Document Management System

[Guest]

Hello,

I am hoping to be pointed in the right direction as to providing a solution
to meet a business problem. I need to provide a Document Management System to
manage the inventory of legal documents. I am thinking I could do this in
Microsoft Access and perhaps adapt a ready made template for this purpose. I
had a look under standard templates and did not see anything directly related.

I am thinking of a solution which basically consists of two main tables. 1.
document list and 2. change log. I would implement the file system object to
get metadata of the document such as last modified date etc.

I am not wanting someone to do the work for me but perhaps provide a site
offering access templates or solutions that I could take advantage of.

Regards,

bobm

 

[Guest]

Access MVP Arvin Meyer offers DocMgr on his web site. You can likely use this
as a good starting point, adding your change log as a related table
(one-to-many, or 1:M).

http://www.datastrat.com/DataStrat2.html


Tom Wickerath
Microsoft Access MVP

http://www.access.qbuilt.com/html/expert_contributors.html
http://www.access.qbuilt.com/html/search.html
__________________________________________

 

[Guest]

Given the obvious data security and fault tolerance issues relating to your
content I strongly suggest you consider a solution based on SQL Server 2005.

A client-server front-end built in Access is OK, but you will have a much
more robust solution with SQL2005

r

 

[Larry Daugherty]

Hi,

Document Management System means whatever it means to whomever it is
using the term, like Humpty Dumptey. I updated and enhanced a couple
of Access based "Document Management Systems" for the same department
of one bank. One was a fairly large and complex system that had
world-wide implications and that was the main tool for 2 levels of
management and teams of worker main mission portfolio managers and
then lots of administrative and supporting types. The other was a
simpler system used primarily by one person.

I was pretty well into a lengthy explanation of the steps you need to
take to efficiently design a good system using Access. Then I flashed
back on your "simple". What I had started was replaced by the below.

As simple as you're trying to keep it you'd be better off keeping the
main table in Excel and the change logs as individual Word documents
in a dedicated folder. Create a macro in Excel to open a document
whose name/number you'll supply via an input box. When they enter a
document name and click OK. Open Word via Automation and pass in the
document name just entered. If the change log document isn't found in
the folder specific in your macro ask the user what to do. Take
appropriate action. If it is found, go to the end of the document and
let the user enter the change information. At this point Excel exits.
When they close Word, it's all over.

Create a button to click to run the macro.

Alternatively, just have them open the change log from Word directly
.....

HTH
-
-Larry-
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