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Comment by arebop | Hacker News Reader

SharePoint is essentially an HTML + JScript + MSIE-DOM interface to a network file share full of MSOffice documents. It's a modular ASP.NET application with some modules that help you use the Web to emulate the shared folder setup your IT middle-managers know and love. There are some minor modules, such as a lame survey system. There are hooks for integrating with InfoPath for simple form <-> database apps, and WWF for "workflow" (state machine), and SAP for ... ERP goodness I guess.

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Let me rephrase the question:

What is the benefit/value prop to a normal everyday person and why would they use it/love it?

If you work in an environment that makes heavy use of Microsoft technologies (specifically, Office features), then it makes doing collaborative stuff with them easier. Its value depends on how much you buy into that.

I think it is for PHBs.

You work for a large company with IT locked down, and this is the one "collaboration platform" available to you. Oh, but no Sharepoint Designer for you, my friend, if you want to make it do real tricks it will be with emacs (assuming you have jumped through the nine rings of fire to obtain permission for cygwin).

But I would leave out the "love it" part.

It is a very, very easy way to build document-centric internal applications for enterprises that use .DOC and .XLS files (meaning, every enterprise). It's popular for exactly the same reason Access was popular: it drastically reduces the cost of basic business applications.

Normal everyday people don't get much direct benefit from it, although they do benefit indirectly:

* They don't have to implement business processes by "mailing form 3021-C to Clara in Purchasing"

* It sets a lowest common denominator for bizapps that is better than what enterprises get from bespoke .NET and J2EE dev.

It is a very, very easy way to build document-centric internal applications for enterprises that use .DOC and .XLS files (meaning, every enterprise).

Every enterprise uses MS Office? I don't think so.

I know more than a few people who use sharepoint effectively as a way to move around documents that are too large to send via email.

Wow. And here I was thinking it was just a shitty excuse for a Wiki, and I've used it for months at past jobs.

yeah Sharepoint's standard wiki isn't very good! But you can install 3rd party wiki implementations for SP that are better, I believe.

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