configured site columns to a list (continued from the previous page):

3.       In the Add Columns from Site Columns page, select the group from which you would like to select the column (e.g., select CORE CONTACT AND CALENDAR COLUMNS to view all columns related to contacts and calendars).

4.       Select the column you would like to add from the list under Available Site Columns, and then click on ADD.

5.       In the Options section, checkmark the ADD TO DEFAULT VIEW box to display the column in the default view that users will see when they first view the list or library.

6.       Click on OK to close the Add Columns from Site Columns page and return to the Customize List page.

CONCEPTS             You can easily create a column from scratch to better meet your needs and capture more pertinent information.  The ability to create custom columns gives Site Owners a great deal of flexibility in determining the data and content stored in their site. 

Custom columns that are created using the CREATE COLUMN command on the List Tools Tab differ from the Site Columns that we added earlier in this section.  Unlike the Site Columns that are pre-configured and reside in a central gallery that others can use for their lists, these column types are associated with a specific list or library and do not reside in a central gallery for others to access

STEPS                To add a custom column to a list or library:

1.       Within the list, click   on the toolbar, and then click on CREATE COLUMN.

2.       On the Create Column page, enter a descriptive name for the column, and then specify the column type. 

3.       Click next to the desired column type.  (See “Exploring Column Types” in this section for a complete list of column types along with the types of information they can store.)

Creating a Custom Column

STEPS    To add a custom column to a list or library (continued from the previous page):

4.       (Opt.)  Specify any settings under the Additional Column Settings section.  Note:  The options available in this section will change depending on the column type you select; however, the following options will be available for all column types:

Add a brief description that will allow you to later identify and reuse the column.

Specify whether this field should be required for all new list or library items.

Enter a default value to automatically populate the field if the column is not required and is left blank by the user.

Specify whether the column should be displayed in the current default view for the list or library.

5.       Determine whether to leave Add to Default View selected or not.

6.       Click on OK to close the Create Column page and save the new settings.

About Views

CONCEPTS Need to present list and library content in alternate ways to make it most useful to your users?  Using the default VIEWS provided for each list or creating your own views allows you to determine how items in a list will display.  For example, you may only want to display only 3 of 6 columns of information in a list or need the list data filtered in a specific way.  Views do not change the content of the list or library; they just organize or filter the content to make it easier to find and browse in a meaningful way.

A view determines which columns show, in what order the items are displayed, how they are initially sorted, and the format used to present the items.  Each list or library has at least one view, based on its type and the settings that have been applied, and multiple other views can be set up for the same list or library.  The default view for built-in lists is ALL <Items>; e.g., ALL TASKS.

The sorting and filtering features in views offer more options and complexity than working with standard sorting/filtering in lists.  For example, on a list page, you can only sort by a single column; however, a view can be set up to sort by up to two columns.  In addition, you can combine multiple filters using AND/ OR operators in a view versus only being able to filter for exact matches in a list page.

Advanced sorting and filtering are just a couple examples of the options you have as you create views of your list’s content (see steps for “Creating a New View” for additional options.

CONCEPTS:  All views begin with one of four basic types of views.  These types act as the basic template for the view that can then be customized based on the settings for that view type.  Each view type has its own distinct advantages for displaying data.

The STANDARD type is the most commonly used view and is the default view for most types of lists and libraries.  It displays items in a tabular format and allows for grouping and style settings not found in the other view formats.

As described earlier, the DATASHEET type displays data in a grid that allows you to edit multiple items in a single page – much like an Excel spreadsheet.  (See “Editing Items in Datasheet View.”)

The CALENDAR type displays the list items in a calendar format with built-in views by day, week, or month.

The GANTT type displays the list items in both a tabular format and a time-interval format with bars to indicate progress on tasks. 

NOTES:Rather than creating another list or library, stop and think how a view might help you accomplish what you need.

Users with appropriate permissions can create additional views for a specific list, then create links to these views on the Quick Launch Bar or add them to the Links list.

CONCEPTS: To create a new view for your list or library, you will begin by selecting one of the four basic types of views.  The type you choose will provide the basis for your new view while allowing you to fully customize its settings.

STEPS                      To create a new view:

1.       Within the list Tools tab, click CREATE VIEW.

2.       On the Create View page, click on the type of view you want to create.  In this example, we will select STANDARD VIEW.

3.       Type a name for your view in the View Name box.  This name should be descriptive enough that users will be able to select it easily in a list of views (e.g., “Sorted by Project”).

4.       In the Audience section, select CREATE A PUBLIC VIEW to make the view available to all users, or CREATE A PRIVATE VIEW to create a view that only you can use.

5.       In the Columns section, checkmark the box next to each column that you want to appear in the view.  Next to the column name for each column you choose to display, select the number for the order in which you want that column to appear in the view from the POSITION FROM LEFT drop-down menu.

6.       (Opt.)  In the Sort section, use the drop-down menu to select a column by which you want to sort the list, and then specify whether the sort order should be ascending or descending.  Select a second column, if desired, to specify an additional sort (e.g., sort first by author and then by date).7.       (Opt.)  In the Filter section, specify any filters you would like to apply to the view in order to limit the items displayed to those that match a certain criteria (e.g., only items by a particular author).  Use the drop-down menus to select a column (e.g., author) and an operation (e.g., is equal to), then type in a value in the text box (e.g., Nita Holiday).  To specify more than two filters, click on SHOW MORE COLUMNS.

8.       (Opt.)  In the Group By section, specify a column by which you want to group items.  Items with the same value in that column (e.g., the same author) will display in an expandable section.  Use the drop-down menu to select a column, specify how the groups should be sorted, then indicate whether groups should be expanded or collapsed by default.

9.       (Opt.)  In the Totals section, use the drop-down menus to choose to display a count of the list items for any available columns (e.g., the total number of tasks).

10.    (Opt.)  In the Style section, select the style that you want for the view; e.g., a shaded list in which every other row is shaded.

11.    (Opt.)  If your list or library has folders, you can select SHOW ALL ITEMS WITHOUT FOLDERS to create a view in which all items are shown at the same level.

12.    (Opt.)  In the Item Limit section, specify whether you want to impose a limit on the total number of list items displayed or whether you want users to be able to page through “batches” of items, and then enter the item limit for your selection.

13.    Click  to close the Create View page and return to your list.  The view that you just created will appear in the View drop-down menu.

To modify an existing view:

1.       Within the list or library, click on the drop-down arrow next to VIEW and select MODIFY THIS VIEW.

2.       The Edit View page will display, containing all of the same options and settings as were available on the Create View page.

3.       Change any settings, and then click  to return to the list.

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