Clayko Group Company Blog

Full Chapter on Building a Scalable ECM Architecture with SharePoint 2010

Clayko Group — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 00:54:03 GMT

From our partner KnowledgeLake, comes the following..

"FREE KNOWLEDGE WEDNESDAY. KnowledgeLake is providing a full chapter excerpt from the recent book – SharePoint Server 2010, Enterprise Content Management. This chapter focuses on building storage architecture, scaling the SharePoint topology and tuning your SharePoint performance. It’s an amazing chapter from an amazing book so download it now: http://bit.ly/tXfeTc KnowledgeLake will also share a chapter on Records Management. Follow KnowledgeLake on Twitter or Facebook for more info. The complete book (which is written by a team of SharePoint experts) is available on Amazon now - http://t.co/5Vy1oF2c"

First Look at KnowledgeLake Imaging 4.2 for SharePoint

Clayko Group — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 00:45:04 GMT

The KnowledgeLake product suite continues to make a huge impact on the SharePoint – Enterprise Content Management (ECM) Market with the upcoming release of Imaging 4.2, targeting October of this year. This upcoming release is expected to have game-changing new features and enhancements, as well as SDK extensibility that SharePoint developers will buzz about. In the 7 years that I have worked for KnowledgeLake, I’ve never been as excited about an Imaging software launch as I am for 4.2 and I expect our current customers to feel the same. This is the first public “sneak peek” of Imaging 4.2 and I am happy to share a few awesome features that will be in this next version.

In-Viewer Keyword Searching & Editing for PDF

KnowledgeLake already provides a loaded browser-based document viewer for SharePoint, but it just got better. Keyword / phrase searching for PDF documents is now provided within the viewer, which includes highlighting, relevance ranking and sorting. Also – when a textual based search is launched from the KnowledgeLake Search Web Part, the value is passed into the viewer; executing the In-Viewer searching immediately after opening the document. The user can quickly see the document keyword search results in a relevance ranked order.

The KnowledgeLake Viewer also supports PDF document editing, similar to what would be offered when purchasing a license of Adobe Acrobat. Previously the document could be annotated, stamped, highlighted, redacted, encrypted, book-marked and more. Now, you can also manipulate page layout by uploading or scanning new pages directly from the viewer. Pages can also be deleted, rotated, rearranged and replaced and easily saved as an entirely new file in the same location with the same properties.

Show Me More like This

Let’s say an employment application is being reviewed within the KnowledgeLake viewer for a potential new hire. From this document, they want to find documents that correspond to this one; such as other applications or the applicant’s resume. With one button, then end user is now empowered with this functionality. A “Related Documents” search quickly returns corresponding documents that can be sorted and filtered to find optimal results. An administrator can even enhance this feature through configuration. For instance, an admin can specify that the documents with the Content Type of Application are linked to the Resume Content Type by the column of SSN. The Administrator can also configure an expected document count that should be returned to serve as a document checklist; a workflow if you will. The end user just clicks a button to see targeted matches return quickly.

Export a Collection of Documents from SharePoint

Many SharePoint users have been waiting for a simplified export utility. KnowledgeLake Imaging
enables authenticated users to execute a search query and export all documents, or a selection of documents from SharePoint to an Administrator configured File Share. A law firm may need to find all documents associated with a particular case. They use the Search Center to execute a query which returns the desired documents. They can then export the set of the documents to a File Share and burn or copy the exported set of documents with the CSV file to external media. As an added bonus, the CSV file includes a hyperlink for each document that points to the documents relative path within the export folder. Open this file with Microsoft Excel and you can find the desired file with metadata and open it using this hyperlink. With more than 60 new features coming with this release of KnowledgeLake Imaging 4.2, I’m sure there is something here for everyone! Check back in soon or just subscribe to this feed for more updates on what’s coming this fall.

Floyd Bell

Director of Product Management

KnowledgeLake, Inc.

Office 365 Launches

Clayko Group — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 15:08:57 GMT

Office 365 launches. Here's the official press conference.

Will get the pricing up here soon with an explanation of how it all works.

I think this is giving a lot businesses a reality check. Tought it was all fancy tricks being able to work anywhere, anytime. Mobile computing is here now. Want to work on a tablet and not be constrained to the office. This is it!

Cloud Computing: Risk or Opportunity?

Clayko Group — Sun, 15 May 2011 22:27:23 GMT

As mentioned in an earlier post on cloud computing, Clayko GM Sheryl Frame was a guest speaker on the panel at The Women in Technology Interactive Panel Workshop which was hosted by IEEE-WISE. This post is taken from her presentation.

