Thake Discusses Business Opportunities with SharePoint 2013 Marketplace
August 20, 2012
In “Why We Need a SharePoint 2013 Marketplace,” Jeremy Thake shares his thoughts on the opportunities that lie in the new SharePoint app home. In looking back at the history of marketplaces, Thake credits Apple iOS marketplace as the best example where Microsoft has a number of marketplaces, but they do not share the same platform.
He adds this about potential Web parts:
There is already an app for World Clock and Weather app. I expect a Stock Ticker app to be close behind this also. The big limitations with making web parts available this way is that there is no API to automatically add a web part to the parent site collection homepage at the moment. The metro tiles on the site home pages can’t be manipulated by the apps to add the web part there.
Thake also comments on the possibilities of community involvement, financial rewards, and the light integration hoped for the Marketplace. The new feature for SharePoint is exciting as it may greatly enhance work processes and collaboration. But we also know there are gaps in an out of the box SharePoint deployment. Thake sees some blockers with the expected Web part functionality.
Here you can read about the smooth integration of Fabasoft Mindbreeze with rich Web part capability:
It enables all information that is connected to Mindbreeze to be displayed in Microsoft SharePoint. This takes place smoothly via Web Parts. In this way not only information contained within Microsoft SharePoint, but also all other information that is available within the respective company, can be consolidated within one ‘platform.’ Mindbreeze therefore delivers real additional value to Microsoft SharePoint in the form of an add-on.
Philip West, August 20, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
Web Content Management in SharePoint 2013
August 17, 2012
John Ross gives us an updated view of web content management (WCM) in light of SharePoint 2013 in his piece, “SharePoint 2013: WCM and Search Go Together Like Peanut Butter and Jelly.” With SharePoint 2013 the FAST search engine has been fully integrated into the platform and will be the primary force behind WCM.
Ross states:
Search will be a far more efficient way to surface content in almost all circumstances. The way we’ll plan and think about WCM in SharePoint will fundamentally change. For example in the past, content needed to be in SharePoint for us to roll it up. With the new model, as long as content is in the search index we can surface it where ever [sic] we need. So the biggest limiting factor we’d have would be whether we’d be able to get SharePoint to crawl a datasource. This has massively huge implications!
While the web content functionality of SharePoint has been improved, there are good third party solutions that integrate search more successfully into the platform without needing additional customization. Fabasoft Mindbreeze is an Austrian vendor worth keeping an eye on. In addition to increasing the intuitiveness of in-house enterprise search with Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise, Fabasoft Mindbreeze InSite can also enhance search on public facing Web sites.
Emily Rae Aldridge, August 17, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
Administrative Options in SharePoint 2013
August 16, 2012
The blog world is buzzing with analysis of the public preview of SharePoint 2013. The Cloudshare Community Blog specifically breaks down the issues of administrative options in their post, “Administration Options in SharePoint 2013 with CloudShare!”
There are many things to show with SharePoint 2013, but I have decided to start with a basic one: how to administer the platform. In this article I will show you the available approaches you have to handle administrative tasks for SharePoint 2013. These approaches are essentially the same as in SharePoint 2010 with one big exception: you are not supposed to use (or even see!) the Stsadm command line tool that is now considered as deprecated.
It seems at this point the SharePoint world would be tired of the concept of customization, but apparently not yet. It seems like for every efficiency issue in SharePoint, the answer is customization. This is of course despite the fact that Microsoft does not want customers customizing SharePoint 2013. But how could a user possibly get around it, as SharePoint is still far from perfect?
The answer lies in smart third party solutions that can be added to an existing SharePoint infrastructure. A product like Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise can streamline processes with its intuitive interface, specifically designed to meet users’ needs where SharePoint lags. Additionally, Fabasoft Mindbreeze releases smart and frequent updates, preventing the drama and hassle of huge and infrequent overhauls.
Emily Rae Aldridge, August 16, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
Increase Company Productivity with Streamlined Project Management
August 15, 2012
Tim Cermak discusses project management for the upcoming SharePoint release in his CMSWire.com post, “Project Management Today: How SharePoint 2013 Can Help.” Cermak explains some of today’s challenges with workflow:
Companies today face the challenge of determining what is happening both within their organization and externally in their marketplace. Information such as who is working on what and the progress of directives is fundamental and yet it is often elusive. The only way for companies to improve their business is to know what is happening, who is doing the work and what the outcome really is. People need to easily be able to collaborate on jobs and with colleagues, communicate with many people, and easily report the facts.
