Page 90 - Using MIS

58 Chapter 2 Collaboration Information Systems

Figure 2-18
Example of Editing a Shared
Document on Google Drive

revisions, with brief summaries of changes made. Figure 2-18 shows a sample revision docu-
ment that has been edited by three users.
You can improve your collaboration activity even more by combining Google Drive with
Google+.
Google Drive is free and very easy to use. Both it and Microsoft OneDrive are far superior to
exchanging documents via email or via a file server. If you are not using one of these two prod-
ucts, you should. Go to http://drive.google.com and www.onedrive.com to check them out. You’ll
find easy-to-understand demos if you need additional instruction.

Shared Content with Version Control

Version management systems improve the tracking of shared content and potentially eliminate
problems caused by concurrent document access. They do not, however, provide version con-
trol, the process that occurs when the collaboration tool limits, and sometimes even directs,
user activity. Version control involves one or more of the following capabilities:

• User activity limited by permissions
• Document checkout
• Version histories
• Workflow control

Microsoft SharePoint is a large, complex, and very robust application for all types of collab-
oration. It has many features and functions, including all of those just listed. It also contains fea-
tures for managing tasks, sharing non-Office documents, keeping calendars, publishing blogs,
and many more capabilities. Some organizations install SharePoint on their own Windows serv-
ers; others access it over the Internet using SharePoint Online. Office 365 Professional and other
versions of Office 365 include SharePoint.
SharePoint is an industrial-strength product, and if you have an opportunity to use it, by all
means learn to do so. SharePoint is used by thousands of businesses, and SharePoint skills are in
high demand. The latest version is SharePoint 2013; we will illustrate its use here. Consider the
SharePoint implementation of the four functions listed.