Sean Wallbridge
SharePoint vs. the File Server
SharePoint offers…
1. Web based access to your files from anywhere (work, home, the airport and from anything (PC, MAC, mobile devices) – in a Web browser or familiar Explorer view
2. SharePoint offers a Two Stage” recycle bin – if you delete a file in SharePoint, you can restore it from the sites recycle bin, if you delete it from the site, the administrator can still restore it for you, with the click of a button
3. SharePoint provides Check-In/Check-Out abilities – when a file is checked out, others that try to edit the file will be informed that you have it, and it will prevent them from overwriting your work
4. SharePoint provides Revision History (and backups). If you edit a document and don’t like the changes since the last time you saved, simply revert to a previously saved version
5. SharePoint saves money (and storage) by storing only one copy of your document. If you want others to edit or review a document, you simply send them a link to the document, instead of the document itself. This means you always know where the original document is, and this prevents the common scenario of the document being spread around and stored on PC’s and in users inboxes (and ultimately, backed up repeatedly as well)
6. SharePoint allows you to view and find your documents in whatever manner you wish – RSS feeds, customized views, Metadata/sorting filtering, whatever. And users can define their own individual preferences for finding their data
7. SharePoint provides Workflow capabilities – your documents are the Payload, and SharePoint provides the following workflows *out of the box* (with more that can be programmed) to manage them; Three State, Approval, Collect Feedback, Collect Signatures and Records Management Disposition Approval
8. You can email directly to a SharePoint document library (just imagine, being able to ‘CC’ your file server to store copies of documents (or better yet scanned receipts that are searchable!)
9. SharePoint document libraries can be moderated. Designate someone to manage the documents in each library, to ensure only the documents that have been approved, are available for viewing
10. SharePoint libraries can be RSS enabled – Cool. Not sure what RSS is? Click here to find out… (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rss)
11. SharePoint can notify you (by email) when a document has been added, modified or deleted. You can be alerted whenever you prefer; Immediately, or via a daily or weekly summary (digest)
12. When using Outlook, you can take a SharePoint document to work with *offline* (such as at 10,000 feet in Business Class) and it will synchronize it for you once you reconnect
13. SharePoint Search – find your data whether it be the name of the document or the text inside the document, in less than a second – ‘Nuff Said!
Take that you lame-o file server! Go back to 1986! Tell Mr. T I said ‘I pity you fool!’
…special thanks to Jess who pointed out I’m an idiot and I hadn’t linked the wikipedia article. It’s fixed Mr. Ribs.
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