Cloud Computing: It's just the internet

Cloud Computing topped Gartner’s Top 10 Strategic Technology for 2010 with world-wide revenue expected to reach $68.3 billion (USD) in 2010, an increase of 16.6 over 2009. To respond to Gartner’s comment, it is important to have a common understanding of what is meant by “Cloud Computing”. The term “cloud” is a metaphor for the Internet.

So our fundamental concept of Cloud Computing is the processing and related data in an unspecified or unknown place. And we’re all familiar with such services as SaaS etc., but how many of us use them?

We would wager that most people in this room are in fact users of Cloud Computing. Personally, we’ve all probably used at least one, if not all, of the following:

Gmail
Hotmail
Facebook
LinkedIn
DropBox

But when it comes to the uptake of “Cloud Computing” in business circles, the trend is slower than anticipated.

Cloud Computing: Who should be using it?

Essentially, any business larger than one employee needs to store its data in a location and run its business applications, including services like email. They need back-ups but don’t always have the skills or the know-how and cost of infrastructure will always play a part in setting up such a system.

With Cloud Computing, you instead rent space and capacity in a provider’s data centre and connect over the Internet. Much like a mobile phone, it becomes a commodity or a “pay as you go” model.

Security concerns with the Cloud

Uppermost in everyone’s mind is the question of Security.

Where is my data being held?
Who has access to it?
How long will it be retained?

Business has to keep records for 7 years or more, so this is a real concern. So too is the location of the data, and the fact that should there be any dispute, one is governed by the jurisdiction in which the data is housed. Yet users of services like DropBox, a free repository in most instances, would never ask these questions. In fact, most users don’t know that DropBox is run by S3 and indirectly by Amazon.

Are security concerns a red herring?

In our view security is a red herring. Fear of change is a much bigger factor. How much more secure is data housed in a Microsoft or Google environment than data sitting in a local and sometimes unprotected server?

To quote Peter Moon who recently published an article stating “Everybody loves security, but few are willing to suffer the inconvenience it requires”. Think of USB keys – who wants to remember yet another password? It is much simpler to plug the key into the slot and see all the files.”

We read of the nationwide panic as it became known that Vodafone’s security had been breached and customer data was vulnerable. Vodafone run an in-house system, and investigations found the breach was attributable to a member of staff giving out a password, not a system failure.

Usability a major driver

One major driver is of course usability. If it is simple (and seemingly free) then people will try the service and more importantly pass on the message within their social networks. Look at the statistics below:

Radio - 38 years to reach an audience of 50 million

TV - 13 years to reach an audience of 50 million

iPod - 6 years to reach an audience of 50 million

Facebook - 3 years to reach an audience of 50 million

Farmville - < 1year to reach an audience of 50 million

*Source: Scitech- based on company annual reports and Neilson research papers

Conclusion

Cloud Computing is here and has a strong upside in becoming the preferred option for many businesses. Even though new technology is perceived as a risk, the reality is the Cloud is a new delivery model not new technology.

Concern still lingers about who can access the data, where it will reside, and the retention of records. As an industry, we haven't even addressed how to get off the cloud.

The reality is it takes catalysts to precipitate change. One catalyst we have already encountered is the iPhone and Ipad phenomenon – we are now so used to getting information at the click of a button that we want everything delivered that way.

We've been faced with incredible examples of how insecure our natural environment against forces of nature - floods, fires, earthquakes, tsunami - putting perspective to Microsoft, Google and the other leading Cloud providers. With all their infrastructure and security, delivered to you via the Cloud, it's an attractive option.

Cloud Computing for Small Business

If you would like more information about moving your small business to the cloud, please contact Clayko for more information about our BPOS offering.

Sheryl Frame will be speaking on a panel discussion about Cloud Computing with IBM, Deloitte, Australian Computer Society and Women in Technology, WA (WITWA) at the end of June. For more information, visit the event details at the WITWA website.

Let SharePoint Manage Your BLOB Storage

Clayko Group — Tue, 10 May 2011 21:30:18 GMT

Are you struggling with BLOB? We recently received an inquiry from a reader asking what remote BLOB storage was. BLOB stands for Binary Large Objects. According to Microsoft Technet, data elements having either of the following characteristics:

Unstructured data that has no schema (such as a piece of encrypted data).
A large amount of binary data (many megabytes or gigabytes) that has a very simple schema, such as image files, streaming video or sound clips.

