5.3 Choosing a Folder Type

Novell Teaming provides various kinds of folders that enable you and your teams to accomplish specific tasks.

Many folder management functions are the same for all types of folders. However, each type of folder in Teaming performs special functions. This section describes how to manage and perform functions that are unique to each folder type.

5.3.1 Discussion

Use discussions as a way of obtaining comments and feedback to questions and thoughts that you might have. You can start general discussion threads in the Discussion folder in your personal workspace. For discussion threads that are more specific to a project or team, start the discussion thread in the Discussion folder of the appropriate workspace.

Starting a discussion thread is often more effective than sending individual users an e-mail, because other interested parties and knowledge holders can easily join the discussion, without waiting for the e-mail to be forwarded partway through the discussion.

By default, the Discussions folder is sorted with the most recent discussions appearing first in the list of discussion entries.

Sorting Discussion Entries by Column Title

You can organize your discussion entries by any of the column titles, which are Entry Number (#), Title, Author, State, Activity Date, or Rating.

To sort discussion entries by column titles:

  1. Click the title of the column that represents how you want to sort your discussions.

    The Sort iconTeaming Interface is displayed by the column title that represents how the discussions are being sorted.

  2. Click the column title again to reverse the sort order for the discussions.

Pinning Discussion Entries

Teaming enables you to pin discussion entries, which makes them easy to view in the future by bringing them to the top of the list of discussion entries. This is like placing a bookmark on a discussion entry that you want to keep track of.

  1. In a Discussion folder, click the gray Pin iconTeaming Interface next to a discussion entry that you are interested in.

    The Pin icon changes from gray to orange. The next time the page refreshes, the discussion entry is brought to the top of the list of discussion entries. It remains at the top of the list until you click the Pin icon again, and un-pin the discussion entry.

    You can pin multiple discussion entries. Pinned discussion entries are sorted alphabetically by title.

Viewing Discussion Entries

To view a discussion entry:

  1. Click the title of the discussion entry.

    The discussion entry is opened in-line in the discussion folder.

5.3.2 Blog

Blogs are a good way to express your thoughts about topics that are important to you. For example, if you are working on a project and are responsible for a certain aspect of that project, you can update your team on your individual progress by posting a blog in the Blog folder in the team workspace. Also, you can use the Blog folder in your personal workspace to post your professional credentials and skills, as described in Section 1.4.2, Presenting Your Professional Credentials.

Using the Blog Toolbar

Unlike other folder views, the Blog folder provides the Blog toolbar on each entry. The Blog toolbar is displayed at the bottom of any blog entry, and enables you to do several actions without opening the entry:

  • Add Comment: Enables you to quickly add a comment to an entry.

  • View Comments: Opens a list containing all of the comments that have been made on the entry.

  • Send to Friend: Enables you to e-mail the blog entry to anybody who might be interested in viewing it.

  • Subscribe: Enables you to send notifications to yourself when activity takes place in this entry. For more information, see Section 2.11, Subscribing to a Folder or Entry.

Organizing Your Blog Folder

There are various ways that you can organize your Blog folder.

Creating a New Blog Page

You can organize your Blog folder into separate Blog pages. Blog pages are displayed in the Blog sidebar, located in the right section of the Blog folder, above the Archives section. Also, in the main sidebar, in the Workspace section, you can expand your Blog folder to view your Blog pages.

To create a new Blog page:

  1. Click New Blog Page in the Folder Entry toolbar.

    The Add New Folder page is displayed.

  2. In the Folder Title field, specify the name of the new Blog page that you want to create.

  3. Click OK.

Sorting Blog Entries

You can sort your blog entries by Entry Number (#), Activity Date, Author, State, or Title.

To sort blog entries:

  1. Click the Sort by drop-down list in the Folder Entry toolbar.

  2. Select how you want to sort the entries in your Blog folder.

Using the Archives Section

The Blog sidebar in the Blog folder includes an Archives section that displays each month of the year that blogs were created. When you first enter a Blog folder, all of the blog entries are displayed in the main viewing area. Selecting an archived month simply filters the entries in the folder to display only entries that were created in that month.

