NetBinder Fundamentals General Overview Create a NetBinder Add Documents/Items Move Stand-Alone Documents into a NetBinder Modifying Access/Security Add/Edit Alerts Notify Others Close History/Audit Trail Remove Documents Email a Document    Additional Options File in Folder Add to Home Page Organize Documents Rename NetBinder/Document Copy NetBinder/Document Move to Another Cabinet Delete NetBinder/Documents Edit a Document's Profile Version Management Approve Documents Sign Documents NetBinder Profile Information Managing Email

General Overview

A NetBinder is the premier sharing method provided in NetDocuments.  It is a secure container used to share and collaborate on documents with people who are not users of your cabinet.  You can also share the NetBinder with other cabinet users if you choose.  A NetBinder allows collaboration among users anywhere in the world on documents without creating multiple copies as you do when using email.  The NetBinder will appear as follows when it is opened.

A NetBinder functions somewhat like a folder, but acts differently in the way it stores and secures documents.  NetBinder documents can be searched by entering the document name or NetBinder name into the Advanced Search.  If you search the NetBinder name, you will get a search result of the documents in the NetBinder.  You can then click the NetBinder icon to open the NetBinder.  You can also locate the NetBinder in the folder where it is filed. 

A NetBinder should always have at least one document in it and always be filed in a folder. Any document in a NetBinder is fully searchable to all Cabinet users who have access to it.

There are no user fees when sharing NetBinder contents with non-Cabinet users, such as with your clients.  In addition, depending on the access you grant to individuals sharing the NetBinder, if you allow them, they can add or edit documents, participate in threaded discussions, and with edit rights can approve documents in the NetBinder. 

Click here to watch a short video of the sharing function of a NetBinder.

Cautions
 

• NetBinders are designed to be used for a handful of documents and a handful of shared users.  Generally the best usage is to collaborate on a few documents with a few people over a temporary time period.  If each document is very large, the total number of documents in the NetBinder should be further limited.  If a collaboration need requires more people or documents, you should consider using multiple NetBinders.
   

  The hard rule is that no one document in a NetBinder can be over the 200 MB single document limit.  There is however an undefined practical limit for a NetBinder, which is why we don't publicize a specific number of documents.  If for instance, you put into the NetBinder 10 - 30MB documents making the total NetBinder over 300 MB, it may take so long for users to upload and download the NetBinder that it would not be practical to use.  Generally a NetBinder with 25 - 1MB documents would perform as fast as a NetBinder with 1 - 25MB document.  Of course opening a 25MB file is always slower than opening each 1MB file.

   

  The biggest determining factor for performance is the overall total size of all of the documents.  The number of users also has an impact when adding a new user or changing the access for a user.  For example, if you had 100 users, the processing of the NetBinder would take much longer than if 10 people were sharing the NetBinder.  The NetBinder will function best when it contains fewer than 25 documents.  This number will be increased during 2010.

   

• NetBinders cannot contain folders or other NetBinders.

• NetBinders that are accessed from My Cabinet do not have Versioning capability.

• Users with limited rights may not have access to all features described below.

Restrictions for View Only Users

Most of the options described below for a NetBinder are NOT available for users with View only rights to the NetBinder.  A NetBinder user with View only rights is intended to ave the right to View the document and make comments in a Discussion document in the NetBinder if one has been created by the NetBinder creator.

These options are NOT available to View Only users of a NetBinder:

Options removed from the NetBinder Menu: Add Document (all options in menu), Modify access list, History, Other Options (all options in menu). 

(The options remaining are Close, Notify others, Edit alerts, Show folders, File in folder, and Add to Home page.)
 
The Marked Items menu is removed completely.
 
The following options are removed from the Document Profile option: Email, Save a local copy. Remaining options are View, Versions, Add to home page, and Mark/Launch.
 
The Add to Home Page option is removed from the NetBinder page, NetBinder Document Profile dialog, list view pages, and Document Profile page for users who are not a member of any Repository.

Create a NetBinder

A NetBinder can be created in five ways:

1. From the Navigation menu, click Add Document | Share externally

2. From a Workspace you can click Add NetBinder to add it as a top-level container in the workspace.

3. From your Recent Documents list, within a folder, or from a Search Result, 1) select any number of documents, 2) click Share externally in the Marked Items menu, and 3) enter a name for a new NetBinder or use an existing NetBinder.  Click here for more documentation on this subject. 

