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Registration

1. What does "registration" mean?

   Before you start to use a Business Collaborator server, it must know a little bit about you - your email address(es) and your user name and password. Every user must therefore register with the server once, prior to using it for the first time. Registering is simply the process of telling the server your email address and associating this with your user name and password.

2. What happens during registration?

   When a colleague invites you to a workspace and you have not used the Business Collaborator server before, you will automatically be sent an email message. This email contains a special web address which you should open in your Web browser. (Do this by copying the address from your email message and pasting it into the "Address" or "Location" field of your web browser.) This will bring up a form to fill in your user name and your initial password. It is recommended that you use a clear, and easily remembered, user name and make sure that your password cannot be guessed by anyone else. After you have submitted this form, you will be invited to log in to the server for the first time.

   Alternatively, a user name and password may be created for you by a server administrator. In this case, you will be informed of your user name and password and will simply be able to log in.

3. I invited a colleague to one of my workspaces but he can't seem to register.

   For security reasons, the web address given in the automatically generated registration email is different for every user and can only be accessed once. It becomes invalid immediately after it is used. Thus, if the registration process is not successful on the first occasion, often because the instructions are not followed exactly, the user will have to be re-invited. You can re-invite someone by clicking "Re-invite" for the specified user on the "Members page".

   If this is unsuccessful, it may be that registration has been restricted on your server. Please contact your server administrator or bc.support@groupbc.com to report the problem, giving the name of the server you are using and the email address of the user who is unable to register.

   
   
   

   Logging in and passwords

4. One of my colleagues in another company cannot seem to log on to Business Collaborator. Why?

   There could be a number of reasons for this, some related to the company's internal IT policy. First, remind your colleague that both his username and password are case sensitive in Business Collaborator. Also, point him towards section 11.2 of the Help where certain necessary web browser settings are described. Another thing to check is that the boxes into which your colleague is entering his user name and password are on the Business Collaborator login page and not a dialog box for, say, his company's proxy server. It should still be possible for him to log in to Business Collaborator but he will need to verify his identity to the proxy server first.

5. I told a colleague my password and now I want to change it. Can I do this?

   Yes, you can change your password from most Business Collaborator pages, e.g. your Home Page and folder views. Look for "Change Pwd" (which appears in the  User  menu). This will give you a form to enter your new password.

6. Why do I need to fill in a form the first time I log in?

   This form allows you to tell other users, who you may not know personally but with whom you may share a workspace, about yourself. You will only be asked for minimal details - your name, organisation and phone number. Whenever you add a document or carry out a task, other users will be able to see who made the change and contact you if necessary.

7. How can I modify the information I entered the first time I logged in?

   That is easy. Simply click on   User  |  Edit Details . Remember to click on "Store these details" when you have made your changes.

   
   
   

   Membership of workspaces and folders

8. How do I share the information in my workspace or folder with my colleagues?

   You need to invite your colleagues to become members of the workspace or folder. If you have been given sufficient access rights, you will see the "Add Member" action - in the  Add  menu. On the "Add Member page", either select the user's name from your address book or type their user name or email address into the text box.

   (Note that there may be some restriction on your system about which users are permitted to add new users. If there is a restriction, a warning message to this effect will be displayed if you try to add someone who is not already registered.)

   The system can recognise users by their login name or their email address. To check that you have invited the correct person to your folder, check the list of people shown on the Members page (which is accessed by clicking on the "Members" icon ).

9. I want to invite someone to my workspace and I want to explain to them what will happen. Will they be sent an email?

   They will only receive an email message if they are not already registered with the server. If they are already using another workspace on the server, they won't receive an email message and will simply see the workspace in their home page the next time they log on.

   If they have not used the system before, they will be sent an automatically generated email inviting them to register.

10. Can I invite several people to my folder at once?

    Yes, there is no limit to the number of people you can invite to a folder or workspace. You can select several people from your address book and you can enter several email addresses into the list, on new lines.