Using the Archives section, you can quickly navigate to a specific blog entry if you know the month when it was created. Or, you can view all of the blog entries that were created in any given month.

  1. In the Archives section, click the month that the blog was created.

    The most recent month is displayed at the top of the Archives section.

    In the main viewing area of the Blog folder, Teaming displays all of the blog entries that were created in that month.

  2. (Optional) You can further navigate to the blog you are looking for by clicking the name of the Blog page where the blog is stored.

    The blog is displayed in the main viewing area.

5.3.3 Calendar

Teaming enables you to create a Calendar folder in any workspace that you desire. You can maintain a personal calendar in your personal workspace, and then add separate calendars in your team workspaces to keep track of events that are specific to that team.

Customizing Your Calendar Folder

Customizing Your Calendar Folder With The Date Toolbar

The Date toolbar in Teaming enables you to customize the Calendar folder view in various ways.

  • Specify whether Teaming should display all hours in the day, or only regular working hours.

  • Specify the amount of time displayed on a single folder page (1 day, 3 days, 5 days, 1 full week, 2 weeks, or a month).

  • Use the left-arrow and right-arrow icons to specify the next or previous folder page. For example, if you are currently viewing three days of information, clicking the arrows shows you the previous or next three days of information.

  • Click the Calendar Settings icon Teaming Interface to specify the following options:

    • The day of the week that the calendar starts. (Saturday, Sunday, or Monday).

    • The time your work day starts.

  • Use the calendar applet to display the month or day. After you select a new month to view, be sure to click OK to refresh the folder page.

Other Customizations

In the Folder Entry toolbar, you can select Show All Entries By if you want to organize your entries by Creation or Last Activity.

Synchronizing Teaming Calendars

Teaming enables you to synchronize the Teaming calendars of your choice, and display them in a single, summarized calendar in the Accessory Panel. This eliminates the need to check multiple calendars.

  1. Navigate to the workspace or folder where you want to display the calendar.

  2. Click the Accessory Panel drop-down list.

  3. Click Add an Accessory.

  4. In the Accessory Scope section, select where you want the accessory to be displayed.

    Personal accessory for this page only: This accessory appears only to you and only on the currently displayed workspace or folder page.

    Personal accessory for all workspaces and folders: This accessory appears only to you, but it appears on all workspace and folder pages that you view.

    Community accessory for this page: This accessory appears only on this page, and it appears to everyone who views the current page. Only workspace and folder owners are allowed to establish community accessories.

  5. In the Accessory Type section, select Calendar Summary.

  6. Click OK.

    The Accessory Setup page is displayed.

  7. In the Title field, provide a title for the calendar.

  8. In the Display Style section, select whether you want the calendar to have a border.

  9. In the Select the Calendar Folder(s) to be Shown section, navigate the workspace tree and select all of the calendars that you want to be included in the Calendar Summary accessory.

    Teaming takes the calendar events from all of the Calendar folders that you select here, and displays them in a single, convenient calendar in the Accessory Panel.

  10. Click Apply > Close.

    The Calendar Summary accessory is displayed in the Accessory Panel on the pages where you configured it to be shown, as explained in Step 4.

Viewing Today’s Calendar Items from All of Your Tracked Calendars

Teaming enables you to view all of your calendar events for the current day, in one synchronized view. This view displays events from the calendars that you are tracking, and displays only those events for which you are scheduled.

  1. Navigate to the home page of your personal workspace.

  2. Click the Tasks and Calendars tab.

    The right section of the page displays today’s schedule with all of the calendar events from all of your tracked calendars.

Synchronizing Your Calendar with a Desktop Application

Teaming provides iCal URLs for Calendar folders, so you can synchronize your Teaming Calendar folder to your desktop application.

For information on using iCal to synchronize your calendar with a desktop application, see Section 2.14, Synchronizing Teaming Task and Calendar Folders to a Desktop Calendar Application.