4. When you forward an email with attachments to a NetDocuments Cabinet or folder, the message and any attached documents may be placed, as an option, in a NetBinder if you enter either NB: or NetBinder: in the Subject line of the forwarded email.  The message text and attachments are added as separate files and made fully searchable within the Cabinet.  The primary purpose for using this option is to keep the message and attachments in a group. 

5. If you have the Outlook integration component installed, and you click the NetDocs Save button within a message window of Outlook, your email, with attachments, may be placed into a new NetBinder with the subject as the name of the NetBinder.  This option also allows you to enter profile information that will apply to the message and attachments. 

Note

You cannot create a NetBinder in My Cabinet.  A NetBinder must be created in a shared Repository Cabinet.  When it is shared with a non-Cabinet member, the NetBinder will appear in that person's My Cabinet Inbox. 
 

Add Documents/Items that are on your local computer to a NetBinder

You can add any document that is on your local computer to a NetBinder if you have at least (E) Edit rights to the NetBinder.  Open the NetBinder and choose to:

1. Import an Existing Document

2. Create a New Document

3. Scan in a Document

4. Save a Web Page Link

5. Start a Discussion

Note

Remember that security is defined differently for a NetBinder.  In a NetBinder, security is defined for the NetBinder, not individual documents.  All Documents outside of NetBinders have individual document permission capability. 
 

Move a Document that is already in NetDocuments into a NetBinder

You can move one or many individual documents at a time into a new or existing NetBinder.  To do so:

1. Check the box next to the document from your Recently Opened List, Category, Search Result, or folder

2. Click Share externally from the Marked Items options menu

3. Enter a name for the new NetBinder if you want to create a new NetBinder for the document(s) and select to file in a folder or not, OR

4. Navigate through the folder hierarchy to locate an existing NetBinder

5. You can select to move or copy the document.  Then Click OK
   
   HINT: If a NetBinder is in a folder, you can drag a document that is also in that folder into the NetBinder to place it in the NetBinder.  This will perform a move of the document into the NetBinder unless you hold the control key down when you drag.  You can also drag a document from the right side to the NetBinder displayed in the Navigation pane under the folder where it is filed.  This will be a move also unless you hold the control key down when you drag.

Note

If you chose to create a new NetBinder, it is created and the document is added to it.  If you chose to create a NetBinder and did not file it in a folder, you will have to search for the documents you added to locate the NetBinder and its new contents.  We recommend that you always file NetBinders in a folder to help you locate them. You may also want to add the NetBinder to your Home Page. 

NetBinder Security/Modify Access List

The default security of a NetBinder is different than that of individual documents and folders.  When a NetBinder is created, the creator is the only person given initial rights to the NetBinder.  Unlike individual documents that inherit security rights at creation, the NetBinder access list must be defined explicitly.  This is best done before the documents are added. 

Unlike individual documents, where only Cabinet members can access them, a user can grant NetBinder access to non-Cabinet members anywhere in the world, provided they have an email address, Internet Explorer, and Internet access.   

To grant Cabinet Members access to a NetBinder:

1. Open the NetBinder

2. Click on Modify Access

3. Choose either the Cabinet Members or any Group

4. Select Groups or the Cabinet default and add them to the People sharing this NetBinder box on the right.

5. Define the access rights for each individual or Group

To grant non-Cabinet Members access to a NetBinder:

1. Open the NetBinder

2. Click on Modify Access

3. Choose NetBinder Personal Contacts

4. Click the Add... button

5. Enter the person's email address and choose OK

6. If the person is not already a registered NetDocuments user, you will be prompted to enter a first and last name and assign a username.

7. Click OK

If you have created a new user account, when you click the Notify option, that person will be sent a link that will take them to a page to create their own password and provide them their username and then open the NetBinder for them.

If you choose to not create an account for a person sharing the NetBinder, you can choose to share it privately without a password.  This is generally used when you are planning on sharing only once with this person. 

NOTE:  The option to share without a password is not available for a NetBinder stored in My Cabinet.

If you choose this option, the page will adjust as follows. You will notice there is no place to enter a username:

Using this option, you can also set an expiration date for the NetBinder, which means that the access will be removed after that many days for the recipient.

