Helpful Hints

Below is a collection of best practices to help optimize the effectiveness and efficiency of the attachment management system.  These suggestions are designed to help enhance a person's use of the attachment system, but are not required for its use.

 Scanning files:

• When scanning a file, we recommend that you use a resolution of no greater than 600dpi for the scanned file, unless the file requires higher resolution to maintain readability.  When saving the file, following scanning, we also suggest that you use a file type such as JPG or GIF instead of BMP, as these file types compress the image file without sacrificing much in clarity. These actions will help minimize the size of the image without sacrificing the integrity of the scanned document.
  
  

 File size matters:

• The smaller the file that is being attached, the less time it will take to upload (for attaching) and download (for viewing) the file.  This is especially important in situations where the Internet connection is limited in speed or when you're attempting to connect to the Internet through a connection outside the university. If possible, try to minimize the size of the files. Some examples of ways to minimize file size include decreasing the resolution of image files (while still maintaining readability), decreasing the margins on Microsoft Word documents to decrease the number of pages in the document and compressing (or zipping) word processing and spreadsheet documents if possible.
  
  

 Choose file types carefully:

• We recommend that you attempt to select files for attaching that can be easily opened by other individuals around the university.  Try to avoid attaching files that require very specialized or rare programs to open, unless the saving of the information in this format is necessary.  Some suggested common file types include:
  
  
• Microsoft Word files (*.doc)
• Microsoft Excel files (*.xls)
• Text documents (*.txt)
• JPG or GIF image files (*.jpg or *.gif)
• Adobe acrobat files (*.pdf)
  
  

 Try not to embed images inside other file types:

• We strongly recommend that you upload images directly to the attachment system.  Do not attempt to paste these images into Microsoft Word other document types, as this will greatly increase the size of the file to be uploaded, which in turn means that it will take longer to upload and download.
  
  
• When doing screen shots to capture information, it is best if you paste the screen shot into a photo editor instead of a Microsoft Word or Excel document.  You can do this by opening a photo editor program, such as Microsoft Photo Editor, PhotoDraw, Adobe Photoshop, or one of many other possible programs you may have installed.  Simply create a new image and paste the screen shot into that image using the "Paste" command under the "Edit" menu.  Then save this file and upload it. 
  
  

 Make descriptions meaningful:

• When adding a description to the attached file, make the description meaningful and concise.  The information you provide here can help a lot when someone is attempting to determine which file to look at when reviewing information about a transaction.  The description is the first indication of what data is provided by each attached file.  Using generic statements in the description field, such as "Attachment 1" or "Supporting documentation" does not provide enough information to help identify the purpose of the attached file.