Lists: Used, Abused and Underappreciated ECM101 Wes Preston – Owner / Principal Consultant SharePoint Lists
May 21, 2015
Lists: Used, Abused and UnderappreciatedECM101
Wes Preston – Owner / Principal Consultant
SharePoint Lists
Outline No Code Customization Lists are used as the core of many things
SharePoint but they are rarely used as well as they can be. Learn the top tips and tricks for getting the most of your lists: How to build them smarter, how to display them more clearly, and how to use them in your environment for effectively. Also see how these practices evolve from 2007 to 2010.
Wes Preston Owner / Principal Consultant - TrecStone
Based in Minneapolis, MN
MVP – SharePoint Server MCITP – SharePoint Administrator 2010 MCTS - SharePoint 2010, Configuration MCTS - WSS 3.0 and MOSS Configuration
http://www.idubbs.com/blog Twitter: @idubbs
Lists (and Libraries) Things to take away that you can use NOW It’s all about raising the bar. The baseline
for business-user and end-user knowledge is too low…
If you use SharePoint, these should be core concepts
Other concepts build on these for more robust solutions, dashboards, etc…
Also applies to the ‘Cloud’ SharePoint Online - Office 365
SharePoint 2013 – Same concepts apply + more…
Note: Slides Will be available – don’t worry about
copying everything down.
Training Users don’t know the baseline capabilities
of SharePoint lists and libraries “What’s a view?” “What are properties?”
Too common of an issue Easy to mitigate BPC Survey Results: Less than 40% of
organizations using formal SharePoint training
That’s NOT going to work…
Training: Why The Bottom Line – Users will be more
effective Realize the ROI of the SharePoint
platform that you’ve already implemented/invested in
Enabled users are happy users The more users can do on their own, the
less a SharePoint team needs to do…
Training: Different Audiences Executive:
Understand the capabilities Start to align business needs with solutions
Power Users: Decision matrix – when to use which method How do I do it?
All Users: How to, tutorials, examples Structured and unstructured training On-demand
Training: Starter Topics (These are just ‘list’ starter topics…) 2007 and 2010
Columns, Properties, Metadata Views Alerts
New w/2010 Validation Easier form management Inline editing
Training: Options Have a Training Plan (governance) Partners Train the trainer Online materials, products Handout materials
Home-grown, BrainStorm, etc… User groups, Brown bag sessions, Labs
Internal and regional Newsletters, FAQS, Tips and Tricks…
Use Columns and Views Views provide a cleaner, more effective
user experience Effective views rely on useful columns to
filter and sort on
Columns and Views: Why Default views, especially libraries are just
like file shares – We can do better List by name, date, author
As libraries fill up, they’re just as confusing as file shares to navigate
Out of the box fields can be a step up Modified date vs. Created date Modified by vs. Created by
‘My’ Files and Items Different reasons
Issues or Tasks Lists -> ‘My items’ that were submitted
Issues or Task Lists -> Items assigned to me
Doc Libs -> Items created, owned or last modified
File Naming -> Properties Don’t keep those crazy file naming
conventions “supermonthlyreport_April_2010.xlsx” “Sales_Monthend_2009_09.xlsx”
Titles may not be indexed the way you think they are
Implement properties to replace them If they’re strict, migration can be
scripted
Groups vs. Views Different ways to display the same
information When to use each method is dependent
on the specific scenario, but there are pros and cons that might help shape the decision
Groups vs. Views
Straight up groups…
Groups vs. Views Separate Web Parts
Groups vs. ViewsGroup By Dates Products Departments Can do sub-totals, etc…
Separate Web Parts Status or Category Display different fields
depending on the group Different controls if desired Cleaner look – no goofy
automatic headings Can ‘fake’ headings with
CEWP
Edit the current view Available with List Views on
pages Use on pages to limit the
number of views displayed for the list
Better user experience
Folders Users are comfortable with them Views can be created to ignore folders 2010 allows default values based on rules
Ease some user input
‘My’ Files (and ‘Flat’ folders)
Intake List Email sent to a single person is not
scalable Email sent to a group isn’t measurable Content submitted isn’t standardized
Intake List Can put a link from
anywhere to ‘Add Request’ location
Can still be submitted via email
Can still be notified by email
Tasks can be assigned
Mitigates single person issue
More structured than email Can use Views!!
More options for automation
Metrics are easier to capture
Intake List
Intake List
List Features new in 2010 External Lists Multi-select items Much easier to change the forms
Recap: Best Practices Set users up for success – Train them Use Columns and Views Replace the Email queue with an
Intake/Request list
Recap: Worst Practices Don’t keep obnoxious file naming conventions Don’t create long lists of views if Edit the current
view can be used Don’t use item-level permissions unless needed Don’t display every column in every view Avoid the document library list view or educate
around it
Housekeeping Check slides out on
http://www.idubbs.com/blog Provide session feedback with
comments
SharePoint Saturday – Twin Cities – November 3
Minnesota SharePoint User Group – MNSPUG Live meetings, lots of historical content
available www.sharepointmn.com
Thank you!