When using either of the above options, it is required for you to Click the Notify button when you are ready to share the NetBinder so the user will receive the link to access the NetBinder as well as input their username and password, when using that option.

 

Note

NetDocuments cannot prevent any user from saving a document locally, printing it, or sending a copy via email.  However, you can prevent others from granting anyone else access to your NetBinder by granting them either View (V) or View|Edit (VE) rights.  Share (S) rights allows anyone to add others to the access list of the NetBinder. 

Edit/Set Up Alerts

Alerts allow you to receive notifications of changes made to documents in a NetBinder.  Alerts can be sent to multiple destinations, including a pager, cellular phone, RSS feed, or any device with an email address.  By default, no alerts are defined automatically for users with access to a NetBinder.  However, when you create a new NetBinder, you are prompted one time to have an alert defined automatically for you.  You can define multiple Alerts.  There is not an alert to tell you when a new document is added to a NetBinder - only documents modified in a NetBinder. 

To Add or Edit an Alert:

1. Click Edit Alerts

2. Click Add to define a new rule or Edit to change a rule

3. If you do not wish to be notified when anyone with access to the NetBinder modifies something, click Users and select individuals

4. If you do not wish to be notified when any document in the NetBinder changes, click Documents to select specific documents

5. To be notified at multiple email addresses, separate the email addresses with semi-colons

6. Choose a standard email format or condensed format 

7. Click OK

Notify Others

You can Notify everyone with access to a NetBinder by clicking the Notify option. Only people you notify who have access to the NetBinder will be able to open it.
 

It is critical when sharing a NetBinder to always use the Notify button to send a link to the NetBinder.  If the user is a new user who has been setup to use a username and password, that same link will also direct the person to create a password and provides them their username.

If your notification includes users who are new and have never logged in, you will be directed to the built-in Email send dialog as shown below.

If you have selected the Desktop Email Integration option in My Account, Application Settings and you have a MAPI-compliant email system and you are not sending to new users, you will be taken to your standard Email Send Message dialog.  This is a workstation setting. If you have set this flag and you are working on a computer that does not have a MAPI-based email system, it will automatically use the email dialog built into NetDocuments.

A sample email is shown below (when sending to new users).  You can add text to this email message prior to sending it.

Note

If your Cabinet Administrator has configured the Cabinet to use email disclaimers, the email notification will include that disclaimer information.  Disclaimers and company information are examples of this type of information.

Close

The Close button on the top right of a NetBinder will close the NetBinder and return you to the previous page.  Clicking Close checks in any edited and closed documents.  Also just navigating to another page will close the NetBinder and check in any closed documents.

Note

If for example, you have edited three documents and saved and closed two of them, and then click Close, NetDocuments checks in only the two that were saved and closed. The other document remains in your Check-in List and will be checked in when you close the document and check it in using the Check-in List.

History/Audit Trail

The History log in a NetBinder applies to all actions across all documents in a single view, per user.  This is somewhat different than being able to view the history for a single document.  Click History for a one page view of what each person with access to the NetBinder has done with all the documents.  The history is displayed chronologically. 

Note

You must have at least Edit and Share rights (VES) to view the History log of the NetBinder.  You can also choose to print the history log for all users in a single report. 

Remove a Document from a NetBinder

To remove a document and place it back in a folder as a single document in the Cabinet:

1. Select the documents to be removed

2. Click Remove from NetBinder

3. Choose a Cabinet and whether to file it in a folder

4. Click OK

Note

When a document is removed from a NetBinder, just like elsewhere in the product, the document ID is always maintained with the document.  When the document is moved out of the NetBinder, it assumes the access rights of the Cabinet default or thje rights it will be based on the Profile, if you are using Profile-based security.

Email a Document from a NetBinder

You can email a copy of a document to others who cannot access your NetBinder or are not registered with NetDocuments.

Note

This is a copy of the document sent outside of the NetDocuments service and is not secure.  It is as secure as the email application you use for daily email. 

File in Folder

A NetBinder can and should be filed in a folder. 

Note

If you create a NetBinder and do not add documents to it, you will be unable to locate that NetBinder through a search.  However, if you filed the NetBinder in a folder, you can navigate to it in the Navigation pane.  Documents in a NetBinder can be located by searching on the NetBinder name.    You can also add a NetBinder to your Home Page to easily locate it in the future. 

