As more and more organisations adopt document management systems and replace filing cabinets and microfilm with digitised images, they still face the problem of getting information to users who don’t have access to the system.

Document management systems make it easy to share documents electronically with colleagues and clients over a network, whether that is network-attached storage (NAS) or a storage area network system (SAN), on CD or DVD, or securely over the Web.

 
Sharing paper documents usually entails photocopying, and sharing microfilm requires conversion to paper, but with digital documents, you can view the same documents simultaneously.

A quality document management solution should:

• Publish documents to CD/DVD or the Web quickly and easily; while giving you the ability to distribute CDs royalty-free.

• Create CDs with built-in viewers and search capabilities, so documents can be viewed and searched on any PC, regardless of whether document management software is installed.

• Present a consistent face to customers and the public with a customisable interface that matches your Website.

• Balance access and security, assisting you in retaining strict control over which documents are available to staff and the general public. Enable self-serve information access.

• Protect your repository’s integrity with read-only document access

• Work with documents on a wide variety of Internet browsers, operating systems and hardware.

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