Large data elements = sluggish system

SQL Server stores BLOB data in its databases by default. As the BLOB data increases in size (remember it consists of large data elements) file space and server resources tend to become consumed resulting in a sluggish system. The data would then be removed and placed into a separate file using a third-party provider or the users would have to invest in external storage solutions.

Remote BLOB Storage to the rescue

SharePoint 2010 has a Remote Blob Storage (RBS) functionality that allows documents to be placed into the databases file system instead of the database itself. SharePoint 2010 supports the FILESTREAM provider which is available through the SQL Server Remote BLOB Store installation package from the Feature Pack for Microsoft SQL Server 2008. The information is then stored locally on the server.

The benefits for remote storage are:

Saving money
Improved performance
Improved manageability
Compliance with regulatory bodies

More BLOB info

For a detailed look at the benefits to Remote Blob Storage and what considerations you need to make before implementing RBS, have a look at the excellent post by JerseyBob, SharePoint Remote BLOB Storage for Non-Experts. Even BLOB experts are bound to pick up a few tips in this meaty post at the StoragePoint Team Blog.

Don’t hesitate to contact Clayko if you have any questions about BLOB or SharePoint, in general. We have a team of experienced SharePoint consultants.

Making Sure Your Documents are Saved to the Correct Location - SharePoint 2010 Drop-off Library

Clayko Group — Mon, 09 May 2011 04:05:02 GMT

Author: Clayton Dorrington

“We want everyone to save to one location and automatically file their documents in the correct location”. This has to be one of the most common requests we hear from clients when addressing their document management requirements.

“Sure, no problems” is the response Clayko is now able to give customers, thanks to the SharePoint 2010 Drop-off Library and Content Organiser feature.

What is a Drop-off Library?

The Drop-off Library is place where all documents are routed to before being sent to their final destination. When a new document is received, it checks what type of document it is, and depending on that, it invokes corresponding actions.

Take for example a project based company. Each project has a basic work breakdown structure that is common across all projects. This includes certain documents, such as Drawings. So wouldn’t it be nice, if say an engineer working for that company across several projects, only had to upload their drawings to one location and have the drawings saved to the relevant project location.

This is exactly what the Drop-off Library enables.

The Drop-off Library is a part of the SharePoint Content Organiser feature new to 2010. As the name suggests, the Content Organiser is there to help you manage SharePoint content. In the Drop-off Library, your documents are organised by routing rules, thereby ensuring documents are sent to the correct locations based on information about that document.

Going back to our engineer example, when an engineer uploads a document, they will be asked which project the drawing relates to, and possibly several other pieces of information. Based on this, the document will be routed to the correct project and stored in the correct location in the work breakdown structure.

So now, there is no need for your staff to have to remember where they are meant to save their documents. No folder hierarchy or navigating to specific sites and document libraries (as the case was for SharePoint 2007).

Planning the SharePoint 2010 Drop-off Library

Drop-off Library sounds too easy to be true? Well the good news is that it really is that easy based on the proviso that your SharePoint environment has been correctly planned for. This means correctly architecting Sites, Libraries and most importantly, Content Types. Do this, and it’s a breeze. If you don’t know what a Content Type is, assistance is recommended.

Office 365 and SharePoint Online Apps Store

Clayko Group — Wed, 04 May 2011 04:30:31 GMT

Author: Clayton Dorrington

Have you noticed the amount of applications that are now on the market for SharePoint? Today, there are applications that extend SharePoint to meet nearly every possible business requirement you can think of. Point in case, Clayko extends SharePoint with:

KnowledgeLake – Document imaging and capture to allow companies to scan and easily search and retrieve documents eg for Accounts Payable, Human Resources, Client Files etc.. More info here http://www.clayko.com.au/Products_and_Services/Products/Knowledgelake.aspx

Organice – Engineering information management system enabling AEC companies to control project related documentation including CAD drawings. More info here http://www.clayko.com.au/Products_and_Services/Products/Organice.aspx

So it is no surprise that Microsoft have recently announced the creation of a marketplace for SharePoint Online compatible applications. The creation of the Microsoft "Apps Store" (name pending due to a naming dispute with close friends Apple), will bring specific business solutions to SharePoint Online users, allowing businesses to easily extend SharePoint to meet specific challenges.

I think Steve Ballmer – Microsoft CEO – outlined SharePoint’s position in the market beautifully when he described SharePoint as the operating system for business. So just as you have applications such as Word, Excel, Outlook, various photo and video editing software, Skype and other applications that you install on your PC operating system (eg Windows 7), businesses these days are looking at applications that meet their specifric needs using SharePoint as the platform.

