Download SharePoint for Libraries: Streamlining Your

SharePoint for Libraries:
Streamlining Your Intranet Management
Sarah Houghton-Jan
Digital Futures Manager, San Jose Public Library
Shannon Staley
Digital Technology Librarian, San Jose State University Library
What is SharePoint?
A robust content management system from
MicroSoft offering not only decentralized
editing but:

shared workspaces and document versioning

wikis and blogs

calendaring

RSS & email updates

& lots more – all in one software package
SharePoint has Multiple Personalities

Windows SharePoint Services (WSS)


free add-on to Windows Server. Offers most SP features
with some workflow limitations.
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server [standard
or enterprise] (MOSS)

high-end portal, complete features.
What is the Market Reaction to It?
SharePoint is “a Swiss Army knife – best of
breed solutions are available but they have
a more limited range.”
- Bill Ives, FASTForward
Similar Products
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Alfresco
Central Desktop
Clearspace
Invu
O3spaces
Oracle Collaboration Suite
Nuxeo
Key SharePoint Benefits for Libraries






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Integrate Web 2.0 into your site with one software
service (more consistency, less training)
Facilitate collaboration
Increase communication
Integrate with Office (Word, Excel, Outlook)
Reduce email attachment glut
Remove “webmaster” bottlenecks
Return power over content to content owners
Feature Comparison Chart
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/sharepointtechnology/FX101758691033.aspx
Why SharePoint for the joint San Jose
Public and State University Library?
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Because of the two organizations,
communication was difficult
Management wanted to increase institutional
communication and collaboration
Various web 2.0 services were everywhere
(each with their own interface and support
needs)
Intranet updates took time and taxed the Web
Team
Designing Our Library's
SharePoint presence

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Involving IT, Web Team and organizational input
Piloting several small sites
Evaluating the experience
Integrating pilot sites into “new” permanent sites
referenced from the intranet to ensure one port of
entry
Utilizing information architecture of the intranet
to avoid disparate sites with no organization
Opening up site requests to the rest of the staff
Our Joint Library Intranet
By Clicking on an Intranet Link, Users
Are Taken to the SharePoint Site
Not All Intranet Content Requires
SharePoint for Content Management
We developed criteria for utilizing SharePoint
through the intranet:

Needs to be updated frequently

Requires group collaboration

Other specialized information sharing
Accessing SharePoint

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Windows Account database
Users can access sites through their own
Windows login information (seamless from
their own computers, manual login
elsewhere)
No need to create a new database of users or
new usernames and passwords!
Home access requires different URLs
Key SharePoint Features
Managing Documents
Meeting Workspaces
Announcements
Calendars
Blogs
Wikis
Discussions
Notifications

Users can sign up for alerts via RSS or Email

Each section has to be separately signed up for
If on an authenticated site (e.g. Intranet), RSS
feeds do not work in web-based feed readers.
Other Features Available

Surveys

Task Lists

Document Versioning

Document Workflows

Links

Issue Tracking

Photo Libraries
How easy is it to post information?
How easy is it to manage?
Some of the Neat Uses of
SharePoint at Our
Library So Far
Committee Pages
Branch Pages
Dispersed Management

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IT manages the server
Web Team can assist in site set-up and provides
ongoing support
Each site needs a site owner (site owners are
the first stop for support)
Everyone else is a site contributor
Training Options

Video training modules

Cheat Sheets for site owners and contributors

A list of features

Point to the online resources from others

In-person classes on demand
Launching SharePoint

Address the institutional change of turning
over content ownership/editing

Provide sample sites for viewing

Offer training materials well in advance

Ensure that there will be no access problems

Be available for questions

Try to keep the enthusiasm going
Some Compatability Problems

Requires IE use (problems occur in other
browsers like Firefox or Safari)

Requires IE settings updates on some PCs.

Not friendly for mobile-device access

For non-Outlook users, the integration
features are useless
Our Favorite Things about SharePoint
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Provides an all-in-one package of features
On-demand, instant editing
Cuts down on email attachments
Reduces multiple document version
problems
Reduces Web Team workload in the long run
Content Editor web part saves the day
What We Don't Like About SharePoint
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Very complicated on the back-end
Product navigation not intuitive for all levels
of users
RSS problems with web-based readers
Alerts have to be done one-by-one
Alerts are non-specific
Very hard to move/transfer sites once created
Lessons Learned

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Beta never ends
Integrate SharePoint into your existing
Intranet
Budget plenty of time for IT & Web Team
Start with one site that all can relate to and
champion the concept
Unsure if this is for you?
Recommended Resources

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Microsoft SharePoint Team Blog
CodePlex Project Directory (includes many
SharePoint resources including training)

SharePoint Community Portal

SharePoint Services TechNet

WSS Demo Public SharePoint Websites

SharePointKB.org

SharePoint BUZZ
Questions?
Sarah Houghton-Jan
[email protected]
Shannon Staley
[email protected]