The author shares tips for all departments in an organization to work as a team to become a more successful company. To help drive your employees to increased productivity and collaboration, consider adding a comprehensive third party solution. Mindbreeze offers a lean suite of products that can add rich value to your workflow processes. Look to gain each employee two weeks per year through focused finding of data (IDC Studies) with Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise. Read more at http://www.mindbreeze.com/.
Philip West, August 15, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
The Long Wait for SharePoint 2013
August 14, 2012
Microsoft has hyped the release of SharePoint 2013, with many enterprise junkies highly anticipating the public availability of the revamped product. ClearBox Consulting takes on the question of whether or not the new SharePoint is worth the hype, and the long wait, in, “Is SharePoint 2013 worth waiting for?”
While the author has many positives to highlight, he does have this to say in reference to the negatives:
By SharePoint 2010 the main challenges for an intranet manager had become governance and user adoption. Governance has definitely been improved, but adoption has been less substantially addressed. For example, the user experience for content owners is still over-fiddly and at the moment the mobile experience is well below what will be needed over the next 2-3 years. Moreover, the new version has done little to reduce the complexity involved in producing and managing a SharePoint-based intranet for business owners of sites and content.
It is no mystery that regardless of the changes that are made to SharePoint, it is a huge product that requires a lot of time, attention, and customization. So for many smaller organizations, a smarter, more efficient third party solution may be a better choice. A product like Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise can work as a standalone enterprise search solution, or as an enhancement to an existing SharePoint infrastructure. Used either way, customers will marvel as the intuitive interface and increased productivity of Fabasoft Mindbreeze.
Emily Rae Aldridge, August 14, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
SharePoint Server 2013 Preview
August 13, 2012
Microsoft posted two documents which we believe merit any SharePoint licensee’s attention. The principal features of the latest SharePoint appear on the Microsoft SharePoint site.
Search will be particularly important because SharePoint 2013 will make it easier to incorporate social content and support mobile access. The new SharePoint will be available later this year or early in 2013. Getting a head start is important if you plan to upgrade.
The SharePoint Server 2013’s enterprise search model provides information we found quite useful. The diagram’s PDF is 560 Kb and available from the Microsoft download center. The PDF covers:
- Search Components, including the application components and the search databases
- Example topologies. The illustrated use case is a medium-sized search farm with 40 million items or content objects in the system
- Scaling out. The diagram includes a proposal model for a search farm which handles 100 million item or content objects.
Of particular value are the details for the hardware required to support the 100 million item farm. A series of tables covers the scaling considerations, detail about the application servers recommended, and a table layout the hardware requirements necessary to handle upticks in the volume of content to be processed.
In the general guidance section, Microsoft points out that one additional crawl database is needed per additional 20 million items. One link database is recommend per additional 60 million items. The schematic’s detail recommends that the system include redundancy.
Bottom line, there is no mistaking the Fast-like functionality described here. Search Technologies has delivered more than 30,000 consultant-days of search implementation services to Fast and SharePoint users since 2005. We believe that this new search functionality will be widely adopted over the next few years, and we look forward to helping our customers to implement it.
Iain Fletcher, August 13, 2012
Sponsored by Augmentext
IntelTrax Top Stories: August 3 to August 9
August 13, 2012
This week, the IntelTrax blog delivered some informative posts that discuss the issues surrounding big data analytics technology in today’s workforce.
While many articles discuss the prevalence of analytics technology in various industries, “Troubling News for the Analytics Needy” looks at those that are not using it.
A recent survey found:
“Fifty-six percent of respondents indicated they will not be deploying big data analytics applications even beyond 2013, the survey of 255 IT professionals found. Half of those surveyed were data storage professionals at the analyst level; the other half comprised IT managers, vice presidents and CIOs…Survey respondents with no plans to roll out Hadoop or other big data analytics software said doing so requires a specific business case, and in most instances they didn’t see a need for it, according to Marco Coulter, managing director of TheInfoPro’s Cloud Computing Practice.”
Another interesting piece is “Big Data Law Might Be Changing.” It discusses the fear that many have of data analytics technology falling into the wrong hands. One suggestion has been to grant the legal right to accessing personal information of third parties as a way to incentivize transparency.
Writer Patrick Roland concludes:
“This is promising news for a population concerned with the potentially invasive nature of data mining and analytics. After last year’s surprising Supreme Court ruling that basically let Vermont sales reps mine doctors’ patient lists, we are pleased to see reasonable thought return to the table. We can only hope they further find ways that help us utilize this strong technology, while still keeping wrongdoers away.”
One industry that is already seeing lucrative returns on its investment in data analytics technology is Wall Street Investors. “Big Data Promises Big Returns for Stock Investors”
references an article that discusses why savvy stock traders should pay attention to the latest analytics technology.
