WebCenter 4.0 provides secure project and file management to any desktop that has web access. Users can manage projects and documents from work, from home, or anywhere in the world. Projects in WebCenter can contain any type of document, including CAD files, graphic files, spreadsheets, proposals, purchase orders, or customer specifications.
The program automatically maintains version control and history for each document stored on the server. As documents are added or updated to projects, the version history for each is automatically maintained. The identity of who made changes, as well as when and why, is always available to increase communication and reduce errors throughout the company.
The new version of WebCenter introduces a number of new features for project and document management:
o Project Management has been introduced for Scope workflows. Every Project has a Project Manager – the user who “owns” the Project, although a Project Manager can reassign the Project to another manager at any time. To maintain a high level of security, users can only view Projects to which the Project Manager has invited them.
o Document Management has been extended to include support for virtually any type of file. A file stored in WebCenter is a “Document” and is associated with a Project. Every document in a Project is tracked and automatically maintained by Version History. Users may review previous versions of documents to see exactly what changed. Only one person may change a document at a time, eliminating errors that cost time and money.
o ‘Check Out’ and ‘Check In’ features allow users to make changes to documents. Only one user at a time can Check Out a document but other users can still view the most current version and will know that the document is being edited by another user.
o Search tools are improved and expanded to operate more like common Internet search engines. Users can search on Projects, a specific type of Document, or across all Documents, conducting complex searches using wildcards and modifiers such as AND, OR and NOT.
o New security Model: The security of WebCenter 4.0 is now Project-based. A user’s access to a Project is managed by the Project Manager, who can invite and uninvite users to Projects. Users can only view or search for Projects to which they belong. Documents in Folders can have different permissions than the Project – users may be able to view a Project but may be restricted from viewing certain Documents within the Project. Greater security can be added by using secure certificates (SSL), fully supported by WebCenter.
o WebCenter Cart: Past versions of the Cart have allowed users to add Documents to a Cart and then download files or send links to other users. In WebCenter 4.0, the Cart not only supports Documents, but also supports downloads and links for entire Projects. When a user downloads a Project, all the documents in the project are combined into a single ZIP archive for easy and compact download.
o My WebCenter: is a new menu where each user’s personal items are stored. The user’s Profile and Cart have been placed in the My WebCenter page along with a list of favorite projects, a list of all Documents that have been checked out, the user’s profile settings, and password.
o Language Support: WebCenter has always been multilingual and the 4.0 release supports even more languages. Users can now work with WebCenter in English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Chinese and Thai. Each user works with WebCenter in their native language, enabling global communication and collaboration.
Susie Stitzel, Esko-Graphics product manager, says, “As business pressures increase, time-to-market becomes more and more critical. With WebCenter, users are able to virtually review and approve documents, reduce and eliminate development cycles and save time and money. WebCenter increases efficiency and eliminates waste so that packaging companies can get more done with the same people.”
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