Prepare for Double Life with Office 365
July 15, 2014
Microsoft is pushing all SharePoint clients toward Office 365 for obvious reasons. In fact, they announced discontinuing certain payment plans last month in an effort to consolidate some services. And while some organizations, particularly smaller ones, are hesitant for the transition, even early adopters are finding it is not completely seamless. The Register covers the story in their article, “Face Up to a Double Life with Hybrid Office 365.”
The author sums up the situation:
“The vision is of businesses using Office 365, running in Microsoft’s Global data centres, for collaborating, conferencing, messaging and calendaring . . . If you are migrating to Office 365 from on-premises you will need to set up a hybrid deployment to get your services migrated to the cloud. Once you have done that you can decommission your on-premises environment. But it often turns out that businesses with Exchange, SharePoint and Lync deployed on-premises will need to keep a small portion of that environment running.”
These are the sorts of hiccups that happen often with large implementations like SharePoint, especially SharePoint. Stephen E. Arnold has made his career out of following and analyzing all things search, including SharePoint. His Web service, ArnoldIT.com, is a one-stop-shop for all things search. Check out his SharePoint feed to stay on top of the latest news, tips, and tricks.
Emily Rae Aldridge, July 15, 2014
SharePoint Fest 2014 in Denver
July 10, 2014
Conference season is a little heavier in the spring, but SharePoint Fest Denver is something to look forward to this fall, September 22-24. PRWeb gives all the details in their release, “AmeriTeach Confirmed as Title Sponsor of SharePoint Fest – Denver 2014.”
The press release begins:
“AmeriTeach is a Title Sponsor of SharePoint Fest Denver, and joins other sponsors in bringing this conference to the Colorado Convention Center on September 22-24, 2014. Conference delegates will hear from keynote speakers and attend breakout sessions. Over 70 sessions will be offered across multiple tracks, as well as an optional day of workshops preceding the conference.”
In a space like enterprise search, staying on top of the latest technology, tips, and tricks is vital. Training, webinars, and conferences are all important way to stay in touch with the industry and with the solution used at your organization. Another valuable resource is ArnoldIT.com, managed by lifelong search expert Stephen E. Arnold. His SharePoint feed provides the latest tips and tricks for the full spectrum of SharePoint users and administrators.
Emily Rae Aldridge, July 10, 2014
SharePoint Potential for Surface Pro 3
July 8, 2014
Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3 made waves as one of the first high profile enterprise ready tablets. Mobility is no longer a trend, but a necessity, with mobile search set to surpass desktop search this year. SharePoint needs to keep itself in the mobility game, and Surface Pro 3 may be one way to do that. Redmond covers the story in their article, “Why SharePoint Admins Should Check Out Surface Pro 3.”
Tamir Orbach, Metalogix’s director of product management for SharePoint migration product, gave his opinion on the new device:
“’Pretty much all of us professionals want or need both a laptop or desktop and a slate,” Orbach said. ‘It’s so light that you can carry it anywhere you want and you would barely even feel it. And the screen is big enough, the resolution is good, the functionality is powerful enough to be used as our day-to-day computer.’”
Stephen E. Arnold has made a career out of following all things search. Enterprise is particularly affected by search, good and bad, and SharePoint is unequivocally the biggest player in the enterprise game. However, it has struggled with mobile functionality. And while critics will not be completely satisfied if Microsoft claims SharePoint’s mobile struggles must be settled with another Microsoft product, it does show some movement in the right direction. Keep an eye on Arnold’s SharePoint feed on his Web site, ArnoldIT.com, for the latest news, tips, and tricks.
Emily Rae Aldridge, July 8, 2014
SharePoint through Rose Colored Glasses
July 1, 2014
SharePoint is definitely a powerful and ubiquitous enterprise tool. However, it is not always efficient and is definitely not easy to use – at least that is what the majority of users would argue. However, every now and then an article wants to paint a “best case scenario” picture of SharePoint. The harmon.ie article, “’Seek and Ye Shall Find:’ Making the Most of SharePoint Search” does just that.