5.3.4 Guestbook

The Guestbook folder in Teaming is a place to store all of your guestbook entries. By default, users can sign your Guestbook in the Overview tab of the home page of your personal workspace. This is a quick way for your friends and co-workers to communicate with you.

To sign another user’s Guestbook:

  1. Navigate to the user’s Guestbook folder.

  2. Click the Overview tab.

  3. In the upper right corner of the folder, click Sign the guestbook.

  4. In the Title section, provide a title for signature.

  5. In the Description section, compose your message.

  6. (Optional) In the Attachments section, add any attachments that you desire.

  7. Click OK.

5.3.5 File

File folders in Teaming make it easy to store and keep track of your files. You can store personal files in the File folder in your personal workspace, and team-related files in your individual team folders. This makes it easy to share files with your teammates and others who might be interested in viewing them.

Adjusting the Column Width

Teaming enables you to adjust the column width of the table in the File folder.

  1. Click and drag the arrow icons, located at the top of each column.

  2. When you have reached the desired width, release the mouse.

Showing and Hiding Columns

Teaming enables you to show or hide table columns in the File folder. The available columns are:

  • Entry Number (#): Displays the number of the entry (“1” meaning that the entry was created first)

  • Title: Displays the title of the entry.

  • Author: Displays the author of the entry.

  • Comments or Replies: Displays how many comments or replies have been made on the entry.

  • Size: Displays the file size of the entry.

  • Download: Enables you to download the file to your local workstation.

  • VIEW: Enables you to view the file in an HTML format.

  • State: Shows the workflow state of the file.

  • Activity Date: Displays when the entry was last modified or commented on.

  • Rating: Displays the rating that users have given the entry.

  • VIEW: Enables you to view the file in an HTML format.

To show or hide table columns in the File folder:

  1. Navigate to the File folder where you want to show or hide the table columns.

  2. In the main sidebar, click Folder Options > Configure Columns.

  3. Select the columns that you want to show, and deselect the columns that you want to hide.

  4. (Optional) Select Set the default folder columns for everyone if you want all users to see only the columns that you have selected.

  5. Click OK.

5.3.6 Milestone

Milestone folders track the progress of several task folders. Although you can use milestone folders outside of the scope of a project workspace, they are most often used in those workspaces. For more information, see Section 4.5, Managing a Project Management Workspace.

5.3.7 Micro-Blog

The Micro-Blog folder in Teaming is a place to store all of your micro-blog entries. Use micro-blog entries to display your status to your co-workers. You can navigate to someone else’s Micro-Blog folder to see what they have been working on, and possibly provide help by sharing your knowledge and experience.

For more information on the Micro-Blog feature, see Section 2.9, Using Micro-Blogs.

5.3.8 Mirrored File

Mirrored File folders reference a file system on an external server, instead of the Teaming file system where other Teaming information is stored. Mirrored File folders can reference any WebDAV or local file path.

For more information about Mirrored File folders, see Working with Mirrored Folders in the Novell Teaming 2.0 Advanced User Guide.

5.3.9 Photo Album

Photo albums store and display pictures. You can store your personal photos in the Photo Album folder in your personal workspace, and team-related photos in the Photo Album folder of the team workspace.

Organizing Your Photo Album

Creating New Photo Albums within the Folder

You can organize your Photo Album folder into separate photo albums. Photo albums are displayed in the Photo Album sidebar, located in the right section of the Photo Album folder. Also, in the Workspace section of the main sidebar, you can expand your Photo Album folder to view all of your photo albums in the folder.

To create a new photo album in your Photo Album folder:

  1. Click New Photo Album in the Folder Entry toolbar.

    The Add New Folder page is displayed.

  2. In the Folder Title field, specify the name of the new photo album that you want to create.

  3. Click OK.

Sorting Photo Entries

You can organize your photo album entries by Activity Date, Creation Date, or Title.

To sort photo album entries:

  1. Click the Sort by drop-down list in the Folder Entry toolbar.

  2. Select how you want to sort the entries in your Photo Album folder.

Using the Archives Section

The Photo Album sidebar in the Photo Album folder includes an Archives section that displays each month of the year that photos were created. When you first enter a Photo Album folder, all of the photo album entries are displayed in the main viewing area. Selecting an archived month simply filters the entries in the folder to display only entries that were created in that month.

