CAIRO BOOKS's Description
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 has improved and changed dramatically
over previous versions of the product. The capabilities of the platform have
expanded greatly with the inclusion of an automated workflow engine, web
content management capabilities, and a vast number of document management
enhancements. However, the value of this tool to an enterprise will depend
primarily on the ability of individuals in the organization to understand the
features and capabilities of the platform and effectively map those to specific
business requirements. This book is designed to mentor and coach business and
technical leaders in an organization on the use of SharePoint to address
critical information management problems. It gives detailed descriptions and
illustrations of the product's functionality and also includes realistic usage
scenarios to provide contextual relevance and a personalized learning
experience to the reader.
The mission of this book is to provide extensive knowledge to information
workers and site managers that will empower them to become SharePoint
Application champions in the organization. This book should be the premiere
handbook of any active or aspiring SharePoint expert.
To complete the exercises in this book, you should have a basic comfort level
using Microsoft Office application to create content and a general
understanding of how to interact with a web site through the browser. This book
is intended as a starting point for any SharePoint 2007 user whether that user
has never used SharePoint before or has some familiarity with a previous
version and just wants to understand the differences with the new release.
Chapter 1: Getting Started with SharePoint Server: The first chapter of the
book is targeted at users who have either never used SharePoint before or are
already familiar with SharePoint Portal Server 2003 or Windows SharePoint
Service v2 and are looking to gain an understanding of what has changed in
SharePoint 2007. This chapter lays out the foundation for important terminology
and concepts explored in the following chapters of the book.
Chapter 2: Working with SharePoint Lists: This chapter introduces one of the
core mechanisms for sharing and organizing content in a SharePoint site. You
will review what lists are, how they are used, and then explore the various
templates that exist in SharePoint.
Chapter 3: Working with SharePoint Libraries: After reviewing some of the
fundamental concepts relating to lists, the chapter introduces the other major
storage mechanism in SharePoint known as libraries. This chapter discusses some
of the various templates that exist for libraries as well as brand-new concepts
in 2007, such as slide libraries and wiki page libraries.
Chapter 4: Managing and Customizing Lists and Libraries: SharePoint templates
for lists and libraries provide a great starting point for collaboration and
information sharing. This chapter introduces how you can extend these base
templates to address an organization’s specific requirements for a
collaborative site or information management tool.
Chapter 5: Working with Workflow: Workflow is a new feature available in
SharePoint Server 2007. This chapter discusses the templates that SharePoint
provides for workflow, as well as demonstrates how to create a custom workflow
solution using the SharePoint Designer.
Chapter 6: Working with Content Types: Most organizations have information
and documents, which often utilize consistent templates, processes and policies
each time they are created. Therefore, SharePoint 2007 has introduced the
concept of a Content Type to allow an organization to package templates and
information to ensure that reusable components are rolled out in the
organization to enforce consistency and ease of use. This chapter demonstrates
what content types are and explores how they can be used through some hands-on
examples.
Chapter 7: Working with Web Parts: Web Parts are an important element in
SharePoint because they display information in sites to users. A variety of Web
Parts exist in SharePoint 2007 to address the many ways that teams want to
present information. This chapter explores the various groups of Web Parts in
SharePoint, including examples on how specific types of Web Parts can be
configured and used to present information in a desired manner.
Chapter 8: Working with Sites and Workspaces: The fundamental components of
any SharePoint environment are the sites and workspaces that it contains. These
collaborative work areas contain all the components discussed in previous
sections and represent how each of those items come together to provide an
effective environment for collaboration, communication, and document
management. In this section of the book, topics such as site templates,
features, and look and feel are covered.
Chapter 9: User Management, Audiences, and Profiles: Effective management of
users is of ultimate importance to any information system. The two primary
tiers of effective user management include securing content and personalizing
information on the portal. This chapter explains in simple terms how to
effectively secure a SharePoint environment at the site level, the list or
library level, and down to the unique content items stored on a SharePoint
site. In addition, an introduction to personalization is presented to ensure
that readers understand how to effectively target information to users in a
portal.
Chapter 10: Working with Forms Services: InfoPath is the ideal companion to
SharePoint for many business solutions. This chapter introduces readers to
creating simple business applications using InfoPath and SharePoint including
new features in 2007, such as template parts and browser based forms.
Chapter 11: Working with Excel Services: SharePoint addresses the need that
many organizations face for better visibility and accessibility to data that is
often stored in Excel spreadsheets or external business applications. This
chapter demonstrates how to improve the overall decision making of an
organization by providing access to important information by utilizing browser
based worksheets, visual indicators of performance information, and building
personalized interactive dashboards.
Chapter 12: Working with the Business Data Catalog: The Business Data Catalog
is completely new to SharePoint in 2007 and offers a fantastic way to access
information stored in other business applications through the SharePoint portal
interface and elements. This chapter introduces the concept of the Business
Data Catalog, explaining each of the key roles in detail and then focusing on
usage scenarios from the perspective of the business analyst and end-user roles.
Chapter 13: Getting Started with Web Content Management: All the
functionality previously available in Content Management Server 2002 has been
incorporated into the SharePoint platform for 2007. This convergence of
technology allows for the creation, review, and publishing of web content from
a single environment. This chapter provides an overview of the web content
management capabilities of the system including the use of publishing sites and
features, the automatic provisioning of multilingual content through
variations, and user-interface customization.
Chapter 14: Working with Search: An information system is useful to an
organization only if stakeholders can easily access and locate the information
it contains. This chapter discusses the search engine capabilities of the
SharePoint platform including methods that improve the search experience
through the use of custom search scopes, content sources, and best bets.