11. How can I be sure that anyone I invite will only see what I want them to see?

    Users can only see what they are invited to see. If you invite someone to see a folder within a workspace, the user will not be able to see any item contained in the workspace unless it is actually in the folder they are a member of. The user will be able to find out the parent (containing) workspace the folder belongs to. The folder will appear directly on their home page. They will be able to see this folder and everything it contains.

    Remember that it is best to start with only a few members of your workspace and then add more at lower levels, as specific people require access to particular information.

12. How do I know who can see what information?

    To find out who is a member of which folders, look at the Members page for each folder (which is accessed by clicking on the "Members" icon ). Members of a folder can see the folder's contents, including the contents of subfolders, unless specifically prevented by access rights. If the page doesn't have a Members icon beside it, no additional members have been added at that level.

13. Why can't I add my colleague to my folder?

    There are several possible reasons for this:
    
    

    • Check that you are not in your home page - you can only add other members to workspaces or shared folders
      
      
    • Check that the folder is not a "personal folder". You cannot share information within a personal folder with other people. Personal folders can be identified by their icon - . For more information on personal folders, check the on-line help.
      
      
    • Check that you have permission to Add Members. Go to the Information page for the folder where a table of "Access Details" is shown. Beside your name, it should say "yes" in the column containing "Add Member" (which is often the column labelled "Share").
    
    
    
14. How are users deleted?

    To remove a user from the workspace, go to the Members page, select the user to be removed from the workspace and click on Remove (which appears in the  Selected  menu).

    If a user leaves the company, it may be suggested that they should be removed from the server. Users can be completely removed from the server - approximately the opposite of registration - by the system administrator. However, this may not be a good idea as all objects created by this user will then appear to have been created by the user "anonymous" and all useful event information triggered by the user will be lost. It is a much better idea to get the system administrator to change the user's password and primary mail address to prevent them from logging in again and to transfer ownership of workspaces, folders and documents to another user. This reflects the fact that someone still needs to be responsible for the information - it's just a different person.

15. Can I remove myself as a member of a workspace?

    Yes, simply go to the Members page, select yourself in the list of members of the workspace and click on Remove. (If you do not have permission to remove members from the workspace, you will not be able to do this.)

    Note that if you are the workspace owner, you should make someone else an owner of the workspace then remove yourself as an owner BEFORE removing yourself from the workspace.

16. How can I get rid of an obsolete workspace which still has members?

    First remove the other members and then delete the contents of the workspace. Remember that this is the opposite order from the one in which the workspace was created originally. You will need to have an appropriate level of access rights to remove members and to remove content.

    
    
    

    Navigating and browsing through folders

17. Sometimes Business Collaborator pages seem to be very slow to load but at other times they are much quicker. Why?

    If you are using Business Collaborator over the Internet (as opposed to a local network), you will be competing with other people for the available bandwidth. When many other people are trying to use the Internet at the same time, the speed which you perceive will be slower. To get the best out of your connection, try using it at different times to see if there is a pattern - often, mornings are quieter!

    The time taken to load each page will depend to some extent on how much information you are trying to view. Therefore, always try to limit the amount of information shown on one page - by subdividing it into folders. Not only will this make the page display more quickly but it will also make it easier for the human eye to find what it is looking for.

18. I have a very slow modem connection. How can I speed up browsing through folders?

    There are several things you can do to speed up navigation:
    
    

    • Use the "Contents" button for the workspace or folder to see all the objects within a folder or workspace on a single page. Save this page and use it as a "site map".
      
      
    • Help yourself and others by using meaningful names for documents and folders and adding a description of what the object is for whenever possible.
      
      
    • On your "Edit Prefs" page experiment with using one of the alternative interfaces which are available.
      
      
    • Add "Favorites" to take you directly to the pages you use most often - your web browser will keep a store of these for you.
      
      
    • Make sure that your browser's "home page" is set to the page you usually want to start from.
    
    
19. I want to know the size of a file before deciding whether or not to download it.

    Click on "More info" to see further information about the file, including its size. ("More info" is available on the  View/Change  menu inside folders and on the object's own menu - accessed by clicking on the    icon beside the object's name.)

