SharePoint Beagle Newsletter - September 2008, Issue 1

The SharePoint Beagle Newsletter

September 2008
Issue 1

Welcome!

As you can see we have given our newsletter a little face-lift. In fact we are doing a lot of changing these days. From a newly branded web site and community site to a whole new perspective on how we support the evolving roles and needs in the SharePoint world. We are learning from our partners, including Microsoft, that many people didn’t know we were a SharePoint Consulting company. What’s in a name anyway, eh? Sure we do training, and our classes are really beginning to have the impact on the organizations that take them; and we are grateful.

We are working with new partners on some exciting new products (that are a little too new to unveil) and know they will be extremely valuable as companies continue to push the envelope on what can be done with SharePoint.

Please check out our new SharePoint Quick Start program which helps implementation teams get a huge head start at being successful.

Enjoy this issue of the Beagle as we dive deeper into the Data View Web Part and other pressing matters. Keep your nose to the street and watch for fire hydrants!

Today's Tid-bit
The SharePoint Beagle Newsletter articles are now being maintained on the Mastering SharePoint Community site. We are working on improving the content and navigation so stay tuned. Regardless of the changes we are making, all the archives will still be available for your viewing.

SharePoint Beagle Newsletter Archives

Getting to Know the Data Form Web Part (Part 2 of 4)

In this 2nd part of the series, Raymond Mitchell dives a bit deeper into the Data Form Web Part (DFWP) and helps you better understand Conditional Formatting. These techniques can be used for business dashboards, project status pages and much more.

Article
In the first article of this series we introduced the components of a Data Form Web Part. One of the core components of a Data Form Web Part is the XSL which defines how the DFWP will render. You can customize the XSL to change how the DFWP is displayed but before we jump into customizing the XSL code let’s take a look at what SharePoint Designer can do for us.

Conditional Formatting
Data Form Web Parts support conditional formatting which allows you to apply formatting and visibility rules to html elements. To work with conditional formatting you’ll need to open the Conditional Formatting task pane on a page with a Data Form Web Part. To open the task pane, open the Common Data View Tasks menu by clicking on the caret in the top-right corner of our DFWP and then select Conditional Formatting...
Read the Complete Article Here

Free SharePoint Findability Webinar
Search (Part 5 of 6)

This Thursday at 9:00am (PST), Bob Mixon will be delivering the 5th part on the topic of SharePoint Findability. In this session the specific topic of SharePoint Search will be uncovered; helping you understand how it works and how to optimize it for your business needs.

If you are interested in gaining a better understand of this topic then you won't want to miss this!

Register Now

FarPoint Spread for SharePoint

With over 18 years of spreadsheet expertise it was only natural that FarPoint Technologies would provide an integrated spreadsheet for a technology as dynamic as SharePoint.

FarPoint Spread for SharePoint is a SharePoint Web Part that provides SharePoint users with a feature-rich, customizable and personalized spreadsheet for managing data in SharePoint.. Spread for SharePoint takes Web Part capabilities to the next level by addressing the needs of the SharePoint Users, SharePoint Administrators, SharePoint Developers and System Integrators.

FarPoint Technologies is excited to team with Mixon Consulting and their staff of training and consulting professionals. We look forward to working together to educate the public about the power of SharePoint and the usefulness of third part components when working with it.

Read more about FarPoint Spread for SharePoint

Federated Search for SharePoint

This may not be recent news; however, we have had many requests for the new Federated search features now available for SharePoint. To be honest, the download is free and the installation quite easy!

The SharePoint Infrastructure updates, available for WSS and MOSS, will add the ability to manage Federated Connectors; many of which can be found on the Microsoft Enterprise Search site.

Before you go any further, please make sure you have a recent and accurate backup of your entire system. You may also wish to perform this install during off-hours, it will restart IIS.

Follow the instructions provided on the Microsoft SharePoint Team Blog to install the infrastructure updates.

Once you have successfully completed the infrastructure update install, you can download and import the Federated Search Connectors.

If you would like help planning for and installing these features, please contact Mixon Consulting, Inc. at www.MixonConsulting.com. We have staff with expertise in Enterprise Search, Installation, Configuration and Improving Search Results in your Corporate Environment.

Federated Search Overview (MSDN)
Setup a Federated Search Connector (TechNet)
Architecture Guidance for Building Federated Search Connectors (MSDN)

Learn to Build "Real World" Solutions with SharePoint MVP Bob Mixon

Mastering SharePoint Virtually Live: Building "Real World" Solutions
The goal of this workshop is to provide students with the knowledge and skills necessary to build information/document management and collaboration solutions on Microsoft SharePoint.

The workshop will focus on the core features and functionality included in SharePoint 2007, how to use them, and how to plan and design for them.

Delivered virtually live by, 3-time Microsoft SharePoint MVP, Bob Mixon.

$100 Early Bird Special Discount.
Complete workshop description here.

10/14/2008 to 10/17/2008 - Register Now!
11/18/2008 to 11/22/2008 - Register Now!

Bamboo Solutions
Project Management Suite