I have been working with a managed metadata solution over the past couple of months and I wanted to share some of my experiences. I think highly of managed metadata and feel that it is a good product, when used within its boundaries. I hope that with future releases, that those boundaries however are removed Just like most things in SharePoint, using managed metadata will give you some functionality, and then remove some other functionality. It is good to be aware of what the cost / benefits are so that you can choose the solution that best fits your needs.
I really believe that many business scenarios are unique, so each one should be evaluated and the best solution should be used for the problem at hand. In our case, at the end of the day using managed metadata won. The bottom line really comes down to you just knowing and understanding all the options and tradeoffs before jumping into any solution. Listed below are my ideas on when you should use managed metadata and then some of the functionality tradeoffs that you will need to be aware of.
| You should use it: |
| When you have many terms to manage & sort |
| When you need multiple language support |
| When you need to have synonyms |
| When you need type ahead suggestions |
| What it doesn’t work with: |
| Edit in Datasheet |
| Customization in InfoPath |
| Custom forms in SPD |
Filtered Views
|
Workflows in SPD
|
| Custom Code against Managed Metadata requires some additional considerations |
As I continue to learn more about the managed metadata features and limitations, I will add to this blog post. I am curious to hear your comments as well, so please post your experiences as comments!
Jennifer Ann Mason 