Document Organization 1

[iolair]

I have a large number of documents that I want to somehow catagorize and make searchable (not the docs, just the index or category). I have Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, webpages, text documents, and Acrobat pdf files. They're all for reference. Is there a product, maybe some sort of database that will let me create a database with title, author, category or subject, and maybe a link to the file? Or if not a link, actually embed the document into the database? This is probably too big a project for Access, so I'm looking for other suggestions, since I'll be tracking 2 or 3 hundred docs.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[fumei]

Well while not a huge fan of Access (nor, to be honest, fully competent with it), I would think that a few hundred files with data on them could be handled fairly easily by Access.

There are of course full-blown document management systems out there, but I do not know of any free ones.

Even Excel (which of course is NOT a database) could handle what you seem to be talking about.

Gerry

 

[SkipVought]

Even Excel (which of course is NOT a database) could handle what you seem to be talking about.

[small]emphasis added[/small]

I am blown away!!!

Skip,

_{Just traded in my old subtlety...
for a NUANCE!}

 

[fumei]

I am blown away

That was easy....you are such a cheap date....

Just kidding, just kidding.

Seriously though, hey, I am not anti-Excel in any way. As you and I both know, the issue is using the best tool for the job.

Technically speaking, I could even see using...ahem....Word....to do this. I know I could do it, and it would work.

For example, just for fun, I just now built a Word file that collected all the filenames across 50 folders/sub folders, listed them (with hyperlinks to open them if desired), retrieved the Author, Title, comments, keywords etc from the file Properties and listed them as well.

It is not all that hard.

However, I also know that in terms of organizing data elements, Excel is significantly better, and (I think) Access may be even better.

Gerry

 

[iolair]

So, if I were to use Excel, I could insert a hyperlink to the actual document, and it would open the document, using the correct app when I selected it? Excuse me for being so ignorant, but that would be great if it works.

Thanks.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer

 

[fumei]

So, if I were to use Excel, I could insert a hyperlink to the actual document, and it would open the document, using the correct app when I selected it? Excuse me for being so ignorant, but that would be great if it works.

Yes, absolutely it works. Not a problem.

Insert > Hyperlink

You can choose a Office App file, a URL, a bookmark within a file, an email address, a PDF etc. etc.

As long as your system can recognize what it is, then it will load it into the appropriate app.

Say you put a hyperlink (in Excel) to:

\\yadda\blah\whatever.doc

Clicking it will open the file in Word.


http:\\google.com

Clicking it will open your default browser to that URL


\whatever\PDF Files\ho-hum.pdf

Clicking it will open the file in Adobe Reader.


and so on. This is what hyperlinks do.

Gerry

 

[iolair]

Great. Thanks. Problem solved. I like it when that happens.

Iolair MacWalter
Network Engineer