Reza Alirezaei's Blog

When working with content types we all can agree that the user interface that SharePoint provides is not the most intuitive one. Specifically when creating a new document set! The problem is that the document set is a complicated concept for the end users to digest. The complexity of SharePoint user interface for working with document sets adds to this complexity!

Complexity makes your SharePoint solutions seem too hard and casts doubt regarding how practical they are.

Imagine a page the shows a list of content types, their approval tasks, and maybe some other web parts. The add new item link provided by the List View web part does not allow users to create Document Sets. The way to work around this is to click somewhere on the list view to get the ribbon menu to show up, then click on New and select the Document Set from the drop down. That would be so many clicks, and for sure the end users wont like it!

Solution: To make life easier you can create a single click button to do this instead. This button is simple and intuitive to use. The solution is to takes advantage of SharePoint client side object model (CSOM) to create a new item. The screenshot below shows this button on a Web Part page.

Here is the main code for the Web Part.

<style type=”text/css”>.ms-uploadbtnlink { width: 300px; }</style>
<div style=”width: 100%” align=”center”>
<div class=”ms-uploadbtnlink”>
<button onclick=” javascript:NewItem2(event, ‘<%= DocSetDetails %>’);return false;” type=”submit”><nobr>
<img alt=”Upload a Document” src=”/_layouts/Images/uploaddoc.png”/> &#160;<span><%= ButtonLabel %></span></nobr>
</button>
</div>
</div>

In the code behind the Document Set Details are created and passed into the NewItem2 function.

DocSetDetails = “” + SPContext.Current.Web.Url + “/_layouts/listform.aspx?ListId=%7B” + List.ToUpper().Replace(“-”, “%2D”) + “%7D&PageType=8&RootFolder=” + rootFolder.Replace(” “, “%20″) + “&ContentTypeId=” + ContentType;

Highlighted are the List ID (ListId) and Content type (ContentType).

It’s possible to create this solution using a content editor web part or directly injecting the JavaScript code in the page, but the point is to develop it once and reuse many times over, so instead of changing the html and dealing with url encoding and IDs, create a Web Part with a tool part that allows you to select the list and the content type you want to use.

You can download this Web Part from Codeplex : https://docsetter.codeplex.com/

As you may have heard, apps are big in SharePoint 2013. In our SharePoint 2013 projects, we heavily rely on the new app architecture to deliver functionality that target end users. Recently, we have added two *free* SharePoint 2013 apps to the SharePoint App Store. Here is a brief description on each of them.

Action Tracker app lets you assign tasks to other users in the site and track the status of  the assigned tasks. The app was implemented using Twitter Bootstrap and Backbone.js, and uses SharePoint REST APIs.

See more about this app at  http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/store/action-tracker-WA104034530.aspx

Action tracker app Has 3 different sections. On the left pane you see Tasks Assigned to You, My Action Items which is the tasks that you have created, and also Items that are due today.

On the main section you can see the 6 most recent items. You can also create items or view all items, in a grid view.

In the down section you have the navigation pane which lets you navigate through different pages. Below is a screen shot of all items.

The strong point about this grid view is that it works instantaneously when you navigate through pages or edit an item. After all it’s all about being the fastest

The next app is the “Sticky Notes”. This simple but useful app brings sticky notes to your SharePoint Site. You can put small colorful reminders on a white wall. This app was created using the same architecture as “Action Tracker”, so the user experience is pretty the same. Also with how well they perform your users will feel like they are using an offline app.

This app is available at http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/store/sticky-notes-WA104007498.aspx

That was a brief intro on our new FREE apps, please check them out in the SharePoint Store  and as always, we would love to hear your feedback!

It’s very exciting to finish yet another book project on SharePoint 2013 with more emphasis on methodologies and business strategies you need to know for using balance scorecards, information dashboards, and data visualization.

The book has been divided into two sections. The first half of the book explains the basics of reporting and data gathering techniques. The second half shows how to actually create eye-catching, effective solutions with the tools available in SharePoint 2013.

• Provides an overview of Business Intelligence (BI)
• Explains how to import your data into a common data model and deliver data to business users by creating a semantic layer
• Addresses self service BI with Excel and PowerPivot and reporting solutions with Access Services and Visio Services
• Walks you through creating SharePoint 2013 BI solutions using Azure
• Looks at creating score cards and dashboards using PerformancePoint

You can pre-order this book here.

I am speaking in East Toronto .NET User Group this coming Thursday. If you are around please come say hi.

Title: Introduction to SharePoint 2013 App Development

Apps are these new beasts in SharePoint 2013 that offer a lot of exciting new opportunities for developers. This session will provide an overview of the new developer features for Office and SharePoint including apps, the new cloud app model, development tools and when to use apps versus full trust solutions.

Date: Thursday, January 17, 2013 from 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM

Event Agenda
6:30 – 7:00 Socialize and refreshments
7:00 – 8:30 Presentation

Location
Pickering Central Library
Auditorium (2nd floor)
One the Esplanade
Pickering, ON L1V 6K7
905-831-6265 or 1-888-831-6266

I am not saying Office 365 is great! I am saying Office 365 is pretty AWESOME! I think the combination of Office 365, Office 2013, Office Web Apps and SkyDrive is the future for everyone, and an immediate need for many small to mid-sized businesses.

Read my blog post here for a long list of immediate benefits you can get from Office 365, and the second part of another post here about SkyDrive and Office Web App integration and awesomeness.

In Office 2013, just like SharePoint, everything can be tied to an identity. This is optional, but if you choose to identify yourself to Office, the following picture shows where you can set your identity:

The identity shown in an Office Client is referred to as Microsoft Account which can be your Windows Live Account (like @live.com or @msn.com) or your corporate account that’s been associated with Windows Live. After you identify yourself to Office, you have the option to save or open your Office documents from your SkyDrive.

Office defaults to SkyDrive when saving a new document, which means Microsoft wants you to save your document there!

For SharePoint Designer, there are two identities : Microsoft Account (1) as well as the identity of the user who has logged in to SharePoint (2). SharePoint Designer just like SharePoint let’s you sign in as a different user , should you click on the icon labeled as 2 in the picture.



Obviously, you may have a reason for not wanting to be tracked by Office, which is totally understandable. However, a new feature in Office 365 called My Office is interesting and may make you change your mind. The following picture shows My Office (Beta) in the new Office 365:

After you login to your My Office site, you are able to see all your recent documents you have opened in your Office client apps across all your devices, thanks to Microsoft Account support in Office 2013.  Alternatively, you can create new Office documents in SkyDrive or access the links used by your Office clients apps. That’s pretty cool stuff!

It’s very impressive how Microsoft has been able to quickly turn things around, and become a serious competitor in this CLOUDY world we are living in!

[Off-Topic]: I always use Word to publish my blog posts. You can also use Word to publish to your corporate SharePoint blogs. Read this HOW-TO.