Connect.Collaborate.SharePoint
Jul
19

Feel free to grab this web part (right-click, save-as) http://www.wssdemo.com/Downloads/SharePointSitesRSS.dwp
Add it to a web part page using the Import option (zero code deployment).

Thanks to http://sharepointrss.com/ for the DVWP generator+ a couple of tweaks to show all sites and cache the data for a day.

A sample page hosting the web part can be seen here http://www.wssdemo.com/Pages/RSSFeeds.aspx

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Jul
16

While I'm thinking about themes, I have updated my demo page for the Clarity theme with a few excellent tips on using this particular theme. Check it out here http://www.wssdemo.com/Pages/master%20clarity.aspx

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Jul
16

Tip: don't forget to tell the outsourcer that it is an Intranet site where you want to use all the collaboration features of SharePoint otherwise they might assume that you also want a master page based on the minimal master template which was intended for Web Content Management site only, removing all tables and using 100% CSS for layout. Wrong!

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Jul
14

I had set my W2K8 server that hosts the WSSDemo.com virtual farm (4 virtual servers) to automatically install Windows Updates including recommended updates. Looks like the WFE server didn't update before the host OS updated and the network adapter in the WFE virtual machine was no longer valid so it couldn't connect to Windows Update to get the latest Integration Services.

The solution is to add the Legacy Network Adapter to the VM so that you can get back to Windows Update.

For forward planners, the solution is to update all guests first and shut them down before updating the host as the save state files from the RC1 version are not compatible with RTM.

Anyway, this is why WSSDemo.com was down while I was asleep...

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Jul
13

SharePoint Designer is used to create page layouts but you must use the browser to create web pages based on a page layout. I found this rather frustrating with page layouts that include web part zones and trying to use Data View's in these pages.

A Data View could be created in a normal Web Part page, exported to a .webpart file and then imported onto the page layout page but every time you want to edit the data view you would have to go through this process. It is for this reason that I was never a big fan of Page Layouts on Intranet sites and just stuck with Content Editor Web parts (forgoing the versioning capability of a page based on a page layout).

Today I learnt something new about SharePoint Designer; it allows you to disconnect a page from its page layout so that you can edit the page.

This will copy all of the content from the page layout into the publishing page...

You can even reattach the page content to the page layout...

Although the warning dialog box says that all markup in the page will be deleted, content inside field controls and web parts still remains.

I just read the funniest thing on CMSWire with regards to rights management solutions.
"Microsoft SharePoint does have some digital rights capabilities built in to the platform but they certainly wouldn't be as robust as a third party solution."
What do you think?

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Jul
8

If you are lucky enough to have Office Communicator deployed with telephony integration enabled you will have already seen the SharePoint functionality to initiate a telephone call with a document author or from the user profile page.

You can create a hyperlink in a web page or email message to initiate a call by using the tel: protocol. You can also enable this functionality in a SharePoint Contacts lists with the Data View web part. Just replace the <xsl:value-of select="@WorkPhone" /> with

Click to call: <a href="tel:{@WorkPhone}" ><xsl:value-of select="@WorkPhone" /></a>

While updating one of my Virtual Earth demos because Microsoft had turned off the older pre v6 map control API's, I decided to add this "click to call" functionality to the Office Locations contact list here http://www.wssdemo.com/demo . The map pin also allows you to initiate a call...

I will also be incorporating this into my Meeting Room demo that is about to be updated to provide maps with floor plans.

I don't know if this works with MSN Messenger or other VOIP products. Trry my number tel:+652068883209 but don't expect me to pay your phone bill (SharePoint rich text field doesn't like tel: hyperlinks :-(

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Jun
28

The Administrator Training runs from 14th July

This 5-day event is designed to provide SharePoint Administrators with information and provide the skills needed to design, deploy and manage a Microsoft Office SharePoint Portal Server 2007 implementation.

Prerequisites

The ideal students will possess knowledge of general networking concepts and have a basic understanding of the Windows SharePoint Services v3 and SharePoint Server 2007.

Register here: http://www.combined-knowledge.com.au/Booking%20Forms/Administrator/Course%20Booking.html?New%20Zealand.html

Power User Training (For End Users) 4 days July 21st to 25th 2008

This course concentrates on SharePoint 2007 from the perspective of users who will be assigned the role of a SharePoint Member and Site Owner. This course is aimed at a non‐technical user who will view, edit and contribute content to a Windows SharePoint Services Site and administer those sites.

Prerequisites

This course is aimed at delegates that have no previous experience of SharePoint. The course starts of at an introductory level and is delivered at a pace that will allow delegates to spend time learning this product and the SharePoint 2007 Site Member and SharePoint 2007 Site Owner roles.

Training will be held at Auldhouse Wellington and delivered by Craig Carpenter from Combined Knowledge UK.

Register here: http://www.combined-knowledge.com.au/Booking%20Forms/End%20User/Course%20Booking.html?New%20Zealand.html

 

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Jun
28

This is the product that I have installed ion WSSDemo.com. It is developed by some old colleagues of mine and I think they are onto a winner here.

As an example, my Top 100 web sites page http://www.wssdemo.com/Pages/topwebsites.aspx contains 100 thumbnail images but RPO tiles them into a single image and the browser only has to make 1 request rather than 100. This dramatically improves the speed with which the browser can render the page.

Image tiling is only one of the optimizations performed. It also collapses and removes duplicates in CSS and Java script files.

All RPO requires is adding a few lines to the web.config and a dll in the GAC or Bin directory.

SharePoint Runtime Page Optimizer

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Jun
26
At least I think http://www.wssdemo.com is going twice as fast than it used to. What do you think?
 
All will be revealed in the next couple of days...
Categories:SharePoint

 
Jun
21

I discovered something I didn't know about SharePoint. Picture Libraries create thumbnail and preview images of TIFF files.


If you want to render the TIFF images using a Data View Web Part, you need to calculate the url for the thumbnail or preview images.
For a file name of http://www.wssdemo.com/TIFF/PCR2.tiff

Thumbnail url = http://www.wssdemo.com/TIFF/_t/PCR2_tiff.jpg

Preview url = http://www.wssdemo.com/TIFF/_w/PCR2_tiff.jpg

You can create the preview image using the following in your rowview template section

<td class="ms-vb">

<xsl:variable name="PreviewURL" select="concat($HttpHost, ddwrt:UrlDirName(string(@FileRef)),'/_w/',ddwrt:UrlBaseName(concat($HttpHost, @FileRef)),'_', ddwrt:GetFileExtension(concat($HttpHost, @FileRef)),'.jpg')" />

<img src="{$PreviewURL}" />

</td>

To use the $HttpHost variable you need to add the following after the <xsl:stylesheet line near the top of the web part

<xsl:param name="HttpHost" />

Demo page

Imagine using this to store scanned images of invoices and then allowing someone (or an automated OCR process) to update custom metadata columns for the item. You could even create a linked data source to your finance records to show a single view of purchase order and accounts payable information including scanned images of the packing slip and invoice.

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