After a lengthy discussion of some helpful SharePoint 2013 highlights, the article sums up the argument:
“A lot of the new functionality in SharePoint 2013 is provided by the previously separate add-on ‘FAST Search,’ developed by a company Microsoft bought in 2008). Until SharePoint 2010, this was a separate product, but Microsoft has now integrated it fully into core SharePoint functionality. With the exciting new developments of Office 365 and the cloud, we expect search to become even more powerful and user friendly in coming years. All of which is good news for the most important SharePoint audience of all – end users.”
But in order to get to that level of usability, most organizations will have to work through Microsoft’s “easy” tips and tricks for customization. We say “easy” because for most people this will be anything but easy. But for many organizations the investment in staffing and time is worth it for the end result. SharePoint is big and powerful, but in order to control this beast many organizations will have to sacrifice ease of use.
Emily Rae Aldridge, July 01, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Microsoft Retires Some SharePoint Online Plans
June 26, 2014
In what is sure to cause a big uproar, Microsoft is discontinuing some popular SharePoint Online payment plans. Redmond Magazine covers all the details in their article, “Microsoft Ending Some SharePoint Online Plans This Month.”
The article begins:
“Microsoft is retiring some of its SharePoint Online and Office Online plans by the end of this month, while offering other plans as substitutes. A total of four plans are going away and won’t be sold after June 30, 2014, Microsoft announced today. Those plans include SharePoint Online Plans 1 and 2 with Yammer, plus Office Online with SharePoint Plans 1 and 2. Organizations currently licensed under those expiring plans can still use the software for a year or two, depending on how the software was purchased.”
Substitutions are suggested in a helpful chart that follows. Stephen E. Arnold also has a few suggestions. He has made a living out of covering all things search, and reports his findings on ArnoldIT.com. His SharePoint feed is full of tips and tricks for SharePoint, as well as all manner of search options, enterprise and otherwise. And while users are bound to be frustrated over SharePoint’s pricing changes, it is doubtful that it will do anything to change the demand for its ubiquitous product.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 26, 2014
SharePoint Burns Bridges with Payment Options
June 24, 2014
SharePoint is the mostly widely known and adopted enterprise search option for organizations of any size, and yet it also has a reputation for being one of the most difficult, on many levels. SharePoint has proven the critics right with their latest announcement to cut some popular payment plans. Read more in the CMS Wire article, “Microsoft Fiddles With SharePoint Pricing.”
The article begins:
“It’s hard to see the justification, but Microsoft just announced it will cut back four of its payment plans for SharePoint Online and Office Online once the plans expire at the end of June. While Microsoft certainly can cut back on plans whenever it wants, especially when those plans expire, the lack of an explanation could leave a bad taste in the mouths of enterprise customers facing higher prices in replacement plans.”
Stephen E. Arnold has made a career out of tracking these sorts of quirks in SharePoint, as well as all other aspects of search. His Web site, ArnoldIT.com, offers a helpful SharePoint feed for those who need to track the ups and downs. In the meantime, SharePoint is going to get a lot of feedback, mostly negative, on these new pricing plans. However, it is unlikely to dent their market share, as users will hesitate to rework their infrastructure, despite the price hike.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 24, 2014
Halting SharePoint Information Bleed
June 19, 2014
A lot of time and attention is spent on how to get information into SharePoint effectively, and subsequently store and organize it well. However, more attention needs to be paid to information loss in SharePoint, or how information sometimes seeps out backdoors and cracks in the information architecture. This topic is handled well in the CMS Wire article, “Stop SharePoint Information Bleed Before It Starts.”
After stating all the obvious benefits to SharePoint, the article then addresses the challenges of information loss:
“But all these [helpful] functions go for naught if the information leaves SharePoint as soon as it arrives. Just telling people they can’t leave isn’t enough. Most people don’t have an exit plan for SharePoint — they upload documents expecting to keep them in perpetuity. Zombie SharePoint sites drive a lot of information out the back door. Perhaps more perniciously, empty or sparsely populated SharePoint sites suggest to users this may not be the best place for them to keep storing documents. If the last home page update was 18 months ago, users won’t have much confidence.”
