The NIH Portal Is Better Than Ever

In late March, a major upgrade to the NIH Portal appeared with new functionality in the collaboration and community management environments. The NIH Portal enables ICs and offices to access the vast amount of NIH data, documents, processes and services in many systems. Developed by CIT, the web-based Portal provides simple, streamlined access to the many distributed systems, applications and documents that NIH users need. Access to the information and data you use daily has just gotten easier.

In the new portal, ICs can create and administer their own intranet "subportals“ with distinct branding. Collaborators and community users can utilize the enhanced search capability and the moderated discussions features. The new version also integrates with MS Exchange 2003 so that users can look forward to even more functionality in the future.

For most casual users, the most obvious impact of the upgrade is a slightly different look and feel.

Sample My Portal Page

For more advanced users, the new portal enables better collaboration within communities. It also provides a new method for creating and granting access to what you need—calendar, tasks, announcements, document directories, and discussions. Everything you need is now available from one screen.

Exchange
is integrated with the portal (once Exchange 2003 is installed). Now project calendars can have Exchange data, and community calendars can be imported from Exchange.

Project Explorer
provides a single place for all project management and has a full window with all projects accessible in one place.

Calendar
can be integrated with the portal (once MS Exchange 2003 is deployed) so that you can make meeting requests and see someone's availability.

Discussions
can be moderated or un-moderated, and can incorporate links, graphics and font formatting.

Documents
can be added in multiple-file uploads. You can tell other portal users about a document,
click to the right of the document.

In addition to the features already discussed, the new portal improves management capabilities for community leaders—for example, tasks can be assigned to multiple users, and community leaders can easily notify the entire membership. Some of the enhancements are:

Communities
Communities can be related and can have subcommunities.

Subportals
ICs can create and administer their own intranet space with distinct branding and portal experience.

Statistics
Portal statistics will be available soon on community and portlet use (from CIT using PT Tracker), which helps community leaders/managers improve their sites for the benefit of Community subscribers.

From just one web address, you will be able to reach a wealth of information inside NIH and outside—including NIH policy and procedures, collaboration tools, project management tools, scientific and organizational news, document and Internet searches, phone directories, e-mail, Outlook's e-mail and calendar, travel resources, and much more. You can select from over 300 portlets or join any of the existing 20 communities (including 12 related to NBS).

The best way to understand the full power of the new portal is to try it. On-line tutorials are available to guide you through the changes. If you are new to the portal, you need to create a My Page—the tutorials will help you get started.

More Information

Portal training is available for general users and community managers through the NIH Training Center. Recorded videocasts and training specific to ICs and communities are available upon request. For additional information, contact portaladmin@nih.gov.

Much information is available on the NIH Portal web page. Click first on the My Communities menu, and then on "Portal Information Center." Tutorials are located under the heading "How to Use the NIH Portal." You will also find links to helpful documents: NIH Portal Upgrade: What's New, and NIH Portal User Guide for Project Leaders and Members. One document, NIH Portal Guide – Portal Version, is a quick guide to using the portal.

If you have questions or need more information, contact the NIH Help Desk at 301-496-4357, or send e-mail to helpdesk@nih.gov.