Modifying the Current View

You can easily create your own kind of document library with the columns that best fit the information you need to know for your specific project. For example, you might want to add a column that shows who a file is checked out to and list the departments that are responsible for the various files. Begin the process of modifying the current view of the document library by clicking the top row of the document library table. The Library Tools Library tab becomes available. Click Modify View and a list of options—which include Modify View and Modify In SharePoint Designer (Advanced)—appears. Click Modify View. (See Figure 6-6.)

FIGURE 6-6 Click the document library, and choose Modify View in the Library Tools Library tab to modify the library.

You can change many things about the way your files appear in your document library. Clicking Modify View displays a screen that offers you a number of settings you can tailor to change the way the library appears. As you see in Figure 6-7, the choices on this screen enable you to do the following: ■ Choose the columns you want to appear in the document library. ■ Increase or decrease the number of columns displayed. ■ Choose the columns by which the information will be sorted.

■ Filter the items shown in the document library according to criteria you specify. ■ Add a button that enables team members to edit the document library. ■ Display check boxes next to individual items so that members can select multiple files.

■ Group similar files. ■ Add totals for items in the document library columns. ■ Apply a style to the document library. ■ Choose whether or not files are displayed in folders. ■ Set a limit for the number of items that can be displayed in the document library list.

■ Set the way you want the document library to appear when viewed on a mobile device.

FIGURE 6-7 You can modify the current view of your document library and change the columns, style, number of items allowed, and more.

You can change the columns in the document library by displaying some and hiding others and by rearranging the order of the columns as they appear in the table. First select the check boxes in the Display column of the items you want to appear. Then, in

the Position From Left column, click the arrow and choose the number that indicates the position in the table you want the column to have. The Sort selection is another setting you can use to ensure that the files appear in the order that makes the most sense for your project. You can choose a primary sort and a secondary sort—this means the files will be sorted by the primary sort first and then by the secondary sort. For example, if you choose Checked Out To as the primary sort, your document library will list all documents by the person they are checked out to. If you select Title as the secondary sort, the documents will be listed alphabetically by title within the Checked Out To grouping.

Filters enable you to choose which items will appear in the document library list. For example, you might filter the files so that only files posted in the last month appear in the list. Or you could show only files that have been posted by certain members of your team.

Another item you might want to experiment with as you’re setting up your document library is the Style feature. SharePoint Online starts out displaying the library in default view, which is a simple design with no color shading at all. The other styles available in Modify View are Basic Table, Document Details, Newsletter, Newsletter No Lines, Shaded,

and Preview Pane. Table 6-1 tells you a little more about the various designs you’ll get when choosing the various library styles.

TABLE 6-1 Choosing a Document Library Style

Library Style

Basic Table Description

The same view as Default view

Document Details

Shows each file in its own box with its file name, date modified, and modified by information Newsletter Lists files separated by lines, with an Edit button for each entry Newsletter, no lines Lists files without lines separating them, and includes an Edit button Shaded Displays shading in every other row of the document library Preview Pane Lists the files on the left, and displays the information for each file as you point to it

After you make your modification changes in Modify View, simply click OK to return to your document library and take a look at the changes you’ve made. If you aren’t happy with the changes or want to try something different, simply click the top of the document library again to display the Library Tools tab and return to Modify View to make your additional changes.

DO YOU NEED TO USE SHAREPOINT DESIGNER?

Office 365 is designed to be easy to use and customize without a lot of technical know-how. You don’t have to be a programmer to get the best use of all the features available to you. That’s a good thing. But what if you’re comfortable designing websites and you’d like to have a little more design control over what goes where on the page? SharePoint Online enables you to open your page and work with the design directly in SharePoint Designer if you choose. You’ll find this option in the Modify View list and also as an option in the Site Actions list. SharePoint Designer is available as a free download from the Microsoft Download Center at www.microsoft.com/downloads, so if you try it and decide not to use it after all—no harm done. You might just find, however, that it’s easy enough to use that you enjoy tweaking your team pages and having a bit more flexibility than the web-based design tools offer you.