Community Kit for SharePoint (CKS) 2.0 to kick off with a boost from the Solution Sharing Network (SSN) templates and web parts
As I had hinted a month ago, the CKS 2.0 effort will be kicking off very soon – likely on April 16th. Currently, there are several editions under consideration, but the three that will likely take priority are:
· CKS: Corporate Intranet Edition
· CKS: Enhanced Blog Edition
· CKS: Internet/Extranet Edition
The development of the CKS 2.0 will get a boost from the work that was completed a couple of months ago by Microsoft’s Solution Sharing Network (SSN) Program, which is a successful global initiative that promotes and enables the sharing of solutions and best practices within the Public Sector. A key component that is offered through the SSN Program is a SharePoint-based community portal solution accelerator that consists of a collection of custom templates, web parts, and a user registration and self-service facility. Motivated by the SSN Program’s spirit of sharing intellectual capital and by the vision of the Community Kit for SharePoint, the SSN Program team has agreed to donate the SSN 3.0 Portal’s templates and web parts (with full source code) to the CKS project.
The SSN 3.0 Portal had been commissioned by Microsoft to be developed by Information Strategies (a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner), and feedback from developers and early adopters has been very positive due to the following key benefits:
- A SharePoint web site with a highly customized look..
- Good grounding in the development tools and methods that are available for developing custom web parts.
- A much often requested user registration facility for Internet facing web sites.
As we approach the kick off the CKS 2.0 effort, I am still looking for volunteers to join in at http://www.codeplex.com/cks. We need web designers, web site developers, and web parts developers. The CKS: User Group Edition 1.0 was released just a month ago, and it has been downloaded almost 1,000 times. Imagine the dramatic impact that the CKS 2.0 might have! And every member of the CKS 2.0 core team will receive a very nice jacket embroidered with the CKS logo. J
Instead of waiting until the CKS 2.0 effort gets into high gear, which could be several months from now, I am very pleased to announce that a special release of the SSN 3.0 Portal’s full source code and documentation is immediately available for download at http://www.codeplex.com/CKS/Release/ProjectReleases.aspx?ReleaseId=2606. I hope that the community will leverage it, extend it, and contribute useful updates back to the CKS 2.0 project.
Lastly, I would like to thank Jonny Chambers, Program Manager for the SSN Program, for his trust and support in making this very significant contribution to the CKS project.
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