    
    
    

    Reading and Downloading Documents

20. Do I always need to download a document to read it?

Your Business Collaborator server may offer viewing of files using Brava! - see Section 16 - Brava! integration of the Help. This will allow you to look at documents in many more formats than you have applications installed on your computer.

21. Can I edit a file just by clicking on it?

In Business Collaborator version 4.9 and above, you can click on   |  Edit   for the document to open it in the appropriate application on your computer, ready for editing. Simply save the document in the usual way and you will be prompted to upload it back to its original position in Business Collaborator - either replacing or revising the original.

22. Documents with spaces in their BC names cannot always be downloaded

For instance, trying to access a document called "January Meeting" via its URL using Netscape Navigator gives:

Error: Not found

Not found: http://myservername/bc/bc.cgi/d7055823/January

Business Collaborator can store documents with any name but special characters may be interpreted in different ways outside Business Collaborator by browsers or operating systems. Often, spaces in names are converted to their ASCII representation "%20" which also makes the document name hard to read.

23. When I tried to download a Word document, my Netscape browser thought it was in HTML. Why?

    If the name of the Business Collaborator document has a ".doc" suffix, Netscape will be happy to download the document as a Word document. However, if the suffix is missing and you use the "Save Link As . . ." option in the Netscape menu, Netscape thinks it is trying to download a web page and defaults to HTML. You should set up your browser to always prompt you to ask what behaviour you wish when you click on a document name - open it directly or save it to disk.

24. When I tried to download a document, I got a "done" message but the file was not on my hard disk. Where did it go?
• If you do not select a folder to save the document into, your browser will choose one for you which may not be the place you expected (sometimes C:\temp or C:\Winnt\Profiles). Try searching your hard disk or simply download the document again, taking care to save it to the location you want.
  
  
• If the file in Business Collaborator is empty (has zero size) your machine may not download it. (You can find out the size of a file before you download it by clicking on "More info" to see further information about the file.
  
  
• Check that the filename does not contain any special characters (such as space, "/", "\" or "&") which your machine may not understand. Try renaming the file before downloading it.



25. Who controls whether the document opens directly in Word or presents me with a "Save As" menu?

    You do! Basically, you need to set your preferences to tell your browser what you want to do with each type of file when you click on it. It is recommended that you always get your browser to ask you whenever you click on a document whether you want to open the document directly or save it to your hard disk.

    The descriptions below explain how to configure some standard browsers.

    For Internet Explorer 6 using Windows 2000, you should:

    • Click on the Tools menu in Windows Explorer and select "Folder Options"
      
      
    • Click on the "File Types" tab to see a list of the Registered file types. This may take a short while to respond.
      
      
    • Scroll down to find the appropriate file type. (Note that, although these may be listed alphabetically, the file type may be preceded by the name of the application with which it is usually associated, e.g. Word will be listed as Microsoft Word.)
      
      
    • If the file type extension is not in the list, click on the "New" button, type in the file extension in the box provided (DOC for .doc, PHP for .php, etc) and click ok.
      
      
    • Select the file type by clicking on it then click on the "Advanced" button.
      
      
    • Ensure the check the box which says something like "Confirm Open After Download" is ticked.
      
      

    In Netscape 4.5, you would do the following to ensure you are always prompted when clicking on Microsoft Word documents:

    • Go to the browser's "Edit" menu and choose the "Preferences" option,
      
      
    • In the Navigator/ Applications category, find the description which best if its the document you are trying to view, e.g. it has the file extension "DOC" and MIME type application/msword.
      
      
    • Click on "Edit" and check the box which says something like "Ask me before opening downloaded files of this type".

    In Mozilla, you would do the following to ensure you are always prompted when clicking on Microsoft Word documents:

    • From the "Edit | Preferences" menu option, locate the "Navigator | Helper Applications" section of the Preferences page.
      
