Category Archives: Best Practices

Are the Easy Tabs security trimmed?

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A question I received from Liz:

“I just downloaded your EasyTabs webpart and think it works great.  My question is: how does it work when you have different permissions on different webparts?  Is it security trimmed?”

Good question, and you definitely need to be clear about security implications when you start adding code to your Web pages.

What I explain in the online workshops is that customizations like the Easy Tabs (and most of my other scripts) simply add a presentation layer on top of existing SharePoint pages. As such:
– all the underlying SharePoint functionalities are maintained (in particular security and audience).
– the customization is non-destructive; if you decide to remove it later, you’ll be back to your initial SharePoint page.
– this approach follows a standard Web design pattern known as “progressive enhancement”. If for some reason the script cannot run in the browser, the user can still access the page content.

The “Big Picture”: CSS sprites in SharePoint 2010

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I wanted to share this mosaic from the official SharePoint 2010 site, as an example of how Web design techniques are making their way into SharePoint 2010.

If you are familiar with Web design, you’ll recognize a CSS sprite. The principle: multiple images used throughout the Web page are combined into a “master image”. This reduces server requests and improves page load performance.

In the above example, the master image is used to populate the list ribbon (also a feature introduced in SP 2010):

Note that I already talked about CSS sprites a couple months ago, with this example designed to display inline pies in SharePoint lists: http://pathtosharepoint.com/Utilities/PieSprite50.png

Some references if you’d like to learn more and see other real life examples:
– CSS Sprites: Image Slicing’s Kiss of Death by Dave Shea March 2004
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/sprites 
Sprites are the extension of a technique called “sliding doors”, used to create button rollover effects.
– The Mystery Of CSS Sprites: Techniques, Tools And Tutorials
http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/04/27/the-mystery-of-css-sprites-techniques-tools-and-tutorials

A great workshop!

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Last Thursday, Mark Miller and I presented our last workshop of the year, dedicated to the SharePoint Gantt view.

As for previous workshops, I had prepared some customizations (7 to be precise), each packaged as a Web Part. As I was detailing them, I received some great feedback from Mark and the participants, on the usability of each solution. One advantage of these client side scripts is that the code is accessible and can be easily tweaked, so we were able to make changes in real time, that the participants tested immediately in their own sandbox.

After the workshop, I finalized the scripts and added a couple notes. I also added two more Web Parts, also based on the comments I had received. And one participant, Jeremy, shared another variation he had worked on after the workshop. What a teamwork!

Mark and I share the same view of what training should be. When we say live workshops, we mean it:
– live: the participants have their word to say, and their reactions drive the pace of the session.
– workshop: what is important is not what we show, but what the participant is able to accomplish.

Mark and I will team up again in January for a new series, and I am really looking forward to it!

If possible, I’d like to take the experience even further, and tune up the workshops content based on your feedback. We have already heard from several people that it would be good to have an introduction to jQuery for non-programmers, and we are working on this.

HTML Calculated Column: minor update… and some advice

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I am publishing today a minor update (v 2.1.1) of the TextToHTML script:
http://www.pathtosharepoint.com/HTMLcc/default.aspx
You’ll find the updated files under the “download” tab.

Why this update?

First, I am responding to comments from readers on the EndUserSharePoint.com blog. Several months ago, Jim Bob Howard posted an example using my method. His post offers detailed step by step explanations, and is very popular. However, a few readers reported issues with the calendar week/day views, which didn’t render the colors in some configurations. The code I posted today aims at fixing this issue.

I am also taking the opportunity of this update to propose two separate scripts:
– a light version, for both SharePoint 2003 and 2007, that applies the rendering to displayed items only.
– a full version, SP 2007 only, that applies the rendering to displayed and hidden items (grouped views, preview pane, etc.). Be aware that this version encapsulates some of the SharePoint OOTB code.

Tell me again, what is this “HTML Calculated Column”?

If you are an end user, the HTML Calculated Column is a simple yet powerful method that allows you to enhance your SharePoint sites. Even if you don’t plan to use it, you should at least be aware of its capabilities. It many situations, it can replace or even do better than other SharePoint options, like the Data View Web Part, Excel Services or the KPIs available in MOSS. To give you an idea of what you can accomplish, take a look at these examples:
– indicators for lists
– color coded calendars
– KPI roll-up
– some other applications…

For more explanations, read the original article.

