Select E-mail, an Intranet, or the World Wide Web

Microsoft Project supplies three types of workgroup messages you can send to your team members, but it doesn’t furnish the communications system over which those messages can be sent. As the workgroup manager, you need to choose e-mail, an intranet, or the World Wide Web to deliver TeamAssign, TeamUpdate, and TeamStatus workgroup messages.

Once you decide, all team members must set up their computers to use the agreed-upon workgroup communications system. All three systems can be available at the same time.

Before setting up the computers, though, you need to have access to a web server (for web-based communications) or access to a MAPI-compliant, 32-bit e-mail system (for e-mail–based communications). If you’re using a web server for workgroup communications, workgroup members need to be notified of the uniform resource locator (URL) address that points to the web server so they can find the TeamInbox using their web browser. URL is the standard for naming and locating a web site on the Internet. It can be supplied by the individual responsible for the web server.

To select e-mail or a web as the method for workgroup communications

On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Workgroup tab.
In the Default workgroup messaging for resources box, click the workgroup message option you want to use for most of your resources (you can change the message option for individual resources).
- To send workgroup messages through a MAPI-compliant, 32-bit e-mail system, click Email.
- To send workgroup messages through a web server (making use of an intranet or the World Wide Web), click Web.
- To send workgroup messages through both a MAPI-compliant, 32-bit e-mail system and a web server (making use of an intranet or the World Wide Web), click Email and Web.
- To prevent workgroup messages from being sent to resources, click None. (Select this option only if most of your resources don’t have access to an e-mail system, an intranet, or the World Wide Web.)
If you chose a web server, enter the Internet address (URL) for the web server that is servicing the workgroup in the Web Server URL (for resource) box.
For example, the URL might point to a web server set up on the workgroup manager’s computer. If the network identification for that computer has its name set to be WorkgroupManager and the web server files are in a "project" folder, then the URL for that computer would be as follows:
http://workgroupmanager/project/
If you chose a web server, enter the path to where the web server software resides on the web server computer in the Web Server root (for manager) box.
The Microsoft Project workgroup feature will set up directories and files to manage the activity of the workgroup on this path. For example, if you install Microsoft Personal Web Server on your computer, and you want the folder for Microsoft Project information to be Project, the path statement could be as follows:
\\workgroupmanager\webshare\wwwroot\project
To apply your workgroup selections to all new projects, click Set as Default.
Click the General tab.
In the User name box, type the name by which you want to be identified in the workgroup messages you send.
If you selected Web or Email and Web on the Workgroup tab, Microsoft Project will notify you after you close the Options dialog box that it needs to copy files to the web server to set up the workgroup. To allow it to do so, click Yes.