4.1 Workspaces

4.1.1 Workspace - definition

4.1.2 Shared folders

4.1.3 Personal folders

4.1.4 Workspace or folder?

4.1.1 Workspace - definition

A workspace is the area in which project or company information is shared. A workspace may have associated with it a maximum size (which may be extended as the demands on the workspace grow) and a duration (which may also be extended if the project continues beyond its original termination date (see Section 9 - Workspace auditing ). If the workspace auditing package is in use on your server, the space taken up by all of the information stored in Business Collaborator, is accounted for using the workspace auditing package see section 9.2.

Templates for workspaces may be defined (see section 9.3.1.2) so that effective folder structures may be reused on several projects. Using templates reduces the time taken to decide on and set up the workspace structure initially. As standard templates are developed for different types of project, users will find it increasingly easy to locate the information they need since information of the same type will always be stored in the same place in the structure. Although it is usual to subdivide workspaces using folders, workspaces may be created within workspaces, particularly in order to benefit from workspace templates.

Creating and deleting workspaces when the workspace auditing package is in use is described in detail in Section 9 - Workspace auditing. This section also discusses all aspects of maintaining and altering workspaces.

If the workspace auditing package is not in use, creating a workspace is very similar to creating a folder - see section 3.4. A name, and optionally a description, is provided. If workspace templates have been created on the server, they will be available for selection on the New Workspace page.

4.1.2 Shared folders

Within workspaces, folders are used to organise the information into meaningful groupings and to reduce the amount of information presented to users at any one time. Information can be reorganised within existing folders, or new folders created, as the requirements of the project evolve. (Section 3 - Basic document management discusses adding folders and reorganising folders and documents.)

A folder within a workspace is a shared folder - the information it contains may be shared with other users of the system. In contrast, a personal folder is one which is personal to an individual user and to which other users may not be invited (see Section 9 - Workspace auditing).

Like a workspace, additional members may be added to a shared folder (see section 3.3.2).

4.1.3 Personal folders

As well as being able to create shared areas - workspaces to which other users can be invited - evrey user of the Business Collaborator system may create folders for their personal use. The amount of the personal space allowed for each user is limited when workspace auditing (see Section 9 - Workspace auditing) is in use.

A personal folder is added using   Add  |  View with Brava   in your home page or from inside another Personal Folder. Apart from the fact that you cannot add other users to it, a personal folder is just like any other folder. (See section 3.3.2).

4.1.4 Workspace or folder?

When should you use a workspace or a folder? It depends on who needs access to the information. If no-one else will need the information, you can put it in a Personal Folder (see Section 4.1.3). If you wish to share the information with other users, it must be stored somewhere within a workspace hierarchy.

Within a workspace, use the answers to the following questions to determine whether to create a workspace or a folder:

Do you wish to use a predefined structure? If so, you should use a workspace based on a template (see Section 9.2).

Do you wish to use a predefined schema? If so, you should use a workspace based on a schema (see Section 13.3.1).

If workspace auditing (see Section 9.3) is in use, do you wish to restrict the size and duration of the shared area? If so, you should use a workspace with the size and duration defined when it is created (see Section 9.3.3).

If none of the above, you probably just want a folder.