A list is a collection of information that you share with team members. For example, you can create a sign-up sheet for an event, or track team events on a calendar.
In this article
Overview
Ways to work with lists
Types of lists
Overview
When you create a Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services site, several types of lists are created for you. These default lists range from a discussion board to a calendar list.
You can customize and add items to these lists, create additional lists from the list templates that are already available, and create custom lists with just the settings and columns that you choose.
You can view a list in several different ways. For example, you can provide a view on one page of all tasks and a view on another page of just the tasks that are due today. You can also use folders to organize your list items. For example, you can view just the current events from a calendar on a home page and create a visual view — similar to a wall calendar — on another page.
Do you have data in a spreadsheet that you want to use in a list on a Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 site? You can create a new list, including the columns and data, by importing a spreadsheet.
If you have database programs installed that are compatible with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, such as Microsoft Office Access 2007, and your browser supports ActiveX controls, you can integrate your list data with database tools such as queries, joins, and reports.
Lists can also be displayed in Web Parts (Web Part: A modular unit of information that consists of a title bar, a frame, and content. Web Parts are the basic building blocks of a Web Part Page.) on pages on your site. Web Parts are the building blocks of a Web site, and you can use them to add items directly from a list to a Web Part Page. You can also open a list directly and work with it. For example, the default Announcements
list appears in a Web Part on a new home page, but you can also click the title of the list to open and work with it on its own page.
Top of PageWays to work with lists
Here are some ways you can work with lists to help you to manage information for your group:
Top of PageTypes of lists
The type of list that you use depends on the kind of information that you are sharing:
- Announcements Use an announcements list to share news and status and to provide reminders. Announcements support enhanced formatting with images, hyperlinks, and formatted text.
- Contacts Use a contacts list to store information about people or groups that you work with. If you are using an e-mail or contact management program that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, you can view and update your contacts from your SharePoint site in the other program. For example, you can update a list of all your organization's suppliers from Office Outlook 2007. A contacts list doesn't actually manage the members of your site, but it can be used to store and share contacts for your organization, such as a list of external vendors.
- Discussion boards Use a discussion board to provide a central place to record and store team discussions that is similar to the format of newsgroups. If your administrator has enabled lists on your site to receive e-mail, discussion boards can store e-mail discussions from most common e-mail programs. For example, you can create a discussion board for your organization's new product release. If you are using an e-mail program that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, you can view and update your discussion board while working in the other program.
- Links Use a links list as a central location for links to the Web, your company's intranet, and other resources. For example, you might create a list of links to your customers' Web sites.
- Calendar Use a calendar for all of your team's events or for specific situations, such as company holidays. A calendar provides visual views, similar to a desk or wall calendar, of your team events, including meetings, social events, and all-day events. You can also track team milestones, such as deadlines or product release dates, that are not related to a specific time interval. If you are using an e-mail or calendar program that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, you can view and update your calendar from your SharePoint site while working in the other program. For example, you can compare and update your calendar on the SharePoint site with dates from your Office Outlook 2007 calendar, by viewing both calendars side-by-side or overlaid with each other in Office Outlook 2007.
- Tasks Use a task list to track information about projects and other to-do events for your group. You can assign tasks to people, as well as track the status and percentage complete as the task moves toward completion. If you are using an e-mail or task management program that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, you can view and update your tasks from your SharePoint site in your other program. For example, you can create a task list for your organization's budget process and then view and update it in Office Outlook 2007 along with your other tasks.
- Project tasks To store information that is similar to a task list, but also provide a visual or Gantt view with progress bars, use a project task list. You can track the status and percentage complete as the task moves toward completion. If you are using an e-mail or task management program that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, you can view and update your project tasks from your SharePoint site in your other program. For example, you can create a task list on your SharePoint site to identify and assign the work to create a training manual. Then you can track your organization's progress from Office Outlook 2007.
- Issue tracking Use an issue-tracking list to store information about specific issues, such as support issues, and track their progress. You can assign issues, categorize them, and relate issues to each other. For example, you can create an issue-tracking list to manage customer service problems and solutions. You can also comment on issues each time you edit them, creating a history of comments without altering the original description of the issue. For example, a customer service representative can record each step taken to resolve a problem and the results.
- Survey To collect and compile feedback, such as an employee satisfaction survey or a quiz, use a survey. You can design your questions and answers in several different ways and see an overview of your feedback. If you have a spreadsheet or database program installed that is compatible with Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 or Windows SharePoint Services 2.0, you can export your results to further analyze them.
- Custom Although you can customize any list, you can start with a custom list and then customize just the settings that you specify. You can also create a list that is based on a spreadsheet, if you have a spreadsheet program that is compatible with Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 or Windows SharePoint Services 2.0, and Windows Internet Explorer and Microsoft Windows. For example, you can import a list from Microsoft Office Excel 2007 that you created to store and manage contracts with vendors.
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