I'm Back
Long time no blog... and not for lack of working. In fact, quite the opposite, I'm so busy I can barely keep my head on straight. I finished the POC for the Sharepoint 2007 workflow. It's quite nice and works pretty good with a lot of work still needing to go into the thing.
Two weeks ago my firm went into our Architecture Design Review with MSFT. A nice long multi-day event. In the midst I was designing a small demo of document automation, web based, new Office file format and InfoPath Forms Server. Immediately after we got on a plane for NYC, did the demo and I landed a huge, huge, huge project in my lap... I'm not even sure I want to do the project it is so difficult:
Document Automation System
- Pulls data from disparate data sources (no problem here, just use webservices, since I can't Office 12 on the client, I can still parse out XML nodes from the document part and drop in the corresponding node in the XML data file... I've got this code working already)
- Allows the user to select from an existing “deal data sheet” (a bunch of data which will need to be stored for later user that can be used in multiple documents, in multiple places, in multiple ways) or create a new data sheet as well as perform edits on the fly.
- Allows the user to select one or more “templates (document types)” to create during any single session.
- For each document type, ask only the questions applicable to the document type for which the deal data sheet does not already provide the logic and/or answers or functional switches to complete the document type.
- Provide the ability for the user to select to “update” their deal data sheet data in the document <i>at any point in the editing process of the document</i>. <b>At Any Point</b>.
- Provide the ability to go back to the “document type questionairre” and “regenerate” the document still maintaining any edits that the user has made to the document not directly affected by questionaire changes. <i>I'm not even sure this is possible period... any ideas?</i>
Oh, and, yea, they need it by October.
Once done with meetings, I wound up in the hospital having a minor outpatient surgery which has left me a bit laid up and unable to do my usual handstands between lines of code to get my brain functioning (if you didn't already know it, I'm quite the yoga geek)... but back to working on workflow.
Which brings me to Sharepoint Content Types and Sharepoint Columns and Infopath property promotion.
First, I wish there was a way to find your custom Content Type and then save the XML files associated with it. I can find the type in the OfficeServer DB but it doesn't look like what I need. I've tried saving my library as a site template and, yes, it copies the content type over but it doesn't copy it to the site level and, as a result, you really can't edit it correctly or use it again. It's sorta wierd, but it gets hidden.
I also wish there was an “export” feature for Site Columns, so I could just create a bunch of site columns and then export their definitions to another site.
It seems it is harder and harder to work on Sharepoint as a developer. You really need a full production copy to dev in, you have to dev on your server and VPCs are REALLY slow (especially at loading up) though there are some great features to them (like when you really screw up, being able to turn the thing off without saving changes).
As for InfoPath, Forms Server... this thing drives me nuts. I can upload a form template to my content type but it won't open in the browser no matter how many times I tell it to. You have to actually go and publish the content type directly from InfoPath (and here's a hint if you are using a VPC... you MUST use net sans stop or have your VPC connected to the Internet, if you get the cryptic “this is not a valid URL” and you know it is, that's your problem... if this is your problem and you shouldn't have your VPC connected to the Internet, DON'T DO IT -- I brought down my entire global catalog doing this -- just use net sans).
And my last gripe... I promote 5 columns in my Sharepoint library from my InfoPath form. 4 of them are strings and I can select the little “allow users to edit in datasheet or properties” box... the last one is a Date field and can you believe that it will not allow me to promote a date field. Is there any reason for this?
Well, my last gripe for the night... I had a whole list of them brewing.
P.S. I did manage to assign a Sharepoint task to a SHAREPOINT group. I am still working on why it won't allow me to see my Exchange/AD distribution lists in the assign to search. Supposedly this will work.