The article states:
“At the heart of the feed from ORATS is the use of “implied dividends” – the dividend levels implied by prices within the options markets. In the case of equities that have both dividends and exchange-traded options on their stock, the dividend price is a major component in the calculation that traders use to compute a fair price for those options. ORATS runs that calculation backwards to compute “implied dividends”, a measure that reveals the broad consensus of all players in the options market about how much a company will pay as a dividend along the entire option expiration calendar”.
All three of these stories provide different avenues to get to the same conclusion. Investing in data analytics technology is an integral way for companies to make the most out of the unstructured data that is being put out on a daily basis. It is important that you find a reputable company with affordable solutions like Digital Reasoning.
Jasmine Ashton, August 13, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext.
To Customize or not to Customize SharePoint
August 13, 2012
Chris Wright discusses the look and feel of SharePoint in his recent CMSWire.com post, “Microsoft Doesn’t Advise You Customize SharePoint 2013.” The author points out that many users get caught up in the “look and feel” of the system when working on SharePoint projects. Wright explains that the vast majority of projects he’s been involved with have had a significant branding and UI element.
He goes on to say this:
In my previously mentioned piece I argued that time spent on such endeavors would be better spent looking at functionality and content. Jeff seems to be advocating a slightly different view, though one that reaches the same conclusions. He is focusing on the importance of providing a stable performant solution, and appears concerned that custom code can be the quickest route to undermining this.
The article may be worth the read to help you stay on track with SharePoint goals and priorities. You may also consider investing in a third party solution that provides a rich SharePoint experience with a user-friendly interface out-of-the-box. One we like is Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise. Mindbreeze Enterprise Search lets you “be well informed – quickly and accurately. The data often lies distributed across numerous sources. Fabasoft Mindbreeze Enterprise gains each employee two weeks per year through focused finding of data (IDC Studies). An invaluable competitive advantage in business as well as providing employee satisfaction.”
Philip West, August 13, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Temis Wins Award
August 12, 2012
We’d like to offer a heartfelt shake of the pom-poms to text analytics firm Temis. Tag Line announces, “TEMIS Wins 2010 LT-Innovate Award.” From vendors to policy makers, the LT-Innovate Summit brought together the leaders of Europe’s language technology arena. The gathering’s goals were to enhance the visibility of the field and to establish language technology as a priority for Europe.
Regarding the award, the write up explains:
“31 LT companies presented their activities in front of an audience and an Expert Jury composed of major players involved in LT with a solid background and experience in the development of innovative practices in the LT arena. The Expert Jury rated each presentation based on the following criteria:
Innovativeness – Business potential – Team experience – Competitive position – Investment or partnering interest – Project profile quality.”
So congratulations, Temis. Founded in 2000 by the same team who had earlier performed their text mining magic, quite effectively, for IBM, Temis acquired XeLDA, Xerox’s linguistic engine, in 2003. The company has offices spread across Europe and North America.
Cynthia Murrell, August 12, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Open Source Options for Collaboration in SharePoint
August 10, 2012
In “Open Source Tools Level SharePoint 2010 Collaboration Playing Field,” Shawn Shell discusses collaboration options in the SharePoint community.
Shell has this to say:
But while there are many available tools that can expand SharePoint’s collaboration capabilities and fill the gaps in its out-of-the-box functionality, some organizations simply can’t afford them because of budget constraints. As a result, many often find themselves at a competitive disadvantage. The good news is that one of the strongest dimensions of the SharePoint universe is a surprisingly robust open source community. It comprises individuals, user organizations and even ISVs that provide tools and utilities that are reasonable alternatives to commercially licensed add-on products.
The author also comments on collaboration alternatives for employees, such as the Community Kit for SharePoint (CKS) and the Learning Management System (LMS). However, Shell also states that it is important to read the documentation of these two projects very carefully because they are handled by separate teams. The read may be worth it if you’ve been looking for possible fixes to SharePoint’s capability gaps.
Collaboration capabilities are imperative as businesses get social. To tap into the new possibilities, consider a third party solution to complete your enterprise search system. We like Fabasoft Mindbreeze. Managing director Michael Hadrian explains the Mindbreeze solution:
Fabasoft Folio Cloud enables quick, secure and mobile collaboration both internally and between international companies. Business processes with customers and partners cannot be realized any quicker or more cost effectively…This enables worldwide connected collaboration and secure data exchange in protected team rooms.
For a complete search solution with the power of information pairing, check out the full suite of solutions at Fabasoft Mindbreeze.
Philip West, August 10, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
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