Datasheet

create and publish branded web content without knowing code. You can then host these web-
sites on an intranet environment or an extranet so partners or clients can access information.
Chapter 13 shows you how to create and manage web content.
❑ Excel Services: Microsoft Excel popularity means many organizations support thousands of
spreadsheets full of business information. Excel Services lets you work with important data in
real time using only the browser. You can publish interactive pivot tables, charts, and spread-
sheets to a large audience while protecting your formulas and calculations. Users are given “view-
only” rights, which only allows them to see the browser-based version of a report. Chapter 11
covers options for displaying reports in your portals, including those generated from Excel
spreadsheets as well as key performance information based on real-time information.
❑ Business Data Catalog: Although SharePoint may be your central application, your organiza-
tion may have legacy business applications. The Business Data Catalog (BDC) allows you to con-
nect to these external data sources and display business data via Web Parts, user profiles, or
SharePoint lists. Although the BDC does not contain the information from these systems, it acts
as the virtual bridge between the alternate system and the user. Chapter 12 discusses the BDC,
as well as practical methods for accessing information via the various business data components
such as Web Parts and list columns.
❑ Audiences/Profiles: SharePoint 2007 can collect user profile information and store it in a
centralized database so that various elements in SharePoint can access it and personalize it.
Personalization targets relevant content to users based on properties of their profiles. Chapter 9
shows you how audiences and personalization provide targeted content to users.
Summary
This chapter provided basic knowledge of the new features available in Microsoft Office SharePoint
Server 2007 and how you can use them to service enterprise-level organizations, drive more efficient
business processes, and connect people with the information required to make informed business deci-
sions. After reading this chapter, you should also better understand how SharePoint 2007 has been
enhanced to address some of the perceived limitations of its predecessor, SharePoint Portal Server 2003.
You should also better understand the various SharePoint Products and Technologies that service spe-
cific business requirements, including lists, libraries, content types, sites and workspaces, and workflow.
Exercises
1. What is the difference between a team site and a document workspace?
2. Your manager informs you that the organization is currently reviewing the need for a corporate
portal. List two reasons to justify why organizations invest in portal technologies.
3. True or False. Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 is the next release of SharePoint Portal
Server 2003.
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Chapter 1: Getting Started with Microsoft Office SharePoint Server
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