At Clayko, we’re noticing the increase in adoption of SharePoint Online. Some of the reasons our customers are adopting SharePoint Online are listed below:

We need an Intranet

Manage business content easily

Enterprise grade solution at a fraction of the cost

It is seen as a better business solution than DropBox and Skydrive

Have used SharePoint in a previous role and want to bring it into this business but they can’t afford to buy the on-premise version

Want low cost entry to SharePoint

Proof of concept before making a larger investment in an on-premise deployment

Generally we find clients will extend SharePoint with KnowledgeLake and/or Organice and other 3^rd party applications after they are confident with where SharePoint sits in their organisation and realise that they have specific requirements which just can’t be achieved using native SharePoint.

The good news for Clayko’s customers is that both KnowledgeLake and Organice are SharePoint Online compatible, meaning they will work in the cloud as well as in hosted and on-premise environments. This means that even if you’re a single person operation, you can now have the same solution as much larger organisations, at a fraction of the cost!

Unfortunately these solutions are not yet available in the App Store, so in the meantime, you’ll just have to contact us the old fashioned way.

Office in the Cloud

Clayko Group — Mon, 02 May 2011 05:26:19 GMT

Global IT news has been abuzz with the announcement from Microsoft on the release of Microsoft Office 365 and the early reviews look promising. While they won’t say definitively, we can expect to see it in Australia towards the end of 2011 or early 2012. The PR announcement, “Microsoft Office 365: The Power to Think Big and Be Small, to Be Big and Act Fast” refers to, “a new service that brings familiar applications, including Office desktop software and Office Web Apps, together with SharePoint, Exchange and Lync in the cloud, for the first time”.

The Lync you need

The upgrade of BPOS to Office 365 includes Microsoft’s new communication package “The Lync” which replaces Office Communications Online and Live Meeting. The Lync provides an audio and video conferencing tool and a voice call service. It has been planned to sync it to iPhone and Windows Phone 7 allowing calls to be made from your mobile, making it a choice tool for those working on the run.

At last - Web Apps are here!

Web Apps have finally been included into the service where users can pen documents and put presentations together. With the hosted version of Exchange, users are able to move all their mail to local deployments enjoying a faster uploading time along with added features like opening Office attachments in a pop-up window and keyboard shortcuts. “Team Site” is the new SharePoint. It has the exact same features and workflows allowing access to shared documents which can be read and edited locally without having to leave the page or using another software suite.

Office 365: The best of everything

Office 365 has been created to meet a wide range of customer needs. As Kurt DelBene, president of the Office Division at Microsoft, said, “Office 365 is the best of everything we know about productivity, all in a single cloud service. With Office 365, your local bakery can get enterprise-calibre software and services for the first time, while a multinational pharmaceutical company can reduce costs and more easily stay current with the latest innovations. People can focus on their business, while we and our partners take care of the technology.”

Clayko offers support on Microsoft Office 365. We welcome you to contact us should you have any further queries.

What have you heard about Office 365?

What You Should Know about KnowledgeLake

Clayko Group — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 11:00:00 GMT

Mention the word “KnowledgeLake” and you might have an image of people swimming in a “lake” filled with technical and IT-related words and jargon in your mind. Before you grimace, let’s look at what KnowledgeLake is all about. To do that we first need to understand a little about Enterprise Content Management (ECM).

ECM in a nutshell is a content/document management solution. The KnowledgeLake website supplies a terrific definition of ECM as defined by AIIM, "Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is the strategies, methods and tools used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organizational processes. ECM tools and strategies allow the management of an organization's unstructured information, wherever that information exists.” More than a lake, think of KnowledgeLake as an information super highway - getting you where you want to be and keeping everything moving in an orderly fashion.

Ultimate ECM Solution: SharePoint + KnowledgeLake

In previous blog posts we explained that SharePoint is an ECM solution - combine SharePoint 2010 with KnowledgeLake and you will have an unprecedented ECM solution. KnowledgeLake is the pioneer in the development of document capture, imaging and workflow products and solutions for Microsoft SharePoint. KnowledgeLake makes use of the familiar Microsoft products most businesses already use to deliver a streamlined business operation while reducing mailing costs.

Why choose KnowledgeLake

We’ve already established that KnowledgeLake is a leader in ECM solutions. By focusing exclusively on SharePoint and building on its document imaging/scanning and capture platform they have provided a consistent and easy user experience while optimising the use of captured documents in the searching, workflow, and archiving processes. They have also incorporated a powerful search centre that builds on the native search capabilities in SharePoint 2010.

