Bulletins are, by nature, public which can be viewed by any number of users. OfficeX makes provision for generic public broadcast-type bulletins by simply placing it in a folder with public permissions. But bulletins can also be directed towards a select group of people. OfficeX, again, makes provisions for selective viewing by restricting the permission settings of the public folder to only a few users or groups.

OfficeX even allows bulletin messages to be directly sent to users’ Inboxes for their guaranteed review. The Inbox section of OfficeX is therefore integrated very tightly with the bulletins process. Bulletins that need to be reviewed by a particular user are sent to that user’s Inbox for review and even approval.

The purpose of the Bulletins Section in OfficeX (as shown above in the Bulletins screen image) is to provide a convenient location to view all bulletins that are currently being broadcast. It also provides the regular means to which the majority of users can view public bulletins. (granted that you have the adequate permissions to view certain folders).

All bulletins are based on a concept of envelopes with a recipient list and an attachment list. The envelope can be sent around to various recipients in a specified sequence order. In addition, the recipients found in the list can be required to approve the envelope.

The below screen image shows what the envelope looks like (notice that the envelope concept is identical between e-mail, proposals, and bulletin for maximum ease-of-use and familiarity):

As shown above, envelopes are divided into three major sections. The envelope cover, main message, and the attachments. The envelope cover consists of the subject area and the recipient list. The main message can be any free-format message in rich-text format. The attachments section allows you to attach any OfficeX document in your envelope. Attachments can include voice messages as well as text annotations (particularly useful for proposals).

OfficeX allows you to type in recipients manually or select from a list. If you type in the recipient name manually, you can type in either the user name or the group name and then press CTRL+K to verify that the name is correct.

You can also choose to select from a list of users and groups. Simply click on the To button and another dialog box will display showing the recipient list information. This recipient window not only shows the recipient list but also the sequence of who to send the envelope to next.

In addition, a sequence number is provided in the recipient list allowing you to send the envelope from one user to the next. Users in higher sequence numbers will not have the envelope delivered to their Inbox until the prior users (in previous sequence numbers) have all seen and sent the envelope.

Furthermore, you can specify whether or not a particular user must approve the envelope before sending it off to the next recipient. Approval requires that a digital "signature" be validated before proceeding to the next recipient. The below screen image shows what the recipient list looks like:

Notice that a status field exists beside each recipient listed. The status will indicate whether or not the user has read the bulletin and if he has sent it to the next person in the recipient list for review.

Once the envelope has been sent and is in progress, the recipient list cannot be modified. Only the original creator of the envelope can modify the contents of the envelope including the main message as well as the attachments list.

The recipients window provides a convenient location to view the status of an in-progress envelope whether it be an e-mail, bulletin or a proposal.

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