Hands-On | July 2024 Updates

Dear readers,

As you probably guessed from the hero image of this issue, I have big news to share with you. In the upcoming weeks, I’ll become a father! ?? This means that for a while, I’ll be slowing down the rhythm, and you’ll see fewer updates from me on the Hands-On tek blogs and on social media.

However, this doesn’t mean I’m abandoning the project. I expect to be back to regular content production later this year and also plan to write something every now and then over the next couple of months. As a first-time dad, maybe I’m wishfully thinking, but let’s see how things go. If you don’t hear from me in the following weeks, know that I haven’t abandoned this project—I’m simply busy with a bigger one.

Now that I’ve updated you on the personal side of life, let’s dive right into the updates in the Hands-On tek world.

Hands-On SharePoint

I have launched Apps and Services on Hands-On tek, a platform where you can access free components to enhance your Microsoft 365 environment. You can also hire me for implementation services or guidance on best practices.

In July, I wrote about the Greetings web part, a custom solution that allows you to add a personalized greeting message for each user. In today’s digital age, where many people work remotely, fostering a sense of community and connection within an organization is more important than ever. One way to enhance this sense of connection is through personalized greetings on your SharePoint intranet. A custom greeting not only adds a personal touch but also helps users better relate to the intranet, thereby boosting adoption and engagement.

In the following blog post, you can find all the information about this solution, including instructions to download and install it on your tenant. If you have suggestions for improvements or want to add a custom feature, don’t hesitate to get in touch.

• Adding a Personal Touch to Your SharePoint Intranet with Custom Greetings
• Hands-On tek Apps & Services - Greetings web part

Microsoft has deprecated the connector web parts for SharePoint, which means the RSS reader web part that was available on team sites is gone. To prevent disruptions for your users, I wrote an article to help you transition from SharePoint connectors to Power Automate and SharePoint lists with a bit of list formatting.

If you implement this solution, your users will not notice any difference between the old RSS web part and the new implementation, as I have built the formatting to have the same exact styles and functionality.

• Transitioning from SharePoint Connectors to Power Automate for RSS Feeds

To close out the month, I’ve compiled all the latest announcements and updates for SharePoint and related technologies from the Microsoft Admin Center and the Microsoft Roadmap.

Hands-On Lists

I’m a fan of the Viva Connections Dashboard. It looks great on SharePoint pages. However, it only works within Viva Connections, which means I can’t use it on other sites that aren’t part of Viva Connections. Bummer, right?

But hey, I’m not one to back down from a challenge. I decided to create a custom list formatting that mimics the ACEs cards from Viva Connections. It can be used this on any site, whether it’s part of Viva Connections or not.

• Creating a Viva Connections Dashboard Using Microsoft Lists Formatting

Hands-On Teams

In July, Microsoft began changing how the website tab in Microsoft Teams channels works. Instead of displaying the site within the context of Microsoft Teams, it now redirects users to the browser. This change aligns with web security best practices and enhances website reliability.

While this change improves security, it can disrupt users’ workflow, as they’ll need to switch between Teams and the browser when interacting with website tabs. However, there’s a workaround that allows you to continue adding websites as tabs within Teams and I wrote an article explaining how to do it.

• How to Add a Website as a Tab in Microsoft Teams (Post-July 2024)

As usual, each month, I publish a recap post about what’s new for Microsoft Viva, the Microsoft Employee Experience platform.

Hands-On tek

On the Hands-On tek, I reviewed another book I recently read: Slow Productivity by Cal Newport. I highly recommend it to everyone during the summer break, as it can change the way you work and perceive productivity.

The book had such a significant impact on me that I wrote a follow-up article explaining how Copilot and Microsoft 365 are helping me implement the Slow Productivity concepts.

• Reading Corner: Slow Productivity by Cal Newport
• Embracing Slow Productivity with Copilot and Microsoft 365

As usual, I’ve gathered all the latest releases and announcements from Microsoft for Copilot. May was a busy month, especially with updates to Viva Insights with dashboards about Copilot usage.

YouTube channel

I continue to explore YouTube as a complement to blogs and written content. This month, I published two videos to illustrate and better exemplify the articles I wrote. In the first video, you can see the entire process of adding the Greetings web part to SharePoint, including how it can be customized.

I also created a step-by-step video that shows how to use SharePoint as an alternative to the website app for Microsoft Teams.

Events and Public Speaking

I’m thrilled to announce that later this year, I’ll be speaking at the European SharePoint Conference, this time in Sweden. Don’t miss the chance to take advantage of early bird tickets and join the largest Microsoft 365 conference in Europe.

• ESPC Conference - Achieve More with Microsoft 365

Together with a few friends, we kicked off CollabDays Portugal. After several years in Lisbon, first as SharePoint Saturday and then as CollabDays Lisbon, it is now time to make it global and bring it for the first time to OPorto. Don't miss the opportunity to register and visit Portugal and my beautiful city. We are waiting for you on September 21.

• CollabDays Portugal 2024

Unselfish Travel Blog

It has been a long time since I brought you an update from the travel blog I share with my wife, but this month to celebrate the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, we published not one, but two posts! We just shared our Disneyland Paris adventure from last year’s trip.

• Make the Most of Disneyland Paris: Day 1
• Make the Most of Disneyland Paris: Day 2

Enjoy the complete guide from our 5 days in Paris!

• Bonjour Paris! A fabulous getaway to the city of Love
• Embarking on a journey through Parisian Art and Marais
• From Champs-élysées to Saint-Germain-des-Prés: a day of literature and picnics in Paris
• From Galettes to Galleries: A Vibrant Finale to Our Parisian Adventure

See you soon ??

I hope that you have found the content to be informative and engaging. I am committed to keeping you updated with the latest trends and developments in technology and productivity. To stay connected and ensure that you don't miss any updates, I encourage you to follow me on social media.

Thank you for your continued support, and I look forward to connecting with you soon. ??

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