      
    • By default, Mozilla has no configuration options on how it should handle documents. If you have set one up for Microsoft Word, simply click on the "Reset" button from the "Opening Files" section. Warning this will reset Mozilla to its default save / opening behaviour for ALL documents.
      
      
26. What controls which application opens when I read or edit a file?

Your local settings - browser and operating system - control which application is used when you choose to open or edit any file type. (Some examples of how to edit your local settings are given below for different operating systems and browsers.) Different applications may be used to open and edit the same type of file. From Business Collaborator, opening (reading) a file is usually done by clicking on its name and editing it is done by clicking on   |  Edit   on the menu associated with the file. If no application is associated with a file type of, you will usually be prompted to choose which one of the locally available applications to use to open the file.

If the Business Collaborator server you are using is configured to use Brava! document viewing, you may be able to view and markup documents even without having a suitable application installed locally - see Section 16 - Brava! integration.

27. How can I control the application for editing a specific file type (using Internet Explorer and Windows NT4)

In Windows NT4:



• Open Windows Explorer and click on View / Options, then
  
  
• click on the File Types tab - this may take a short time to respond.
  
  
• in the list of Registered file types, scroll down to find the appropriate file type. (Note that, although these may be listed alphabetically, the file type may be preceded by the name of the application with which it is usually associated, e.g. Word will be listed as Microsoft Word.)
  
  
• Now select the File Type and click on Edit to change the applications associated with this File Type. Notice that different applications may be associated with Editing and Opening these files.
  
  
• To change the application which is associated with Editing this file type, click on Edit in the Actions list. Clicking on the Edit button will open a window indicating the location of the application and its name. Click Browse to locate the executable for the application which you would prefer to be used when editing this file type.
  
  
• When you have finished making your modifications, close all of the windows which have been opened during this process.
  
  
28. How can I control the application for editing a specific file type (using Internet Explorer and Windows 2000)

One method is to:



• Click on the Tools menu in Windows Explorer and select "Folder Options", then
  
  
• click on the "File Types" tab to see a list of the Registered file types. This may take a short while to respond.



• Scroll down to find the appropriate file type. (Note that, although these may be listed alphabetically, the file type may be preceded by the name of the application with which it is usually associated, e.g. Word will be listed as Microsoft Word.)



• If the file type extension is not in the list, click on the "New" button, type in the file extension in the box provided (DOC for .doc, PHP for .php, etc) and click OK.
  
  
• Select the File Type by clicking on it and click on the "Change..." button to change the application to open this File Type. Notice that different applications may be associated with Editing and Opening these files. This will open a window with a list of applications to choose from. The following procedure describes how to change the application used to edit a file of a particular type
  
  
• If the application that you with to use appears on the menu, select it then click "OK".
  
  
• If the application that you with to use does not appear on the menu, select "Browse..." then select where that application's executable (start) file is on your computer and click "OK". This application will then appear on the menu and will be selected. You will then need to click "OK".
  
  
• To change the application which will open this file type, click on Edit in the Actions list. Clicking on the Edit button will open a window indicating the location of the application and its name. Click Browse to locate the executable for the application which you would prefer to be used when editing this file type.
  
  
• When you have completed making your modifications, close all of the windows which have been opened during this process.
  
  

An alternative method is to:

• In Windows Explorer, right click on the name of a file with the file extension in question,
  
  
• select Properties from the bottom of the menu that appears, and
  
  
• click on the button "Change..." that appears beside the "Opens with:" option.
  
  
• If the application that you with to use appears on the menu, select it then click "OK".
  
  
• If the application that you with to use does not appear on the menu, select "Browse..." then select where that application's executable (start) file is on your computer and click "OK". This application will then appear on the menu and will be selected. You then need to click "OK".
  
  
• The name of the application and its icon should now be displayed beside the "Opens with:" option. If so, click "Apply". Otherwise, click on the "Change..." button and select the application again.
  
  
29. How can I control the application for editing a specific file type (using Mozilla)

In Mozilla, you would do the following to associate all Microsoft Word documents with the corresponding application:

• Locate a document of the type (e.g. Microsoft Word) you wish to download.
  