KnowledgeLake’s ECM solution benefits:

Affordability
Built on the SharePoint platform
Easy management of captured content
Easier searching, viewing, securing, routing and annotating of electronic content
User-friendly with a Microsoft Office look and feel

KnowledgeLake is an enterprise scalable SharePoint solution for all of your documentation needs. We’ll provide more depth on the solution offered by KnowledgeLake in future posts. For more information on how our KnowledgeLake solutions can benefit your company please contact us.

Help for Small Business: Better Business Productivity with BPOS

Clayko Group — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 06:10:41 GMT

Hands up if you’re a small business owner. In 2009, an estimated 202,818 small businesses operated within Western Australia alone. This number rises by more than 25,000 every year. Now, how many of you need access to the internet, documents, reports, and email? At least 98% of small business owners require computers and technology to operate in a competitive environment. For the final question; how many of you want high availability of online tools, comprehensive security and a no IT hassles?

Complex Web of Documents

Sure a lot of hands were raised but presumably a lot of small business owners don’t know how to go about setting up an IT management system or whether it is even a viable solution to implement. Here’s a quick scenario:

You are running a small business and have over 200 clients (some may even have over 2000 clients). All their details are stored on printed pieces of paper and filed in a storage cabinet. You might have company newsletters, reports, policies and procedures, tenders, proposals and a host of other communicative documents stored on your hard drive with CDs, DVDs and papers locked up in filing cabinets. Maybe you need to communicate with clients’ interstate or overseas and a tonne of emails are sent back and forth.

Somehow you need to track the progress of these emails while still maintaining access to sensitive data. Let’s skip all of the other important aspects of running a business and let’s just imagine the worst has happened. A flood/ huge fire/gas blast/earthquake (you get the idea) hits your office and everything is lost. This would leave you in quite a predicament wouldn’t it?

BPOS: Cloud Computing for Small Business

One cost-effective solution is suitable for even the smallest businesses wanting better collaboration, communication and a backup storage system. That solution can be found in Microsoft Business Productivity Online Services (BPOS). Combining the benefits of SharePoint with the convenience of Cloud Computing, BPOS provides a bundled package to deliver hosted communication and collaboration tools, making it easier to share data in-house and abroad, communicate more successfully and improve the efficiency of your business operation.

Each package includes the following:

Exchange Online
SharePoint Online
Office Communications Online
Office Live Meeting

The benefit of the Clayko BPOS is that you receive the advantages of BPOS while only paying for the suites you need. Below are just some of the benefits:

Storage is in the “cloud” no need to store locally
Protection and preservation of email through improved security
Centralised resources and workflow
“From anywhere” access
Web conferencing
IM and presence awareness
Real time meetings with clients
Virtual training
Video conferencing and recordings
Collaborate with team members
Manage content and workflow
Secured centralized location
Backup of documents

If you’d like to protect your data, gain the ability to collaborate and share your data and reduce the amount of time and expense dedicated to IT, contact us for more information on how Clayko can support your business. If you’ve got two employees or 2,000, we can help you improve the way you manage your documents.

How are your critical documents stored and managed?

5 Things to Consider Before Migrating to SharePoint 2010

Clayko Group — Fri, 15 Apr 2011 04:04:40 GMT

The world is abuzz with news of the release of SharePoint 2010. Before you begin the migration process from MOSS, it’s imperative to first plan your migration strategy and account for any possible issues that may arise.

If you want a more in-depth and comprehensive plan for your strategy take a look at what Joel Oleson has to say. He’s released presentations and a white paper about upgrade preparedness on his blog at sharepointjoel.com. Microsoft has also published preliminary guidance to help you with the process.

Here are our 5 top tips assist you in your migration, courtesy of TechNet Magazine and our own in-house SharePoint migration expert, Phil Duffy.

1. Hardware and Software Compatibilities

Examine your current software and hardware tools to ensure they are compatible with SharePoint 2010. A significant requirement is 64-bit hardware and SharePoint 2007 with at least the SP2 update. Update any operating systems released before 2003. SharePoint 2010 runs on a 64-bit Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2008 R2 on the front-end and requires 64-bit SQL Server 2005 or later on the back-end.

SharePoint 2010 only supports IE7 or later, Firefox 3.x and Safari therefore browsers released prior to these need to be installed and updated.

2. Run the Upgrade Checker Tool

After compatibility issues have been resolved, run a PreUpgradeCheck. The detailed report it generates contains useful information about your environment including specific information about farm topology, server configuration, Alternate Access Mappings (AAMs), databases, features, and site definitions, among other things. You will then have a detailed list of issues needing to be addressed before you start the migration process.