Using the Archives section, you can quickly navigate to a specific photo entry if you know the month when it was created. Or, you can view all of the photo entries that were created in any given month.

  1. In the Archives section, click the month when the photo was created.

    The most recent month is displayed at the top of the Archives section.

    In the main viewing area of the Photo Album folder, Teaming displays all of the photo entries that were created in that month.

  2. (Optional) You can further navigate to the photo entry you are looking for by clicking the name of the Photo Album where the photo entry is stored.

    The photo entry is displayed in the main viewing area.

Synchronizing Photo Albums

Teaming enables you to synchronize the Teaming photo albums of your choice, and display them in a single, summarized photo album (called a Photo Gallery) in the Accessory Panel.

  1. Navigate to the workspace or folder where you want to display the Photo Gallery.

  2. Click the Accessory Panel drop-down list.

  3. Click Add an Accessory.

  4. In the Accessory Scope section, select where you want the accessory to be displayed.

    Personal accessory for this page only: This accessory appears only to you and only on the currently displayed workspace or folder page.

    Personal accessory for all workspaces and folders: This accessory appears only to you, but it appears on all workspace and folder pages that you view.

    Community accessory for this page: This accessory appears only on this page, and it appears to everyone who views the current page. Only workspace and folder owners are allowed to establish community accessories.

  5. In the Accessory Type section, select Photo Gallery.

  6. Click OK.

    The Accessory Setup page is displayed.

  7. In the Title field, provide a title for the photo gallery.

  8. In the Display Style section, select whether you want the photo gallery to have a border.

  9. In the Select the Photo Album(s) to be Shown section, navigate the workspace tree and select all of the photo albums that you want to be included in the Photo Gallery accessory.

    Teaming takes the photos from all of the Photo Album folders that you select here, and displays them in a single, convenient Photo Gallery in the Accessory Panel.

  10. Click Apply > Close.

    The Photo Gallery accessory is displayed in the Accessory Panel on the pages where you configured it to be displayed, as explained in Step 4.

Viewing and Managing Photo Entries

Viewing Photos

To view a photo in a full-sized view in a separate window, click the thumbnail picture.

To scroll through an album that contains multiple photos, simply click the navigation arrows.

Managing Photo Entries

To manage a photo entry, including deleting, modifying, commenting, etc., click the linked title of the photo entry.

5.3.10 Survey

Survey folders store surveys that you or other Teaming users have created. Surveys enable you to poll team members, or any other Teaming users, about issues that are important to you, your team, or your entire organization.

Participating in a Survey

  1. Navigate to the Survey folder that contains the survey that you want to participate in.

  2. Click the entry title of the survey.

  3. Provide answers to the survey questions, then click Vote.

Creating a Survey

  1. Navigate to the Survey folder where you want to create the survey.

  2. Click Add Survey in the Folder Entry toolbar.

    The Survey page is launched.

  3. Fill in the Title, Description, and Attachments sections as described in Section 6.1.1, Filling in the Add Entry Form.

  4. In the Due Date section, specify the date when you want to stop all voting on the survey. After the date that you specify, users cannot cast a vote.

  5. Specify the following access control settings:

    Who Can See Vote Results Before Due Time: When users have access to view the vote results before the survey is due, they can see how other participants have voted so far. You can enable all users to have this ability, the moderator and those users who have already voted, or only the moderator.

    Who Can See Vote Results After Due Time: When users have access to view the vote results after the survey is due, they can see how other participants have voted, but only after they have cast a vote and the voting is closed. You can enable all users to have this ability, the moderator and those users who have voted, or only the moderator.

    Who Can See Who Has Voted and How: When users have access to see who has voted and how, they can see how other individual users have voted. Using this option is not recommended if your users want their votes to remain confidential. You can enable all users to have this ability, the moderator and those users who have voted, or only the moderator.