Add to Home Page

To access a NetBinder directly by a single click from your Home Page, click Add to Home Page from the NetBinder's option menu. 

Organize NetBinder Contents

Watch this video to see how to add section headings between documents in a NetBinder. (maximize the Help page dialog to watch the video full-screen)

You can organize items in a NetBinder and place them in any order by using the Organize option.  Because a NetBinder is often used for multi-party collaboration, the most important documents are sometimes sorted at the top, along with any discussion items.  To do this:

1. Click Organize documents from the NetBinder options menu

2. Drag and drop documents names in the order you choose

3. Click OK when completed.

You can also choose to add headings in the NetBinder to further define your document organization as shown below using the same Organize option.

All users will see the documents in the same order.  You cannot apply your Custom View to a NetBinder as you can to Recent Docs list, Search Results, and folders. 

Rename a NetBinder or Document

To rename a NetBinder: (you must have A rights to do this)

1. Click NetBinder on the options menu

2. Choose Rename

3. Type the new NetBinder name

4. Click Rename

To rename a Document or Item in a NetBinder: (you must have A rights to do this)

1. Right click and select Edit Profile OR check the box and select Other, then Rename on the menu.

2. Rename the document

3. Click OK or continue depending which option you used

Copy a NetBinder or Document

You can make a copy of an entire NetBinder and its contents or make copies of individual documents within the NetBinder.  When you copy a NetBinder, the official version of all of its contents are copied.  Multiple versions of the documents are not retained. 

To copy and duplicate a NetBinder:

1. Click NetBinder and then select Copy

2. Enter a new name for the destination NetBinder including Cabinet and folder if desired

3. Click OK

To Copy a Single Document

1. Right click on the document name and select Copy, document OR select the document name to be copied

2. Click Copy from the Marked Items options menu

3. Give the copy a name

4. Store the copy inside the current NetBinder or select Outside this NetBinder to choose an alternate Cabinet and optional folder

5. Click OK

Note

When you copy a document, the profile information of the source document is also copied. 

Move to Another Cabinet

Go to the folder where the NetBinder is filed

1. Click Other Options from the Marked items options menu

2. Choose Move to another Cabinet

3. Select from the Cabinets to which you have access

4. Choose where to file the NetBinder

5. If you want the NetBinder to be accessible by others at the time of the move, leave the option checked to Share with others in the Cabinet.  The Cabinet security defaults will apply.  Otherwise, the access list will include only you. 

6. Click OK

The NetBinder and its contents will be removed entirely from the current Cabinet. 

Delete a NetBinder or Individual Documents (you must have A rights to this)

To delete a NetBinder and its contents when it is open:

1. Click NetBinder from the NetBinder options menu

2. Choose Delete

3. Click OK to confirm

You can delete a NetBinder if it is closed and filed in a folder:

1. Navigate to the folder

2. Check the box next to the NetBinder

3. Click Delete from the Marked Items option menu

4. Confirm

To delete individual documents in a NetBinder:

1. Select the document(s) you want to delete

2. Click on Delete from the Marked Items options menu

3. Choose Yes to confirm

Note

Deleted NetBinders and documents are moved to the Deleted Items folder until purged.  Also, remember that when you delete a NetBinder, all of its documents are deleted.  This is different behavior than with folders.  When you delete a folder, its contents are simply 'unfiled', but remain accessible in the Cabinet. 

Edit a Document's Profile

To edit the profile of a document or item in a NetBinder:

1. Right Click on the document name and select Edit Profile/Tag

2. If document profiling is enforced in the Cabinet and the document's profile is not complete, the Edit Profile box will appear automatically

3. If it is and you are just editing previously entered profile information, click Edit Profile and make your changes

4. Click Close

Note

When you share a NetBinder with someone who is not a member of your Cabinet, custom profile information is not visible such as Client Number, Matter Number, etc.  Custom profile fields are Cabinet specific.  Since non-Cabinet members receive the NetBinder in their My Cabinet where custom profiles are not enabled, they cannot see that information. 