3. Customise

Ensure your IT policies and procedures are in place and your customisation process is fully documented to prepare you for any issues that may arise. Do a data clean-up and fine tune your configuration details.

4. Upgrade process: In-place or Database detach

You must make several major decisions to plan your upgrade approach. There is no right or wrong way; each approach comes with many pros and cons beyond the scope of this post. At the very least think around these major factors:

Can you upgrade the existing SharePoint infrastructure?

Is it already 64-bit and can be scaled out for appropriate performance and data storage?

The criticality of the system - Can you afford to take it offline for a few hours/days or more? What disaster recovery options do you have if an upgrade goes wrong?
How much customisation have you done to your existing SharePoint instance? Have you made design changes to Master pages and CSS? How much have in invested in the configuration on the farm settings or custom applications/solutions?

The answers to these questions will help point you to the recommended approach for your environment and business.

5. What does the future hold?

You might have designed the new infrastructure and scaled it out so it will be more than enough for the data you have now and the number of users. But especially with the extended feature set and improved usability of SharePoint 2010 you will find the rest of the business suddenly becomes VERY interested in the new “intranet” and wants to add their data/features to it.

Can you easily extend your environment to load all the data from the existing file shares? Should you do that even if you can?

When one of the business units NEEDS external access to communicate and share documents with other vendors/contractors, can this be achieved?

You obviously can’t plan for every contingency and SharePoint 2010 is more flexible than ever to be extended out with more servers, but you need to have the confidence that you can (and want to) cope with those requests to ensure that you aren’t forcing the business to use other systems to meet their requirements.

What other considerations do you think are important for a SharePoint migration?

Four Major Reasons to Use Organice Explorer 2010

Clayko Group — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 01:25:27 GMT

by Leon Marais

In our previous post, Organice 2010: Large Format Document Management for Engineering, you were introduced to the Organice Suite. Now it’s time to delve into the Organice Explorer 2010 module a little deeper. A desktop application fully based on the Microsoft SharePoint platform, Organice Explorer 2010 allows an engineering company to easily manage and share their project documentation.

Familiar Look and Feel

When you enter Organice Explorer 2010 for the first time, you’ll notice the familiar Microsoft Outlook 2010 layout. You can find the context aware ribbon bar at the top of the screen giving you access to all the commonly used items. The left side of the screen is dedicated to the navigation pane (1), the centre of the screen is the main workspace (2), and to the right you will find the properties pane (3). By having this familiar interface, users will quickly adjust to the system and be more likely to keep on using it.

Easy File Additions

Organice Explorer 2010 allows multiple SharePoint sites to be managed from the navigation pane. Security for each site is controlled by the current user’s login, as setup in SharePoint. Using the toolbar, you can add new files or simply drag and drop the files onto the selected library.

Inherited Metadata

Files with similar metadata can benefit from inheritance by simply dropping the new file onto an existing file in the library. Organice Explorer 2010 also provides automatic document numbering that can be setup in accordance with your company’s document numbering structure. Once the documents are in the SharePoint site, managing metadata can be done quickly and easily from the properties pane. You can manage multiple files at the same time.

Searching is a Breeze

Finding content in your SharePoint site using Organice Explorer 2010 is really easy. You simply select the library you want to work with and drag-and-drop the desired column headers to group by that column. There is no limit to the level you want to group by. You can also narrow your selection further by entering filter criteria underneath the column headers. These views can be saved for personal use later on. Views created in SharePoint can be accessed by everyone using the navigation pane.

Built-in Viewer

One of the most exciting features of Organice Explorer 2010 is the built-in viewer. This feature allows the user to view many types of documents and drawings without having the native software installed on their local computer. The viewer also provides tools allowing you to redline drawings.

Four major reasons to use Organice Explorer 2010

Adding new content to document libraries is hassle free
All content and security is inherited from SharePoint so no additional setup is necessary
Quick, easy search capabilities increases productivity and reduces frustration
Built-in viewer eliminates the need for costly native applications to be installed locally

In summary, Organice Explorer 2010 provides a familiar, easy-to-use, single point of entry for engineering companies. No matter what size document you have, you can now manage and share any project driven information throughout your organisation.

What is your favourite feature of Organice Explorer 2010?

MOSS vs SharePoint 2010: Is the slow uptake warranted?

