Collaboration

 Collaborating in iNetWord utilizes three feature areas:

  1. Folder Sharing.
    This is how you grant access to your documents and gain access to others'.
  2. Track Changes.
    This is how you view who made which changes and revert to prior versions.
  3. Multi-user Document Control.
    This prevents anyone from ever overwriting anyone else's work. Such overwriting would result in changes being lost without anyone explicitly removing or reverting them.
 
 

Multi-user Document Control

iNetWord's document control is automatic. It ensures that no one ever overwrites another person's changes to a document. You never need to check-in, check-out, or lock a file.

 

One-Pen Whiteboard

Sharing documents is like collaborating together on a whiteboard with only one pen. Everyone allowed in the room can see the changes being made, but only one person can edit at a time. When the person editing puts down the pen, anyone else can begin editing. 

In iNetWord, to stop typing and editing a document is like putting down the pen. You don't need to save or close the document. After five minutes of inactivity it is released to others automatically.  Others can see the document only if you choose to share the document's folder with them.

 

Folder Sharing

Documents are shared by granting access to all the documents in a folder.  Setup for sharing by designing documents and placing pictures in subdirectories.  To invite others to share your documents, see Folder Sharing.

 

 

The People Tab at the upper right shows the status of the document:

 

Document is available for those you authorize to edit. Documents automatically become available 5 minutes after you stop editing. 

 

You have document exclusively to edit. Document remains yours
for as long as you continue editing. 

 

Someone else has the document exclusively to edit. Document
remains theirs for as long as they are editing.

As you work with the document, the People Tab will change to reflect the state of the document. 

 

 

Document Sharing Window

Click the People Tab to explicitly change the state of the document.  There you can also set a message that is displayed to others when they try to edit a document you have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 "Cannot Edit" Popup Window

If you try to edit a document and someone else is editing it, a 'Cannot Edit' window informs you.  It tells you who is editing the file, their given contact information, and shows that it is attempting to reserve the file for you every 3 seconds. 

In the example pictured above, you can be assured that even though Fred is editing your document, all your original changes are preserved with the Track Changes feature.

 

 

Three Ways to See the Latest Changes:

  1. Click RETRY. 
    To see the latest changes others have made to the document, click the RETRY tab at the upper right. Since everyone's changes are automatically saved every 30 seconds, this will update you with all but the last few seconds of changes. 
  2. Try editing. 
    If you begin to edit a document that has not been refreshed, iNetWord.com will automatically refresh the document for you.
  3. Wait.
    The editing screen will update every few minutes on its own.

In all these cases, a notice appears like the one shown above, letting you know that your copy is being updated.

 

Your Turn

When the document is released and your 'Attempts' to obtain it succeed (performed automatically in the Cannot Edit window), then you are informed you can now edit and the Cannot Edit window disappears.