Stephen E. Arnold has made his life’s work about search and has devoted a lot of time and attention to SharePoint over the years, including reporting on his information service, ArnoldIT.com. He finds that SharePoint is the most widely adopted enterprise solution, but because of its breadth and depth, is perhaps the hardest and most arduous to customize. Keeping on top of issues like information loss can feel exhausting to the SharePoint administrator, but keeping an eye on useful resources like Arnold’s SharePoint feed can really help.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 19, 2014
Opportunities Intersect Challenges with SharePoint
June 17, 2014
Probably the most all-encompassing challenge facing SharePoint is the tension between the user experience provided by consumer level technology (mobile, social, cloud, etc. etc.) and the limitations of enterprise level technology. SharePoint knows its weaknesses and strives to overcome them, but change is slow. Read more in the eCommerceTimes article, “Microsoft SharePoint’s Crossroads: Where Opportunities, Challenges Meet.”
The article sums up the problem:
“As consumer-based technologies, which are primarily out in the cloud, have progressed, organizations want to focus less on infrastructure and focus more on actual business systems. End users on the other side of that want their corporate solutions to match more closely to their personal habits, to their personal tools. They’re doing everything in the cloud, everything via a mobile phone.”
And in this current scenario there are lots of opportunities present for SharePoint, and yet within them, many challenges. SharePoint is a large ship, so to speak, and is therefore slow to turn. Furthermore, they are restricted by their update plan, which thus far has provided a major overhaul every 3 years instead of their competitors’ continual, smaller improvements. Stephen E. Arnold knows this strengths and weaknesses well, and reports on them through his Web service, ArnoldIT.com. Having made his life’s work about search, Arnold’s SharePoint feed serves to inform end users and managers about tips, tricks, add-ons, and shortcuts that can make life easier.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 17, 2014
Microsoft Deepens Yammer Assimilation
June 12, 2014
With its purchase of Yammer two years ago, Microsoft made a public statement that they were increasing social integration within its SharePoint platform. Now, two years into the process, integration has deepened through SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business. Read all about it in the CRN article, “Microsoft Deepens Yammer Integration With SharePoint Online, OneDrive For Business.”
The article begins:
“Microsoft, which bundled Yammer with Office 365 last November, has taken another big step toward integrating the social networking technology with SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business. Microsoft Tuesday unveiled a new feature called Document Conversations, which adds Yammer conversations to more than 30 different file types, including Office documents, images and videos.”
Stephen E. Arnold has covered SharePoint for many years on his information service, ArnoldIT.com. He found that many users wanted better social integration before the release of SharePoint 2013, so with the announcement of Yammer’s purchase, users were looking forward to seeing the social aspect of SharePoint move forward. Arnold provides good coverage on his SharePoint feed and SharePoint users and managers can look there for the latest news, tips, and tricks.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 12, 2014
DocuSign Awarded by Microsoft for Partnership
June 10, 2014
SharePoint is growing in size and usage. In order to stay effective to a multitude of organizations of various sizes and purposes, Microsoft is relying more and more on apps and third party add-ons to increase customization options. MarketWatch covers one such partner in their article, “DocuSign Awarded 2014 Microsoft Office and SharePoint App Development Partner of the Year.”
The article begins:
“DocuSign, Inc. (DocuSign®) announced it has been named the 2014Microsoft Office and SharePoint App DeveloperPartner of the Year. The company was honored among a global field of top Microsoft Corp. partners for demonstrating excellence in innovation and implementation of customer solutions based on Microsoft technology.”
This type of customer solution is becoming more and more valuable to users, according to Stephen E. Arnold. He has made a career out of covering all things search, and reports his findings on ArnoldIT.com. His SharePoint feed often features tips and tricks for users, as well as highlighting solutions that are enhancing user experience and customization capabilities, without a lot of headaches.
Emily Rae Aldridge, June 10, 2014
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