Sharepoint lookup column customization - sharepoint

I'm developing a customized document library in the SharePoint 2007 environment. What I'm doing is creating a content type with multiple columns of information related to the document. Users will use this content type to upload new documents rather than the standard new document functionality. One of my columns in this content type is proving to be more difficult than I can handle.
The column is essentially supposed to be a sort of 'related documents' column, where it offers the user the option to select another document that is related to this document. So I thought I'll create a lookup column that displays the titles of all other documents in the library and allows the user to choose one. Simple enough, but I need much more functionality than this...and here is where I need help.
I need the related document column to actually link to the related document, not just display the title...not in edit mode while a user is adding a document, just in the standard document library view after the document has been added.
I also need the link to include a url variable that is stored in another column named 'Document Number'.
I assume this will require custom coding which is fine. Please not that I can't use SharePoint Designer. I use Visual Studio and code must be C#. This will be packaged and released as a feature.
Can anyone help me acheive this? Example code, suggestions, etc...? Thanks!

I would suggest using a multi-column field as your base value type - this article on MSDN should get you started. For rendering the field in document library views, you will need to use a rendering pattern. Conveniently, MSDN has an example of a multi-column RenderPattern.

Related

Handle click count for documents in SharePoint 2010

I am having a page with documents loaded in SharePoint 2010. I have three buttons below each documents in the page and they are 'Like','Unlike' and 'Comment'. So whenever people go there and see the documents they can click on any buttons of their wish.
My question is how to take the hit count of these buttons seperately and display it for each document. Is it possible to create a list with having these three columns and handle it using Client-Side scripting. Any suggestions or help is much appreciated.
Each item in SharePoint has a property bag that can contain ad-hoc data like this. You could certainly add additional columns to store this data and update those columns but that does mean that users could easily manipulate the values via the UI. Since the property bag is only accessible via the various API's, you wouldn't have this issue.
For an example of accessing the property bag via CSOM (which would be your best option since I'm assuming you want your users to be able to like, unlike and comment without refreshing the page each time), see this post reading and writing property bag values using CSOM
Another thing to consider for comments is the existing notes functionality that exists in SharePoint 2010 and SharePoint 2013. These comments are ties into the social functionality and may give you a bit more bang for your buck. To show the comments page for a particular list item see this post SharePoint Social Data using Javascript

How do I store this external data in SharePoint?

I am using Visual Studio 2010, SharePoint 2010 with custom document content types and forms. And plan to also use jquery to build the document add/edit/view forms.
I am developing a solution where I want to have a document library where each document uploaded also has a number of external data elements added as metadata.
The tricky part I'm trying to figure out is I want the user to be able to specify and add a multiple number of those same external data elements.
I'm trying to figure out how I represent the data internally in SharePoint. My initial thought is to programmaticly add hidden external fields as the users adds those external selections. But then I also think of simply storing those external elements as non-external text fields but have my own code which performs the external data lookup and validation.
I'm not adverse to significant custom coding, as I'm probably going to need to do a lot anyway since even the user interface is going to be a jquery tabbed form to enable all the external data the user will be able to associate with each SP document.
I've made an attempt to hopefully further explain what I'm trying to do and included that image. Essentially I'm wanting to add 1+ external data relationships to each document, as desired by the user.
It uses just example data. I'll actually have 4-7 different complex relationships much like the example. And the user is permitted to drilldown and select 1, 2 or all 3 of the dropdowns.
Think of it as similar to how here on Experts-Exchange we can add multiple zones to a question.
An example illustration is here: http://flic.kr/p/aFUSJn
Could you simply add a multi-line text column and have the user input the metadata with comma's, then use your code to seperate the data and do what you want with it?
You said you were not adverse to significant custom coding :)
One solution is to use SharePoint content types. The trick is that not all items in a list need to have the same content type.
Therefore, you can do the following:
As the user is selecting the fields he wants to use you generate or select a content type that matchs those fields.
You then add your document to the document list using the content template
You then have all your information strongly typed in SharePoint lists.
We have previously built a system where we generate content types based on xsd files, this worked very well.

Sharepoint Document Upload Page - Passing URL Variables?

Throughout my SharePoint site, I have several document repositories that are tied to primary keys from an external database. I have added custom columns in the document library metadata fields so that we will know which SharePoint documents correspond with which table entries. As a requirement, we need to have document uploads that have these fields automatically populated. For instance, I'd like to have the following url:
./Upload.aspx?ClassID=2&SystemID=63
So that when you upload any documents to this library, it automatically adds the ClassID and SystemID values to the corresponding ClassID and SystemID columns outlined in the SharePoint document library fields.
Is there any quick or easy way to do this, or will I have to completely rewrite the Upload.aspx script from scratch?
I think the only way to go is to create your own Upload.aspx page. Read more here.
Unfortunately, it looks like going custom is the only option for now. Here are some tips on how to code the submission page.
There is a corresponding entry that describes how to add a document to a document library here:
How do you upload a file to a document library in sharepoint?
Likewise, once you have a document library file handler, you can alter its metadata column values using this method:
http://www.davehunter.co.uk/Blog/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?List=f0e16a1a-6fa9-4130-bcab-baeb97ccc4ff&ID=109
Essentially it's just
SPFile.Item["ColumnName"] = "Value";

Link to another item in a sharepoint document library

I am writing a custom Sharepoint solution and I have to fulfill a requirement that an item in 1 document library must be visiable in another document library, e.g. maintaining global company document which should display in all other librarys
I need to sync properties, e.g. name so that when it changes in the source list it should also change in the destination lists. The items created in the destination list should not be able to have workflows or other options in the ECB Menu (exception for maybe going to source document).
Does anyone have a realistic solution on how to accomplish this ?
I have been trying to use CopyIntoItems of the copy web service to create linked copies with no luck, it always just creates a new copy of the source item (see: http://platinumdogs.wordpress.com/2009/01/14/sharepoint-moss-creating-document-library-items-uploading-files-to-a-document-library/)
Creating a custom content type has also entered my mind (since the source properties is contained in a content type) but then how do I filter the ECB menu ?
If the destination document library is a replica of the source document library, can't you solve this by displaying the items on the destination side using a content query web part instead of duplicating the items?
In the process for googling for something else I might have come across the solution to your problem.
Apparently Sharepoint has a built in 'linked document' type. You can just use that to link the documents, instead of copying.
More info here.

SharePoint custom content feature with Word Quick Parts and Document Information Panel

I am creating a custom content type feature for MOSS that will also include a Word 2007 document as the document template. The same Word document will also have a Document Information Panel (DIP) and Quick Parts for all the fields in the content type.
The problem is that when my feature is deployed the Word document's Quick Parts no longer seem bound to the content type's columns in the Document Library. For example, if you:
Type a value into the Quick Part
Save the Word document to the document library
Look at the documents properties;
The value just typed is not listed. However if you use the DIP to specify the value (instead of the quick part) and then save it, it does get saved as metadata.
The "Document Information Panel Settings" screen for my content type is acting as if there is no InfoPath template. Sure enough if I re-upload (or create a new) InfoPath template, then the above problem goes away.
How do I get this to work in my feature without having to do the manual step described above?
It may be possible to define a custom template for the DIP and deploy that to the site, setting the content type to link to that template.
I found a solution in a blog, but you have to use InfoPath... Here is the link:
Using SharePoint Metadata in Word Documents – The Lookup Column
http://vspug.com/maartene/2009/03/13/using-sharepoint-metadata-in-word-documents-the-lookup-column-issue/

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