  
• Left click on it and you should be presented with a "Downloading" window.
  
  
• If you do not wish to open the document with the suggested application (if there is one) then click on the "Choose" button and browse for the preferred application.
  
  
• If you wish to always use this application to open this file then remove the tick from the "Always ask before opening this type of file".
  
  
• Finally click on the "OK" button. The document will then download to the application, as will any subsequent documents.
  
  
30. I do not have access to a drawing application but I would like to look at a colleague's drawing. What can I do?

Server-side viewing of files may be available on your Business Collaborator server. In this case, you should be able to look at all kinds of files without having to obtain suitable applications for viewing them. See Section 16 - Brava! integration of the Help.

Searching for folders and documents

31. Can I search for documents created within a certain range of dates?

    Yes. In fact, the Business Collaborator search is very powerful and can be used to search using combinations of criteria, including:

    • The type of object, e.g. document, folder, discussion, database
      
      
    • Object name contains a certain word or phrase
      
      
    • The description contains a certain word or phrase
      
      
    • The file type (e.g. MS Word, HTML, PDF) of a document
      
      
    • Object was created, read or modified by a certain person
      
      
    • Object was created, read or modified during a particular time period or between certain dates
      
      
32. My search results contain folders with the name I was looking for, not just documents. Can I change this?

    Yes, Business Collaborator lets you look only for documents, folders, articles or web links (URLs) matching the criteria you specify - or lets you search for anything which matches the search terms you set.

33. I know my colleague has a document on the subject I want, but I can't find it. What is the problem?

    Business Collaborator will only report the search results which match your request and which you have access rights to view or change. Are you sure that your colleague's document is in a location you have access to?

34. Can I search within the content of documents for the words or phrases I am looking for?

    Yes, if this option is offered on your Business Collaborator server. You will be able to search for words and phrases within certain document formats, e.g. MS Word, PDF if documents contents searching is available - see section 5.5.5 for further details.

35. Do I need to click in the check box(es) beside the search terms in order to carry out a search?

    Yes. Unchecked elements of the search query will be discarded when it is executed.

36. If I construct a complex query, can I save it for later?

    Yes, and you can share it with colleagues who might also benefit from it - see Section 14 - Reusable searches for further details.
    
    

    Adding documents

37. Are there any naming conventions for filenames in Business Collaborator?

    Not really. Any comments here are only suggestions to assist users with very old browsers.

    Although Business Collaborator can store documents with any name, certain choices of name may cause problems for certain browsers or operating systems when the document is downloaded. As a general rule, you should avoid putting spaces in document names in Business Collaborator - you can achieve the same effect using the underscore symbol (_). Similarly, special characters such as "/", "\" and "&" should be avoided as these may also cause confusion for certain operating systems.

    To make life easier for people using a Netscape browser, you should continue to use suffixes at the end of document names. (Otherwise Netscape assumes the document is in HTML and the user has to change the filetype each time they download a file.)

38. Is it possible to replace a document and rename it at the same time?

    No. Replacing a document simply places a new document where the old one used to be. This can subsequently be renamed. Alternatively, delete the original document and then upload another document.

39. When I try to upload a document, I get an error saying "Error: Capacity Exceeded"

    This is an indication that workspace auditing is in use on your server - contact your Business Collaborator server administrator to see if this is intentional or simply because your server configuration has not been changed in a long time.

    When using , every workspace has a size associated with it in order to help the workspace owner to manage the workspace and its contents. If the document you are trying to upload will take the workspace over its limit, you will not be allowed to add it. If the workspace contains documents that you no longer need, you should delete (and then destroy) these. Alternatively, the workspace size can be extended (possibly only by the workspace owner) by going to the "More info" page and clicking on "Extend Size". The Workspace Status page summarises the size and lifetime status of the workspace. (This can be accessed via the  View/Change  menu at the top level of the workspace.)