    Allow Voters to Change/Remove Their Votes: Select this option if you want to grant users the ability to change or remove their votes before the survey is due. Users who are logged in as Guest cannot have this ability.

  6. Select one of the following options for the first question of your survey:

    • Multiple Choice: Multiple Answers: Adds a multiple-choice question, and enables users to select more than one answer.

    • Multiple Choice: Single Answer: Adds a multiple-choice question, and restricts users to only one answer.

    • Written Reply: Adds a written reply question, and provides users with a field where they can specify their written response.

  7. (Optional) Select Answer to this question is required, if you want to require users to answer the question.

  8. (Optional) Click Add More Answers, if you want to add more answer possibilities for a multiple-choice question. (This option does not exist for Written Reply questions.)

  9. Repeat Step 6 through Step 8 to add additional questions to your survey.

  10. Click OK.

Checking the Results of a Survey

After you have voted, you can check the results by viewing the entry again.

  1. Navigate to and open the survey where you want to check the voting results.

  2. Click View Voting Details, located near the bottom of the survey entry.

    Teaming displays the percentage of votes cast for each survey question.

5.3.11 Task

Task folders keep track of the progress made in completing work assignments. Teaming enables you to create a Task folder in any workspace that you desire. You can maintain a personal Task folder in your personal workspace, and then add separate Task folders in your team workspaces to keep track of tasks that are specific to that team.

Changing the View of Your Task Folder

The View toolbar enables you to choose the kinds of tasks that you want to display in the task list, according to the following categories:

  • Closed: Displays tasks that have the status of Closed.

  • Today: Displays tasks that have a due date of today.

  • Week: Displays tasks that have a due date sometime in the next seven days.

  • Month: Displays tasks that have a due date sometime in the next 30 days.

  • All Active: Displays tasks that are currently active.

  • All Entries: Displays all tasks.

Synchronizing the Teaming Task Folders of Your Choice

Teaming enables you to synchronize the Teaming Task folders of your choice, and display them in a single, summarized task list in the Accessory Panel. You can display tasks that are assigned to specific users, groups, or teams.

  1. Navigate to the page where you want to display the task list.

  2. Click the Accessory Panel drop-down list.

  3. Click Add an Accessory.

  4. In the Accessory Scope section, select where you want the accessory to be displayed.

    Personal accessory for this page only: This accessory appears only to you and only on the currently displayed workspace or folder page.

    Personal accessory for all workspaces and folders: This accessory appears only to you, but it appears on all workspace and folder pages that you view.

    Community accessory for this page: This accessory appears only on this page, and it appears to everyone who views the current page. Only workspace and folder owners are allowed to establish community accessories.

  5. In the Accessory Type section, select Task Summary.

  6. Click OK.

    The Accessory Setup page is displayed.

  7. In the Title field, provide a title for the task list.

  8. In the Display Style section, select whether you want the task list to have a border.

  9. In the # of Results to be Shown section, specify how many results you want to display at any one time in the task list.

  10. In the Show Only the Tasks Assigned To section, specify the specific users, groups, or teams whose tasks you want to display.

  11. In the Select the Task Folder(s) to be Shown section, navigate the workspace tree and select all of the Task folders that you want to be included in the task list.

    Teaming takes the tasks from all of the Task folders that you select here, and displays them in a single, convenient task list in the Accessory Panel.

  12. Click Apply > Close.

    The Task Summary accessory is displayed in the Accessory Panel on the pages where you configured it to be shown, as explained in Step 4.

Viewing Your Personal, Team, and Group Tasks in One Location

Teaming provides a view that displays all of the tasks that are assigned to you, whether they are assigned personally to you, or assigned to a group or team of which you are a member.

  1. Navigate to the home page of your personal workspace.

  2. Click the Tasks and Calendars tab.

    The left section of the page displays all of the tasks that assigned to you, whether they are assigned personally to you, or assigned to a group or team of which you are a member.

