SharePoint 2003 Advanced Concepts: Site Definitions, Custom Templates, and Global Customizations

Whenever a new SharePoint book comes out I’m very hopeful. There is so much to learn about SharePoint. Some of these things are strategic and cultural. Others are the inane details that allow you to make SharePoint do what you want it to do.

I quickly put this book into the details category with the highly specific and technical title. I was not surprised in this way. It drops down right into the details, right away. No stopping to smell roses, or fluffy introduction chapters – “just the facts, ma’am.”

Unfortunately, my read of the book led me to wonder whether it was providing extra value or not. Primarily, I was thinking about these free resources that have a similar level of coverage:

• Site Definitions: Why You Need Them and How to Use Them (DevX.com)
• Exploit SharePoint List Definitions to Maximize Your Brand (DevX.com)
• Master Advanced List Editing in SharePoint (DevX.Com)
• Heather Solomon’s SharePoint Resources

In addition, coverage is available of useful topics not included in the book:

• SharePoint Customization: Site Definition vs. Site Templates (Advisor Guide to SharePoint)
• A Sensible Framework for SharePoint Intranet Navigation (IntranetJournal.com)

If you prefer a book that provides a lot of information in one place, rather than taking the time to gather it for free, this could be the right book for you.

This isn’t a book that I will generally recommend, but it does a reasonable job of covering the material, even if it does sometimes make leaps of understanding.