40. I can't get into my workspace (the icon has changed). It says "Workspace Expired" when I click on it.

    This is an indication that workspace auditing is in use on your server - contact your Business Collaborator server administrator to see if this is intentional or simply because your server configuration has not been changed in a long time.

    When using workspace auditing, every workspace has a duration associated with it in order to help the workspace owner to manage the workspace and its contents. When the lifetime of the workspace is past, it expires - the icon changes to indicate this and the contents cannot be accessed. The workspace duration can be extended (possibly only by the workspace owner) by going to the "More info" page and clicking on "Extend Time". (You will be able to find out the owners of the workspace from the "More info" page, even if the workspace has expired.) The Workspace Status page summarises the size and lifetime status of the workspace. (This can be accessed via the  View/Change  menu at the top level of the workspace.)

    
    
    

    Changing documents and folders

41. Why is there an "Online Edit" action for some documents and not others?

    Documents with simple formats, such as Plain Text or HTML, can be edited directly on the Business Collaborator server using the Edit action. This is particularly useful for changing straightforward spelling mistakes, for instance. However, files with complicated formatting information, such as Microsoft Word files must be edited using the appropriate application and so must first be transferred to a local machine on which the application is installed and the changes made. This is most easily done using Business Collaborator 4.9's new Save from Windows functionality - see section 3.3 of the Help.

42. Why can I sometimes see the Paste action and sometimes not?

    You can only paste into a folder or a workspace if you have sufficient access rights to do so and at least one object in your bag is selected. To copy several documents, select them by clicking in the check boxes beside the document names and click on "Copy". The copied documents will then appear, selected in your bag. You will then be able to paste them to the required destination.

43. Does deleting an object remove it completely from the server?

    Deleting an object will move it into your waste bin. (Objects can be undeleted from here if they were deleted by accident.) When you "Destroy" objects in your waste bin, they are then transferred to the owner's waste bin - this is like emptying the recycling bin on your desktop. Finally, when the owner destroys the object, it is removed irreversibly from the system. (The memory taken up by the object is then freed when garbage collection is next run on the system, which is often done on a nightly basis.)

44. Can workspaces be deleted?

    Selecting a workspace and clicking on delete does NOT delete the workspace! It simply removes you as a member of the workspace. If you really want to remove the workspace entirely, you must remove all the other members first. (Note that this is the opposite order from when the workspace was created.) After you have removed the members, the workspace behaves like any other object and you can delete it.

45. Can documents be copied between folders?

    Yes, select the original document(s) to be copied by checking the tick box beside them, click on copy then go to the folder where you wish the copy to go and click on paste. However, it is not good practice to keep several copies of a single document as it is easy to forget to update all the copies if you make a change. Use web links (URLs) to point to the original document and then you only have a single document to remember to change.

    
    
    

    Version Control

46. Must I always overwrite documents when I make changes to them?

    No, you can store as many versions of a document as you like. Click on "Version" to put the document under version control initially. The version number will appear beside the document name and the "Replace" action will be renamed "Revise". (On some Business Collaborator servers, documents will automatically be put under version control. In this case, the only option ever available to you will be "Revise".)

47. Does Business Collaborator store only the changes between versions of documents?

    No, it stores the entire document for every version. The disadvantage of this is that it takes up more space than only storing changes. The advantages are that any kind of document can be stored under version control, e.g. Word documents, web pages, AutoCAD drawings, and that previous versions of documents can safely be deleted without worrying about losing vital information.

48. Can I delete previous versions of a document under version control?

    Yes, if you decide that one (or several) of the previous versions of a document under version control should be removed from the system, you can do so - but only if you were the author of that version. On the menu for the document, you will see "Delete Versions". (Remember, you will not see this action if you do not have permission to delete any versions.) Simply select the versions you wish to delete and click on "Delete selected versions". (Note that once a version is deleted it is lost from the system forever and does not go into your waste bin.)