  3. Select whether you want to view tasks that are due within the next two weeks, or if you want to view all tasks.

Importing Tasks

Teaming enables you to import tasks from other software applications. You can import tasks from Outlook or from other applications that export to files of .ical, .ics, .ifb, and .icalendar formats.

You can import tasks as a single file, or you can import a list of tasks from a URL.

Importing Tasks as a Single File

  1. Navigate to the Task folder where you want to import the task.

  2. In the main sidebar, click Folder Options > Import Tasks.

  3. Click Import Tasks from a File.

  4. Click Browse, then browse to and select the task that you want to import.

  5. Click Import from File.

Importing Tasks from a URL

  1. Navigate to the Task folder where you want to import the task.

  2. In the main sidebar, click Folder Options > Import Tasks.

  3. Click Import Tasks from a URL.

  4. In the provided field, specify the URL where there is a list of tasks that you want to import.

  5. Click OK.

5.3.12 Wiki

Wiki folders contain wiki entries. A wiki is a set of related entries coauthored by folder participants. For example, the best known wiki on the Internet is Wikipedia. Other examples of possible wiki content are glossaries, and policies or procedures.

Organizing Your Wiki Folder

There are various ways that you can organize your Wiki folder.

Setting a Wiki Home Page

Teaming enables you to set an entry to be the wiki home page for any Wiki folder (Wiki Topic).

  1. Locate and display the entry that you want to set as the home page for your Wiki Topic.

  2. Click Set Wiki Home Page in the Entry toolbar.

    The entry is now set as the home page for the Wiki Topic.

Navigating to Your Wiki Home Page

  1. Navigate to the Wiki folder (Wiki Topic) where you want to display the wiki home page.

  2. Click Wiki Home Page in the Wiki sidebar.

    The wiki home page for the Wiki Topic is displayed in the main viewing window.

Creating a New Wiki Topic

You can organize your Wiki entries into separate Wiki folders (Wiki Topics). Wiki Topics are displayed in the Wiki sidebar, in the Wiki Topics section. Also, in the Workspace section of the main sidebar, you can expand your Wiki folder to view your Wiki Topics.

To create a new Wiki Topic:

  1. Click New Wiki Topic in the Folder Entry toolbar.

    The Add New Folder page is displayed.

  2. In the Folder Title field, specify the name of the new Wiki Topic that you want to create.

  3. Click OK.

or

  1. In the Wiki folder where you want to create the new Wiki Topic, click Manage > Configure in the Folder toolbar.

    The Add New Folder page is displayed.

  2. In the Folder Title field, specify the name of the new Wiki Topic that you want to create.

  3. Click OK.

Sorting Wiki Entries

You can organize your wiki entries by Activity Date, Creation Date, or Title.

To sort wiki entries:

  1. Click the Sort by drop-down list in the Folder Entry toolbar.

  2. Select how you want to sort the entries in your Wiki folder.

Finding a Wiki Entry

Wiki Entries are stored in Wiki folders (Wiki Topics). When you are looking for a Wiki Entry, first select the Wiki Topic in the Wiki Topics section of the Wiki sidebar where the entry is stored. Then, click the entry in the Wiki Entries section of the Wiki sidebar.

For Wiki Topics that contain many entries, you can use the Find a Page feature in the Wiki sidebar.

  1. In the Wiki sidebar, click the Wiki Topic that contains the Wiki Entry that you are searching for.

  2. In the Find a Page field, begin typing the name of the entry that you are looking for. Click the name of the entry when it appears in the drop-down list.

When you are working with a wiki entry, it can be helpful to review edits from your teammates. For information on how to check the edit history of an entry, see Section 6.9.2, Edit History Reports.

Formatting Your Wiki Entry

Creating Sections and Subsections

Table 5-1 shows how you can create sections and subsections in a Wiki Entry.

Table 5-1 Sections and Subsections

Example

Description

==Section name==

Creates a section heading in the Wiki Entry.

===Subsection name===

Creates a subsection heading in the Wiki Entry.
Linking to Another Wiki Entry

If you know the exact name of the entry that you want to link to, you can enter [[entry name]] in the Description section of the entry to create a link to that entry.