SharePoint in a nutshell
SharePoint is a Microsoft technology-based data management solution that improves the efficiency of a company's or organization's internal and external cooperation. The free to use Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) provides the basic features for teamwork, file sharing, and project management. The Enterprise-level Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) is an integrated software package that contains server functions. SharePoint can be easily integrated with existing systems, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system and a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system.
It is easy to expand the SharePoint package to cater to the needs of the company. This means that SharePoint forms a platform, the parts of which include cooperation functions, portals, WWW content management, document management, form services, search services, and personalized views. The company or organization need not obtain separate software solutions for each of these functions. SharePoint is a well-defined package solution which, besides the aforementioned functions, also includes tools, access right management, and personalized views or workspaces.
Information sharing
Companies and organizations have carefully arranged information in many different systems and databases. On the other hand, a huge amount of information also travels in a non-arranged form in Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files, for example. Also, processes and decisions often are both well-planned (such as matters decided on by the executive team) and made quickly (such as a decision to offer a customer refund).
The task of SharePoint is to shrink the gaps between these two very different worlds as much as possible. The information of large systems and on-the-fly decisions are distributed effectively to all concerned.
SharePoint's collaboration features include teamwork spaces, file sharing, tasks, calendars, RSS feeds, blogs, wikis, Outlook integration, a project management tool, offline files, and offline lists.
Document management
SharePoint enables effective document management, which means that the organization can use the existing and up-to-date documents as much as possible. An employee creating a sales presentation, for example, can look up similar sales representations from the organization and use them as a basis for his or her presentation. Functions utilized by SharePoint include metadata, seamless Office integration, effective file indexing, version management, and workflow functions.
Search functions
SharePoints offers an organization-internal search engine: a single location where you can begin to look for information from the company's own systems, databases, shared drives, external websites, and documents. The search center also supplies the company or organization with information about the most frequently used search words, for example, and helps to offer the intended results in context with the searches.
Publishing system
For SharePoint, look is not a restricting factor, and the management tools are user-friendly. Sites can be easily be expanded by using SharePoint's basic features, such as blogs, wikis, and RSS feeds. SharePoint can also be easily expanded.
Webparts
The functions of SharePoint are tailored with webpart mini-applications. For example, a webpart can look up information in the background system and show it on an intranet/extranet/Internet site, or provide the user with the opportunity to forward material on the site.
With the help of webpart components developed by Visualweb, your company's SharePoint environment can be adjusted to be more effective, easy to use, and to perfectly meet the real needs of your company.
Through the tailoring and combining of the webparts, one can create extensive content management and information sharing entities which remove overlapping content maintenance and save expenses. The webparts can be used together with other webparts.