However, if the people you shared with have a full Enterprise account with NetDocuments, and you have given them Share rights,  they can move the NetBinder from their My Cabinet into a company Cabinet, where their custom profiles are enabled on the documents in the NetBinder.  You will only see your custom profile fields and information and they will see theirs.  This allows multiple firms to share a NetBinder and make the contents fully searchable by their own internal custom profile information. 

Version Management

NOTE: NetBinders that are accessed from My Cabinet do NOT have Versioning capability.

A NetBinder accessed from within a Repository with full-text searching and versioning enabled, supports the capability to manage multiple versions of a single document.  You can create new versions of a document in two ways:

Save an Edited Document as a New Version

1. Open a document, edit it, then save it in its native application and close it

2. Instead of clicking Save or Close to check in the document, select Check in as new version from the Check in List.

3. Enter any comments and determine whether the new version is now the official version.  If not, unmark the Official version checkbox

4. Click OK

Create Versions of a Document without Opening It

1. Click on the version number in the list view page column

2. Choose to Add Versions of the document.

3. Type any comments and choose to flag it as the official or not

4. Click Close

Notes

• When a person clicks on a document name in a NetBinder, the version flagged as the official version is the one opened for editing.  To bypass the automatic opening of the official version, you must click the version number in the column and choose the version you want to open. 

Approve Document

You and anyone else with E rights in the NetBinder can place an electronic approval on a document.  To approve a document:

1. Click Other options

2. Click Approve

3. Click OK
   
   An icon  will be displayed next to the document name of any approved document.

Note

Approving a document records your name and the current date and time.  Everyone with access to the NetBinder sees any approvals stamped on a document when they open it.  Approving a document does not lock the document in its current state. If the document is edited by you or anyone else after you or others approve it, all approvals will be rescinded automatically.  However, approvals are permanently recorded in the History log.  

If you would like to lock the document so no further edits are possible, or to make a document legally binding, sign the document digitally.  (Remember a signed document can never be removed from the NetDocuments Service).

Sign a Document (this function is only available for documents in a NetBinder)

A digital signature allows others to verify the identity of a signer and ensures that a document will not be changed with non-repudiation.  NetDocuments supports two types of digital signatures:

1. Personal Digital Certificate

2. NetDocuments Signature

A digital certificate-based signature is secure and provides a degree of legal protection in the United States under the Electronic Records and Signatures in Commerce Act.  To sign a document with a digital certificate-based signature, you must obtain a digital certificate from a certificate authority such as DST or Verisign.

A NetDocuments Signature provides a date/time stamp feature and locks the document text.  However, it does not necessarily provide legal protection.  If two parties agree to use this signature, it may hold as an official certificate authority under the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act

To digitally sign a document

1. Click Other options on the menu

2. Select Sign.

3. Choose to use a personal certificate or a NetDocuments signature.

4. Click OK

Note

When a document is been signed, it cannot be edited or deleted, the NetBinder cannot be deleted, and signers cannot be removed from the Access List.  To purge a signed document, all parties who signed must submit a signed affidavit to NetDocuments requesting that the document and/or NetBinder be purged from the service entirely. 

If you want to indicate tentative approval of the document but still allow others the option of editing the document, use the Approve option.
 

NetBinder Info

The NetBinder Information box shows the following:

• Author

• Created date and time

• Modified date and time

• Modified by

To access this information:

1. Click NetBinder from the NetBinder options menu

2. Choose NetBinder Information

Email Management Through NetBinders

As an option, a user can use a NetBinder to bind an email and its attachments when they are forwarded into NetDocuments.  Whenever you forward to NetDocuments an email that has attachments, you can choose to place them into a NetBinder if you add NB: or NetBinder: into the Subject of the forwarded email.  If you do not add the code to the Subject line, the email with its attachments are sent to NetDocuments and automatically linked together with the Doc ID linking feature. 

If the email is sent into a NetBinder, the email text and header information is stored as a single searchable text document.  The attachments are stored individually as well and are searchable.  The new NetBinder access list includes you as the administrator and author, and grants access to the Cabinet defaults or Profile security, if you are using that type of security.  This behavior is different than creating a NetBinder within the NetDocuments interface, where the access list defaults only to you. 

By creating a NetBinder, you now have the capability to grant access to others, including the sender, so that you can collaborate within the NetBinder rather than sending emails and document copies back and forth. 

Note

If an email does not have at least one attachment, the email is stored in the Cabinet as text file.