To be fair, the method also has its flaws. It leverages the OOTB calculated column, but also relies on a client side script to render the HTML on the page. If you don’t feel comfortable with the “hack” part (TextToHTML script), note that you can avoid it if you use the method with a Data View Web Part, a Content Query Web Part (see above link: KPI roll-up), or an XML source (RSS, URL protocol, Web Service).

Why two different file formats, .dwp and .txt?

I am releasing the code in two formats: Web Part (.dwp) and text (.txt).

The .dwp file is for your convenience, if you only use the method sporadically, or for the first time. Simply import the Web Part to your page and you’re good to go. It is just a Content Editor Web Part containing the script.

If you plan to use the method on a regular basis, you should grab the text file instead: store the code in a central location and point to it. This will greatly facilitate future updates. For more details on this “best practice”, read this article.

A couple reminders

– Remember that the Text to HTML script must be placed below the lists you need to modify.

– The HTML you create via the calculated column must follow the HTML standards. For example for calendar views you’ll need to use inline elements (“span” for example), not block elements (like “div”).

What’s next?

I am currently working on version 3 of the script, which will make the method work on column filters, and headers of grouped views. Some people have already received intermediary versions, and I am waiting for their feedback.
I am also listening to feedback on the current version (big thanks to the readers who shared their findings!). For example, the use of the method in discussion lists, blogs or wikis will require more investigations.

How can I be informed of upcoming releases?

The preferred way is to subscribe to the RSS feeds, either for this blog or for my SharePoint downloads library. If you don’t use RSS, feel free to contact me, and I’ll send you an e-mail when v3 is out.

Online Workshop – Easy Tabs for Project Dashboard

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ETdashboard

This Thursday, Mark Miller and I will be delivering our second “Easy Tabs interface” online workshop. One of the examples we’ll review is the use of tabs in dashboards.

In our online workshops, each participant receives his/her own sandbox. Access to the sandboxes is restricted, so to give you a taste of the demos I have created a mockup of the project dashboard:
http://www.pathtosharepoint.com/Calendars/Pages/ProjectDashboard.htm

Note that the original page is built on a standard wss site, using only the SharePoint UI (no SharePoint Designer, no server access).

There are multiple approaches to dashboards, depending on the story to tell and the audience. I am not claiming that tabs are a best practice, I am just suggesting them as one more option in our toolkit.

Tabs allow you to create layers. In my example, the first layer is dedicated to visual indicators, allowing you to assess at a glance the health of the project. At the same time, thanks to the tabs, additional information is not far behind, and can be reached without the need to leave the dashboard or even refresh the page. Under each tab, you can find more details, for example data or analyses supporting the charts. Or on the contrary you can filter information, allowing to focus on specific items (e.g. My Tasks, My Issues).

Interested in the Easy Tabs? Then register for our online workshop this Thursday. See you there!

Credit goes to Craig Lowrie for the color coded Gantt, and Claudio Cabaleyro for the pie chart. An HTML calculated column was used to create the bar chart.

Case study: KPI roll-up in MOSS (Part I)

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Eric Proshuto is a Sr. Application Engineer for Siemens PLM Software, where he manages the intranet/extranet MOSS farm. He has been supporting SharePoint since early 2000 using SharePoint Team Services.
A couple weeks ago, Eric posted a very useful tip on my blog. I have built a case study to show how to put it to work. I sincerely hope that Eric can share a more complete, real life case study after he implements this in his company.

Note that this case study relies on the Content Query Web Part, only available in MOSS.

The scenario

Let’s consider the case of a division in a large organization, with dozens of business units that report project status on a daily basis. The Management needs visibility across business units on certain critical projects.

The figure below shows the organization structure. The SharePoint sites structure replicates it, with “Division” as the top-level site in the site collection.

Site Collection Structure

To make everyone go to a central list to report projects health would make that list unwieldy at best. Instead, we’ll keep the reporting at the team level, and use SharePoint’s aggregation capabilities to build the Executive dashboard.

