Before using the BSCW server, please check the configuration of your Web browser.
• The browser should always contact the BSCW server before using pages from its cache. This should work fine with current versions of most browsers. If you have doubts in this respect (changes you made are not shown in BSCW pages), you should check your browser configuration. In Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0, e.g., choose “Tools > Internet Options > General > Browsing History [Settings] > Temporary Internet Files > Every time I visit the webpage”. The exact procedure to set this option depends on your browser and browser version.
• Make sure that the clock on your computer is set correctly. Otherwise synchronization between the BSCW server and pages in your local cache will not work correctly.
• In order to use the JavaScript-enhanced user interface, your Web browser has to be configured so that JavaScript is activated and cookies are accepted.
• When using Internet Explorer you should disable “friendly HTTP error messages” (disable option “Tools > Internet Options > Advanced > Browsing > Show friendly HTTP error messages”). Otherwise Internet Explorer might suppress important error messages.
The following BSCW extensions are implemented as Java applets:
o Document uploader and drag & drop uploader – upload helpers for convenient file upload,
o Event monitor – the synchronous group awareness tool,
o Briefcase – a tool that synchronizes BSCW objects with your local file system,
o Outlook synchronization – a tool that synchronizes BSCW contact lists and calendars with your local Outlook data.
o Workspace browser – allows you to quickly browse your BSCW workspaces.
If you want to install and use any of these extensions, your Web browser must be configured to interpret JavaScript and to run Java applets which are installed locally. How these options are set in your browser, varies between platforms and browsers. Please consult your Web browser’s manual for more information.
As long as the documents that you download from your workspaces can be displayed by your Web browser (with the help of any plug-ins you may have installed), you do not need to change your browser’s configuration in order to use BSCW.
If, however, you want to exchange documents in proprietary formats (e.g. WordPerfect, Excel, Photoshop, etc.) with other members of your workspaces, you should tailor the configuration of your browser as follows. All files that BSCW sends to your browser carry an explicit MIME type. Instruct your browser to link the MIME types relevant to you to a certain action, e.g., by starting a program that opens and displays the file just transferred. How you proceed to this effect varies between platforms and browsers. Please consult your browser’s manual for more information.
If you do not configure your Web browser in the way indicated, the download of files, that cannot be handled, will produce a prompt asking you which program to use. More recent browser versions will usually allow you to establish a link between the MIME type of the present file and the program to be used ‘on the fly’. This link will then be applied to the next file with the same MIME type.