Comments on: Read Only Document Question

By: Coggrinda

Coggrinda — Sat, 27 May 2006 03:45:06 +0000

Hi,
There’s an easy solution to this. She should keep the document in a directory on her PC, since she’s the only one who updates it. Then, when she updates it, she should print to a pdf file on the shared network directory. If someone wants to make this really easy for her, they can write a print macro to print the file to the directory, with an incrementing file name. That way, she won’t get write errors when someone else has the file she’s trying to write to open. To make the incrementer work, you need another file on her PC which contains a number…it’s not hard to do. If she doesn’t have a pdf writer, go to www.pdf995.com. You can try the free version, but for $10, it’s worth the licence cost.

Hope this helps…

By: mstry9

mstry9 — Fri, 26 May 2006 17:17:35 +0000

I’ve dealt with this type of problem before. The thing is, even if she is the only person with write permissions and some has it open reading it, then she can still not save changes until it’s closed.
You may put it in a network share and when she needs to change it take the share offline. This will give her the control she needs. Once changes are saved then bring the share back online.
At least this eliminates the need for her to contact the person(s) that have it open.

By: Mistoffeles

Mistoffeles — Fri, 26 May 2006 14:11:24 +0000

I was using groupwaremore than a decade ago, there’s no reason why everyone shouldn’t be using it by now, it’s the 21st century not the 19th.

Follow stevesz’s advice, change is something that has to be engineered at a high level. Once management is on board, you will be able to get a sensible system in place. Show them the benefits in productivity and cost-savings that can be gained, management types love anything that produces revenue or cuts costs.

By: jholdun

jholdun — Fri, 26 May 2006 12:39:38 +0000

Approach problem as training issue: All but secretary open calendar document in read-only mode.

By: stevesz

stevesz — Fri, 26 May 2006 09:35:44 +0000

If you are also running an Exchange server, get together with management (no change will ever happen without the involvement of management) and point out to them the benefits of using a public folder calendar that can be accessed not only with Outlook in the office, but via OWA when out of the office. Once they are on board withthe idea, the best way to accomplish the change over would be to set the Word document as read-only and all new additions and changes will go to the public folder calendar. Everyone would have read permissions there, and a chosen few would also have write permissions.

Without the Exchange server, the idea of placing the docment in its own shared folder with read-only permissions for everyone except th eupdater(s) is probably the best method to use.

Steve//

By: Timbol

Timbol — Fri, 26 May 2006 08:29:53 +0000

If your Org is running Exchange, then this is a round peg in a square hole scenario. How much time has been wasted on this? I am sure you have more pressing issues to deal with. If people refuse to adapt then they will soon be out of business.

By: king300

king300 — Thu, 25 May 2006 22:04:10 +0000

Save the document (in Word) with a password for modification. Your secretary will have the password and can update the file. All others will be able to read the calendar in a Read-Only mode. Good luck.