    
    
    

    Miscellaneous

49. What controls the list of people who appear in my address book?

    Your Business Collaborator address book is automatically populated by Business Collaborator as you invite people as members to workspaces, meetings etc. However, you can also add people directly to your address book. Click on the address book icon and then "Add member" to add colleague's names to your address book. If the person you add is already a registered user of the system, their user name will automatically appear. You will then be able to select these people from a drop-down list whenever you are adding new members to a workspace.

50. I have added a document to my folder but it hasn't appeared. Why?

    If your browser is not set to refresh sufficiently regularly, you may be viewing the page as it was the last time you visited it, before you added your document. Click on your browser's Refresh or Reload button to force the screen to refresh. (If this does not solve the problem you may have to hold down either the <ctrl> or the <shift> key respectively whilst refreshing or reloading the screen to force a refresh.)

    To prevent this problem from recurring, change your browser's settings to refresh more regularly.

    For example, when using Netscape Navigator 4, you can prevent caching of pages by:

    • going to the "Edit" menu, click on the "Preferences" item
    • choose the Advanced/Cache screen
    • set "Document in cache is compared to document on network" to "Every time" and click on "OK" to save this change

    In Microsoft Internet Explorer 5, you should:

    • go to the "Tools" menu, click on the "Internet Options" item
    • on the "Temporary Internet Files" tab, click on the "Settings" button
    • make sure that "Automatically" is the selected option for "Check for newer versions of shared pages" and click "OK" to save this choice
    
    
    

    Databases

51. How can I add a relational database?

    In a similar way to the way in which you would add a folder. Go to the location where you wish to create the database. Now click on  Add  |   Relational Database . (If you cannot see this action, check that you are permitted to add a relational database to this page by checking the Access Details table on the "More Info" page.) This will create a new database, entirely configurable through Business Collaborator, with all of the data stored within Business Collaborator.

52. I can't see a "Go Back" button on the edit record page of the relational database. Should there be one?

    No, this shouldn't be an option on this page. When you click on the icon to edit a record in a relational database, the record is checked out in your name and locked so that no-one else can change it at the same time. When you have finished changing the record, you have three options:
    
    

    • If you made changes which you wish to commit to the database, click on "Edit Record".
      
      
    • If you have not made any changes (or do not wish to enter your changes into the database) click on "Cancel and Book in".
      
      
    • If the record is obsolete and you wish to delete it, click on "Delete Record".
    
    
    
53. I already have a large database, do I have to move it into Business Collaborator to share it with my colleagues?

No, not any more. You can now connect to your database using Open Database Connectivity (ODBC). This enables databases to be created on, or linked to, a backend SQL (Structured Query Language) database. All data processing can take place on the back end database with formatting and output handled by the template system controlled from within Business Collaborator. See Section 15 - ODBC Open Database Connectivity of the Help for further details.

Email

54. I already have email - why do I need Business Collaborator email?

    There are two main ways in which email accessed via Business Collaborator may be better than your standard email client. First, Business Collaborator mail can be accessed from anywhere in the world via the Internet. Currently, you may not be able to access all of your email when you are travelling. If your Business Collaborator server can obtain your email from your mail server, you will always be able to access it. This applies not only to new mail but also to all the mail you have received before which is stored in the Business Collaborator email package.

    The second big advantage of Business Collaborator mail is that you can share email with colleagues. For instance, you can store all of the project email along with all the other project documents ensuring that you have a complete record of all of the project information.

55. How can I keep a permanent store of all the project email which is accessible to my colleagues?

    There are several ways to do this - the one described here is probably the easiest. First, add a new mail folder to your Inbox and give it a name which is relevant to the project which it will belong to. Next, set up a filter to automatically copy (or move) all incoming messages satisfying the relevant criteria into this folder, e.g. all mail coming from a given client or all mail with the project number in the title. Now cut and paste the folder from your Inbox into the project folder. It can now be viewed by all the project members and will be automatically populated whenever an appropriate email is sent to you. Any other relevant messages (which were not automatically filtered) can be copied and pasted into the project mail folder by anyone with the appropriate permissions.

