********************
Exchange and Outlook UPDATE, Outlook Edition--brought to you by Exchange & Outlook Administrator, the print newsletter with practical advice, how-to articles, tips, and techniques to help you do your job today. http://www.exchangeadmin.com
********************
~~~~ THIS ISSUE SPONSORED BY ~~~~
FREE EXCHANGE USAGE REPORTING GUIDE http://www.netiq.com/f/form/form.asp?id=2097&origin=NSWinnetMag_ExOtlk_042903
HP & Microsoft Network Storage Solutions Road Show http://www.winnetmag.com/roadshows/nas (Below COMMENTARY)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~ SPONSOR: FREE EXCHANGE USAGE REPORTING GUIDE ~~~~ When migrating from Exchange 5.5, you need to make many decisions: How do you consolidate servers? Which departments need to move to specific servers? Which users should be in specific storage groups? How should you set up routing groups? All difficult decisions, unless you really know how Exchange is being used. Get the usage information you need now -- download NetIQ's free guide, "The Top Reports Every Exchange Administrator Lives For"! Visit NetIQ for more information. http://www.netiq.com/f/form/form.asp?id=2097&origin=NSWinnetMag_ExOtlk_042903
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
April 29, 2003--In this issue:
1. COMMENTARY - Windows 2003 SharePoint Services
2. ANNOUNCEMENT - Get Windows & .NET Magazine at 25% Off!
3. RESOURCE - Tip: Changing the Message Icon
4. NEW AND IMPROVED - Generate Digital Signatures for Email Messages
5. CONTACT US See this section for a list of ways to contact us.
********************
1.
COMMENTARY
(contributed by Sue Mosher, News Editor, [email protected])* WINDOWS 2003 SHAREPOINT SERVICES
Last week's release of Windows Server 2003 moves Microsoft one step closer to providing a new range of collaboration features in Outlook, specifically the version of Outlook due for release later this year as part of Microsoft Office 2003. Windows 2003 is the foundation for Windows SharePoint Services. WSS isn't a totally new product but the second version of what was originally known as SharePoint Team Services. WSS is currently in beta along with Office 2003. Microsoft plans to release WSS as a download for Windows 2003 later this year and support it as part of the Windows 2003 OS.
One of the new Outlook-related features that WSS supports is document workspaces. A document workspace is a Web-based environment in which people can collaborate on a document. Within the workspace, you can create additional documents, put together to-do lists, discuss documents, and use other WSS Web site features.
The Outlook integration aims to make the process of setting up the document workspace as seamless as possible. When you attach a file to an email message, Outlook 2003 provides two options. The first is to send the file as a regular attachment so that each recipient gets his or her own copy. The second option, which is new, is to send the file as a shared attachment that will be immediately available online in a document workspace. To use this option, you need to be connected to the Internet when you send the message.
When you choose the shared attachment option, Outlook prompts you for the location of your team Web site. Typically, an organization might deploy WSS so that each department or work team would have its own site where members of the department or team can create new document workspaces and other WSS collaboration sites. (Microsoft is also working with various application service providers--ASPs--to offer WSS as a hosted service for organizations that don't want to host WSS internally.) Office 2003 applications remember your team Web site URL, so you need to enter it only once, not every time you want to share a document.
After you enter the team Web site URL, Outlook updates your email message to add a link to the shared document workspace. When you send the message, Outlook checks whether you have permission to create a new workspace and, if so, creates the new workspace site, copying the document to the workspace. It also creates an account and password for each recipient who doesn't already have an account on the site. Recipients don't need to have Office 2003 to participate in the document workspace Web site; they just need an application that can open and edit the document. Even people with only a browser can participate in discussions about the document, even if they can't open the document.
Each recipient gets two messages--your original email message that includes the file attachment and a link to the document workspace, plus a separate message that invites the recipient to join the document workspace and includes the username and password created for that recipient. If the attached file is a Microsoft Office Word 2003, Office Excel 2003, or Office PowerPoint 2003 document, it will contain a custom property that stores the location of the document-workspace copy of the document. When a recipient uses Office 2003 to edit the file attached to the Outlook message, Office will update the document-workspace copy. Office 2003 applications also offer a conflict resolution mechanism so that users can compare their changed version of the document with the most current version of the document in the workspace.
Alternatively, to avoid possible conflicts with other users' changes, you can log on to the document workspace and check out the document so that other users can't make changes. They can still read the document, however. When you check the document back in, you can add a comment that explains what kind of changes you made.