Clayko Group — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 05:14:04 GMT

SharePoint 2010 has been dubbed the Communication Enabled Business Process (CEBP) platform for the 21^st century allowing for an easy and efficient combination of communication and business process collaboration. Supporting this forecast are vast improvements in functionality and reduced complexity. Why has the transition between MOSS and SharePoint 2010 been so slow?

Blame the GFC

Bill English, an MVP from Minnesota predicted that the uptake would be slow due to the costs involved in migrating from MOSS to SharePoint 2010. Huge investments were made during 2009/2010 to implement MOSS and with the economy crisis many companies cannot afford to spend more money on upgrades. He predicts that once the economy improves an uptake could be seen during 2011/2012.

Business requirements move at a slower pace

Besides money constraints there are technical issues preventing SharePoint 2010 from leaping ahead. From a business process standpoint, migrations won't immediately resolve significant pain points, resulting in 2010 features imposing features on a 2007 data set and organisations will see limited benefit from a Managed Metadata Service.

“Organizations who adopt SharePoint Server 2010 will continue to see clash-points between what the technology can do and what their application architecture, culture, budget, user skill sets and politics will allow as well as what their business processes will demand,” says English. Some companies tend to overlook the business and technical requirements needed for migration and therefore user adoption will be slow.

Usual Suspects: Education and Training

Other costs include training IT personnel on SharePoint 2010 and training in the use of Office 2010. With legal compliances, IT and legal departments need to work closer together requiring further education between the two teams.

MOSS vs. SharePoint 2010: What you should know

According to Jackson Chackungal on the “Confessions of a SharePoint Consultant” blog, the differences between MOSS and SharePoint 2010 are many. He's graciously given us permission to republish his table here.

Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007	SharePoint Server 2010
Office client required to view and edit documents uploaded to document libraries (Download and open)	Office Web Application enables Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Visio documents, using Silverlight or HTML with JavaScript (Depending on Browser Support)
No Co-Authoring Capability	Co-Authoring Capabilities available for Word, PowerPoint (with client software) and Excel (Available over the web)
Lot of post backs	Fewer post backs for default actions – more Ajax usage
No inherent support of Ajax or Silverlight	Fully supported
Static themes. You just pick a theme and its applied across the site, no preview	You can select a theme , customize it and preview before applying it on the site
No bookmarking, tagging or rating capability	It’s all there
Content Types scoped to site collections	New concept of having a Content Type hub which can be shared across web applications
Media files would have to be downloaded before playing	Progress download feature available (not streaming)
BDC used to store info in SharePoint	BCS reads data real-time (with some caching for performance)
5 million item limit in document library	10 million
Views are CAML driven	Views XSLT based
To query a list we had to use CAML	Queries via LINQ, JavaScript and Silverlight API’s
No restriction for installation	Ability to prevent people from installing SharePoint (Managed at the AD level)
Shared Services scoped to Farm	Shared Services architecture changed to make it more flexible and ability to share across farm
Profile synch could be done by anyone	Additional permission check for account to carry out profile synch
Basic web Analytics	Web analytics capability enhanced
Search results are static	Clicking on a search result affects the search results for the other searches for the same keyword
To limit issues with rogue code that could bring down the server, CAS had to be defined /maintained for different applications. This was not easy to do and Admins used to say – no code allowed	Sandbox available that restricts the scope of code. Deployment is also easy, the code just needs to be uploaded by the site admin, no need for intervention from the SharePoint farm admin to run scripts on the server
People with contribute access could upload .aspx pages in a document library. It was possible to restrict, however it would restrict everyone from uploading .aspx pages	People with contribute access cannot load .aspx pages
Contributors could edit tool pane parameters	Not editable by contributors
Explorer view on browser	Opens up Windows explorer with web dav access
Simplistic Mobile Page OOTB	Able to create richer mobile pages using OOTB features
Usage of outlook for offline access	SharePoint Workspace used for offline access – more capability eg. ability to synch up lists (even external content from BCS)
Not possible to have a common document ID that is associated with a document regardless of which document library it moves into	Document ID can be defined and associated to the document regardless of where it is located(within the site collection)
To upload a document or page, one needs to go to that appropriate site/sub-site and library and upload	Content organizer moves document to appropriate libraries based on metadata rules which can be defined
When a file with a same name is uploaded, it creates a new version	Option to have another version or append a unique ID to the document being uploaded
Fixed layout with defined web part zones where web parts can be placed	More “Fluid” UI; ability to place web parts without having web part zones
Retention policy allows only delete or invoke workflow by default	Multiple other options – eg send to another library etc
EBS – to store docs outside SharePoint, possible but not easy to configure	RBS - managed by SQL
Requires Server OS to install(32 or 64)	Can be installed on Win 7 (64 bit) and Win 2008 (64 bit)
No field validations	Field validations available
Workflows created in SPD or VS.Net – not possible to move a workflow developed in SPD to VS.Net	Workflows can be defined in Visio, Imported to SPD with rules added and then moved to VS.Net
Table based layouts	Div Based layouts (better for accessability)

Clayko has professional services staff dedicated to helping clients transition between MOSS and SharePoint 2010. If you need help with planning or executing a transition project, don't hesitate to contact us.