56. What is the difference between a mailbox and a mail folder?

    Each mailbox is associated with a specific email account. You can read your email on any (POP) mail server which you are registered with using the Business Collaborator email tool. All you have to do is set up a new mailbox for each email account you have - e.g. your work account or a home email account such as a Yahoo account. Simply tell the email client where to check for your mail and tell it the username and passwords you use for each of these mail accounts. Then, next time you click on "Get New Mail", the email tool will show you all the mail you have received recently to the relevant account. ("Get New Mail" will appear in the  View/Change  menu of a Mailbox.)

    A mail folder is simply a way of dividing up a mailbox into manageable pieces - it is equivalent to dividing a workspace into folders.

57. I know I have received mail recently, why can I not see it?

    Remember to click on "Get New Mail". The email tool will not automatically try to obtain your mail from the email server, in the way that some mail clients do. It waits for you to find a convenient moment in your schedule when you wish to obtain your new mail.

58. Can I send documents as attachments to email messages in Business Collaborator?

    Yes, documents can be sent out of Business Collaborator as attachments to email messages. In most cases, documents would be shared by placing them in a Business Collaborator folder but it may occasionally be necessary to send documents as attachments. To attach a document to an email message, simply select the document and click on "Attach". This will start an email message with the document already attached, ready for you to send. Clicking on "Attach" when you have already started, but not completed, an email message will attach the document to this email message.

59. Can I send messages to workspace members using my usual email client?

    Yes, from the Members page of a workspace, you can select the people you wish to send the message to and click on "email". However, if you wish to use Business Collaborator's built-in email tool, you should choose "Compose E-mail" on the  Add  menu in folder views.

    
    
    

    Website Publishing

60. What is the point of the website publishing tool?

    This allows you to publish websites easily and quickly. By managing your web pages through Business Collaborator, it makes your website easy to maintain - using version control of the pages, checking who last updated the pages and when and ensuring that only authorised personnel can actually publish pages. Published pages are accessible to anyone on the Internet, not just Business Collaborator users and, because the system does not have to check users' access rights before displaying a page, pages display faster than when accessed from inside a Business Collaborator workspace.

61. Is my website empty before I publish anything?

    No, a default.htm file is automatically created (and published) as the default page for your website when you create a new website. This page can then be replaced or removed when you have prepared your website's contents.

62. What happens when you click on "publish"?

    When you click on "publish", the objects which you have selected - possibly the entire structure of web folders and files which you have set up - will be copied to a publicly accessible location on the web server.

63. Where do the documents "go" when I click on publish?

    That depends on how your Business Collaborator server is configured. Your website name will be prefixed by "http://servername".

64. How can I give my website a more memorable name?

You can purchase the domain name you wish and then ask the company from whom you obtained the name to point it to the actual location of your web pages.

65. What kinds of documents can I publish - is it only HTML pages?

    You can publish any kind of document but it is usual to only publish HTML documents and images. These can be read independently of the reader's software and hardware. These are the common formats used for web pages.

66. When people click on the address of my website, what page will they be taken to?

    If you have an HTML page called default, home or index in your top level web folder, you will be taken to this by default.

67. Are there any "minimum requirements" for a website?

    No, there are no minimum requirements for a website - you can have as many or as few pages of text or images as you want. Just put links between the pages so that users can access all of them via some route, starting at the first page (or Home page) of your site. It is also customary to make it easy to navigate between major sections of the site and back to your site's Home page from any page.

68. How do I know if the Business Collaborator page is the same as the published web page?

    Business Collaborator's event tracking mechanism reports whether a page is published, unpublished or "out of sync". If it is "out of sync", there is some difference between the page stored in Business Collaborator and the equivalent published web page.

69. How can I add a Website?

    In a similar way to the way in which you would add a folder. Go to the location where you wish to create the database. Now click on  Add  |   Website . (If you cannot see this action, check that you are permitted to add a relational database to this page by checking the Access Details table on the "More Info" page.)

bc.support@groupbc.com, September 2003