One key feature of a WSS site is the generation of alerts that let participants know when changes have occurred on the site. You can subscribe to a shared Office document and get a notification automatically whenever someone updates it. That's something you don't get when you store a document in a normal shared network folder.
You can also create a document workspace directly on a WSS team Web site or through a new Shared Workspace task pane in Word 2003, Excel 2003, or PowerPoint 2003. But in either of those cases, you must add users to the workspace and grant them an appropriate level of access. The Outlook integration that creates users automatically from your recipients list is potentially the key factor that will make document workspaces a part of everyday life for Office 2003 users with access to WSS team sites.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~ SPONSOR: HP & MICROSOFT NETWORK STORAGE SOLUTIONS ROAD SHOW ~~~~ TIME IS RUNNING OUT TO CATCH OUR STORAGE ROAD SHOW! Attend the HP & Microsoft Network Storage Solutions Road Show, and learn how existing and future storage solutions can save your company money--and make your job easier! Attendees have lots of chances to win incredible prizes. There is absolutely no fee for this event, but space is limited. We've just added Minneapolis to our list of cities, so register now! http://www.winnetmag.com/roadshows/nas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2.
ANNOUNCEMENT
(brought to you by Windows & .NET Magazine and its partners)* GET WINDOWS & .NET MAGAZINE AT 25% OFF! Every issue of Windows & .NET Magazine includes intelligent, impartial, and independent coverage of security, Active Directory, Microsoft Exchange Server, and much more. Our expert authors deliver content you simply won't find anywhere else. Subscribe today at 25% off, and find out what over 100,000 readers know that you don't! http://www.winnetmag.com/rd.cfm?code=edwi203dup
3.
RESOURCE
(contributed by Sue Mosher, [email protected])* TIP: CHANGING THE MESSAGE ICON
Q: I inadvertently forwarded a message from a colleague's machine and, if he finds out, I'll be extremely embarrassed. Can I remove the blue arrow icon from the message line in the Inbox that shows that the message was forwarded?
A: You can't make a message revert from the icon that shows it was forwarded or replied to back to the original plain envelope icon. However, you can replace the blue arrow "forwarded" icon with the red arrow "replied to" icon. Assuming you still have access to the colleague's Inbox, create a reply to the message but don't send it. Instead, save it. Outlook should change the message icon to the "replied to" icon immediately, but check the Inbox to make sure. After the icon changes, you can discard the reply.
See the Exchange & Outlook Administrator Web site for more great tips from Sue Mosher. http://www.exchangeadmin.com
4.
NEW AND IMPROVED
(contributed by Carolyn Mader, [email protected])* GENERATE DIGITAL SIGNATURES FOR EMAIL MESSAGES Symmetricom's Trusted Time Division announced ExchangeProof for Exchange 2000 users. ExchangeProof, an add-on to Symmetricom's Trusted Time StampServer time-signing engine, generates a digital signature for every email message. The email signature proves the originality of the email content, the email record owner's identity, and the time of the email message. ExchangeProof pricing ranges from $15 to $30 per client. StampServer starts at $30,000. Contact Symmetricom at 781-372-3600. http://www.trusted-time.com
5.
CONTACT US
Here's how to reach us with your comments and questions:* ABOUT THE COMMENTARY -- [email protected]
* ABOUT THE NEWSLETTER IN GENERAL -- [email protected] (please mention the newsletter name in the subject line)
* TECHNICAL QUESTIONS -- http://www.winnetmag.com/forums
* PRODUCT NEWS -- [email protected]
* QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR EXCHANGE AND OUTLOOK UPDATE SUBSCRIPTION? Customer Support -- [email protected]
* WANT TO SPONSOR EXCHANGE AND OUTLOOK UPDATE? [email protected]
********************
Receive the latest information about the Windows and .NET topics of your choice. Subscribe to our other FREE email newsletters. http://www.winnetmag.com/email
|-+-|-+-|-+-|-+-|-+-|
Thank you for reading Exchange and Outlook UPDATE.
__________________________________________________________ Copyright 2003, Penton Media, Inc.
Corrections to this Article:
- Actually, Outlook doesn't need to be connected to the Internet to create a document workspace when the user sends an attachment. Outlook just needs to be able to connect to the WSS server. If the server is on your company intranet, all you need is a local network connection.
