Putting Script on a SharePoint Site
“What we’re really looking for from you is ‘best practices’” – Every customer, ever
Best practices? Just once, I would like to see an expert (in anything) run a contest of all the practices he/she follows so we can vote on which ones are the “best”. “Best Practices” is right up there with “Trusted Advisor” as an overused and ambiguous term. While I don’t have an equivalent sexy term I often talk to customers about “things that bit me in the butt that forced me to change what I do so I don’t get bitten again”. Here’s an example…
Putting script on a SharePoint site is pretty powerful. You can add snippets that can change how things work or look on that site while keeping the context of the change to that site only. You do that with a Script Editor web part (or Content Editor web part for old schoolers). Here’s the thing… You add a script to a site then turn it over to a business user. You show him how to add documents and make simple adjustments to the site. What could go wrong? Experience tells me that new SharePoint users are curious like cats. They find their way into Edit mode and ponder “what’s this ‘Script Editor’ thingy and do I really need it?” Boom, deleted. Ugh!
As a practice (not sure if it is “best” but it works), I always rename my Script Editor web parts (i.e. web part title) to ‘DO NOT DELETE’ (intentionally all uppercase). It’s subtle and only seen in edit mode. It’s just one of those things you do to head off the frantic “Why did SharePoint stop working?!” Sometimes the “best” thing is to find ways to not have the phone ring.