Update [6/27/2009] For more details on this information architecture choice, see this timely article from Bob Mixon:
SharePoint IA: Store Information Close to the Point of Ownership

Team dashboard

Team Dashboard
We are going to build a list template that each program or project team will use to report their project’s health. We’ll do this in 3 steps:
1/ Create site columns, at the site collection level
2/ Create the SharePoint list that hosts the dashboard
3/ Save the list as a template for reuse across the organization

Note: in a real life scenario, I would definitely consider using content types for added flexibility.

Site columns

For my example, I have chosen to track two indicators for each project: progress and health. In addition, we’ll have a column that precises the level of visibility of the project.

To reach the Site Column Gallery, follow this path:
Site Actions | Site Settings | Galleries | Site Columns

The % Complete column is already present in the list. Let’s add two choice columns:
– Health, with three options: (1) Red, (2) Yellow, (3) Green.
– Visibility, with three options: Team, Business Unit, Division.

And two calculated columns for the indicators:
– Progress, based on the % Complete:
="<div style='position:relative; width:50px; border: 1px solid;'><div style='background-color:"&CHOOSE(INT([% Complete]*10)+1,"red","red","OrangeRed","OrangeRed","DarkOrange","Orange","Gold","yellow","GreenYellow","LawnGreen","Lime")&"; width:"&([% Complete]*100)&"%;'> </div><div style='position:absolute; top:0px;'> "&TEXT([% Complete],"0%")&"</div></div>"

– Indicator, based on the Health:
="<img style='float:left;' src='/_layouts/images/KPIDefault-"&(3-RIGHT(LEFT(Health,2),1))&".gif' />"

SharePoint list

We’ll use a Tasks List type:

Site Actions | Create | Tracking | Tasks

The % Complete column is already there. Let’s add the 4 other site columns we created:
Settings | List Settings | Columns | Add from existing site columns.

The final touch is to add the script for the HTML calculated column (the instructions were initially posted here, but make sure you grab the updated version of the script). Your tasks list should now look like the above screenshot.

The list is ready, we can now save it as a template that all teams will use for their project:
Settings | List Settings | Save list as template

Note: the “Text to HTML” script will also be saved in the template.

In Part II, we’ll see how to roll up projects with executive visibility to the top level, and how the HTML calculated column plays well with the Content Query Web Part.

Splitting the top navigation in two

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 topnav3

This is a follow-up on a post by Jan Tielens, so I recommend that you read his post first for more details (the screenshot is taken from his post btw). The idea is to break the top navigation bar in two when you have too many menu items.

My personal comment was that in this precise case jQuery didn’t bring much value. To make my point, here is an example of plain JavaScript that gives the same result:

<script type="text/javascript">

//Contact: Christophe@PathToSharePoint.com

// Grab the top navigation menu
var Menu = document.getElementById("zz1_TopNavigationMenu");

// Count half of the tabs
var counter = Math.round(Menu.getElementsByTagName("table").length/2);

// Add a row above the existing one
Menu.insertRow(0);

// Move half of the tabs to the first row (each tab is made of 3 cells)
for (i=0;i<counter*3;i++) {
Menu.rows&#91;0&#93;.appendChild(Menu.rows&#91;1&#93;.cells&#91;0&#93;);
}

</script>

As usual, you can use a Content Editor Web Part to add the script to your page.

Note that I am not trying to argue about Jan’s approach. His post clearly states the specific context of his demo, where he was responding to a jQuery question (if you’re interested in learning jQuery, note his use of the gt() and lt() selectors). I am just taking this opportunity to remind you that jQuery is not necessarily the miracle answer [Note to self: write a post about what jQuery is NOT good at].
If you already use jQuery in your page, then either solution is fine. If not, then just use my script and don’t bother about loading the jQuery library.

The Jan Tielens challenge

I have already talked about Jan in a previous post. End users who visit his blog can certainly feel like a kid in front of a bakery display: so many goodies that are out of reach!
So here is my proposal: if you find on Jan’s site a tool you’d like to have as an end user, send me the challenge! If a topic gets enough votes, I’ll work on a solution that can be implemented on the client side.

Oh, and don’t ask about highlighting rows in a list, it’s already done!