Have you moved to SharePoint 2010? If not, why?

Organice 2010: Large Format Document Management for Engineering

Clayko Group — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 12:51:59 GMT

by Leon Marais

Do you work with large format documents? Are large documents critical to your business processes? Is your organisation reliant on non-standard sized paper documents? If so, Organice document management products greatly improve collaboration and management of these important assets to your business.

Cadac Organice is a suite of products developed specifically for the engineering community or anyone dealing with large format documents. Based entirely on Microsoft SharePoint, the aim of the product is to enhance the management of documents used by engineers, architects and the engineering and building industries. Documents such as CAD drawings, blueprints, Office documents and emails are easily stored and managed through Organice.

Organice Main Modules:

Organice Explorer 2010
Organice Transmit 2010
Organice Workbox 2010

Organice Explorer 2010: Document Management and Control

Organice Explorer 2010 forms the management and control component of the Organice suite. Organisations are able to manage and easily share project documentations by taking advantage of the built-in viewer allowing the user to view different types of documents and drawings without having the need to install the native software on their local computer.

Organice Transmit 2010: Document Distribution and Tracking

The Organice Transmit 2010 module makes up the document controller section of the suite. This is the central hub of document distribution and tracking.

Organice Workbox 2010: BPM

Organice Workbox 2010 makes use of the underlying workflow capabilities of SharePoint 2010. Placing the power in the hands of the user, productive business processes are managed through the use of a friendly graphical user interface.

Large Format Document Management

The Organice modules help enhance engineering document management, project collaboration, CAD drawing management, document issuing and control. The Organice software suite is easy to use making it beneficial to Engineering, Architecture, and Construction industries as well as companies in the resource industry, facility and plant management, and manufacturing areas.

Stay Tuned

Futuure blogs will cover all the modules in the Organice 2010 suite in more detail, highlighting features and capabilities, as well as showcasing benefits to project driven engineering companies.

How are you currently managing your large format documents?

Image Credit: Images courtesy of www.flickr.com from the Seattle Municipal Archives and sumjuan

What is Cloud Computing?

Clayko Group — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 05:45:45 GMT

Have you seen the advert of the couple waiting in the airport who “go to the Cloud” with their laptop? With a touch of a button they use their home-stored files and applications over the Internet. So what is Cloud Computing? One definition is: “providing the means through which everything — from computing power to computing infrastructure, applications, business processes to personal collaboration — can be delivered to you as a service wherever and whenever you need.”

But is it secure?

It sounds appealing doesn’t it? BUT there are a few businesses not jumping at the prospect of having another party host these virtual servers over the internet because of concerns over the security of the data. In 2010 Gartner predicted Cloud Computing was at the peak of the hype cycle with regard to inflated expectations but what is the reality in 2011?

IEEE-WISE Interactive Panel on Cloud Computing

The Women in Technology Interactive Panel Workshop is part of the Conference for Women in Science and Engineering (IEEE-WISE) held in Perth this week. The panel will be discussing Cloud Computing and other questions such as:

Is the cloud delivering on expectations?
Are the concerns on security, privacy and confidentiality just FUD?
What have been the challenges for services, technical, operational and systems management?
Have cost savings really been delivered?

Clayko is delighted to announce our General Manager, Sheryl Frame, will be offering her expertise on the panel.

Who is Sheryl?

Sheryl has held the position of General Manager of Clayko for the past 5 years and brings 25 years of ICT and management consulting experience to the table. Working across two continents Sheryl has worked in both the private and public sectors including resources (coal, gold and diamond mining), healthcare, pharmaceutical, IT, automotive, general services and community sectors.

Her IT/IS and management consulting abilities are reinforced by marketing, sales, service, mentoring and investor related skills. All of this has allowed her to perform in executive management positions and makes her an authority in the ICT industry ensuring she will be a great participant to the discussion panel.

For more information on the event and IEEE-WISE please visit: http://ieee-wise.debii.curtin.edu.au/index.php/panel-session/25.html