Contents
- Getting started
- TeamCompanion toolbar
- Connecting to the Microsoft Team Foundation Server
- Server and Project Folders
- Offline Work
- Online Work
- Favorite Folders
- Options
- Trial period expired
- Project Portal
- Customization
- Refresh
- New Work Item
- Attach to WI
- New WI from Mail
- New E-mail from WI
- New Appointment from WI
- Search
- Server Input Field
- Project Input Field
- Go to Work Item Input Field
- Work Item List Grouping and Filtering
- Cancel Synchronization
- Send to OneNote action
- Bulk Reassign To
- Improved New Appointment from WI logic
- Desktop search integration - full text search for Work Items
- Work Item query management support
- Editing areas and iterations support
- Scheduled Work Item queries
- Subscriptions to TFS alert notifications support
- Integration with Excel and Project
- Outlook Tasks support (Work Item from Task, Task from Work Item)
- Ad-hoc queries including all standard services (Work Item to Mail, Task or Appointment conversion)
- Add related Work Item action support
- Additional simplified toolbar
- Support for Reminders, To-Do Bar view integration
- Bulk state change
- Create Work Item from RSS feed entry, Attach RSS feed to Work Item
- "Send Query Results by Mail" action on Work Item queries
- Reports (including multiple saved parameter sets for each report)
- "Query by example" Work Item Query editor (including full-text search support)
- Open related object (work item, changeset or build) action for notification mails
- Attaching mails to work items using drag-n-drop
Getting started
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After installing the TeamCompanion for the Microsoft Office Outlook on your computer, every time you start your Outlook application a Getting started popup screen shows up. Its function is to introduce users into the TeamCompanion application and to provide them some useful tips on how to start using it.
The Getting started screen can be reactivated any time by clicking the Getting started option in the TeamCompanion menu.
TeamCompanion toolbar
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After installing the TeamCompanion for the Microsoft Office Outlook on your computer, the TeamCompanion toolbar will be visible in your Outlook application. The screenshot below shows the default view of the TeamCompanion toolbar, where some buttons are in the Image and Text style while some of them are in the Image style only.
The default style can be customized by clicking the right mouse button on any Outlook toolbar and selecting the Customize option. A Customize dialog box is opened. While this dialog box is opened click the right mouse button on any toolbar button you wish to customize and set its properties through a context menu.>
Connecting to the Microsoft Team Foundation Server
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The Team Companion for Microsoft Office Outlook provides connection to and support for multiple Team Foundation Servers (TFS).
In order to connect to the Team Foundation Server, in the Microsoft Outlook main menu, select TeamCompanion menu and choose the Connect submenu.
It is also possible to connect to the Team Foundation Server by clicking the Connect button on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or by clicking the right mouse button on the TeamCompanion folder in the Mail Folders list and further selection of the Connect option.
The Connect to TFS server dialog box opens in which server and project(s) to connect to can be selected.
Choose the server you want to connect to from the drop-down menu. When a server is selected, all projects from that server, to which you are not already connected, will be automatically displayed. Connection is possible for one or more projects at the same time.
If the Servers button is clicked, the Add/Remove Team Foundation Server dialog box opens, where a new server can be registered by clicking the Add button. The Add Team Foundation Server dialog box opens where the Team Foundation Server name and connection details are to be entered.
To remove one or more servers, select the server(s) that need to be removed and click the Remove button.
Server and Project Folders
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Once you have successfully connected to the Team Foundation Server(s) and specific project(s), the list of all servers, projects and associated project queries is already in your Mail Folders list. The folder enables easy navigation. Selecting a query will display the list of Work Items retrieved by the query. The list will be displayed in the central Outlook list of items. The Outlook reading pane (preview window) is used for displaying the currently selected Work Item.
Offline Work
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As soon as you open a Work Item query, the TeamCompanion fetches and stores all the data of all Work Items from the query result set from the server. This feature enables you data filtering, grouping and read-only access without the need to connect to the server. In order to edit the existing Work Items or to create new Work Items you need to connect to the server.
Online Work
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If you are online and you double click any entry on the Work Item list or use Open action on the context menu, the Work Item will be opened in the usual Work Item form.
The below screenshot shows the Work Item – Task 45: Create Iteration Plan, which we accessed offline in the previous paragraph, but now shown accessed online in an editable Work Item form.
Favorite Folders
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Apart from having the list of all Work Items in the Mail Folders list, one can also drag-and-drop one or more Query folders into the Favorite Folders list.
By clicking the right mouse button on the specific Query in the Favorite Folders list, you have the option to refresh it, rearrange its order or remove it from the Favorite Folders list.
Options
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By clicking the Options button on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or by choosing the Options submenu in the TeamCompanion menu, the TeamCompanion Options dialog box opens.
A list of all servers and corresponding projects connected to is in the Servers tab.
To add one or more servers, click the Connect to Server button. The Connect to TFS Server dialog box opens, where server(s) to be added are selected.
To remove server(s), select the server(s) to be removed and click the Remove Server button.
To add one or more projects, select the server project(s) are to be added from. Then click the Add Projects button and select project(s) to be added in the new dialog box.
In the General tab, Online or Offline mode can be selected. When working in the online mode, if necessary, the TeamCompanion will automatically connect to the Team Foundation Server. When working in the offline mode, the system will never attempt to connect to the Team Foundation Server and will continue working with available data. The Refresh option will not be available when working offline.
In the Create E-mail tab, Work Item fields to be mapped and their e-mail fields can be defined. To add one or more fields, click the Add Field button and select which field you want added.
In the bottom of the dialog box, whether e-mail body will contain Work Item Html preview or not, can be defined. By default the Work Item Html preview will be used as e-mail body.
Combining the two checkboxes at the bottom of the dialog with the values in fields: "New e-mail subject" and "New e-mail body" several different variations of new e-mail out of a Work Item can be achieved. In all variations, the "New e-mail subject" is treated as plain text and any special markup (Work Item fields in curly braces \{\}) is expanded but no HTML markup can be used.
1. "Using Work Item Html preview as Email body" checked
When this option is checked any new e-mail created out of a Work Item will have the content (body) same as the Work Item preview shown in the "Reading pane". Any text entered in the "New e-mail body" field will be ignored. Checking this option also checks the option "Use HTML markup in body".
New e-mail will have the following content:
2. "Using Work Item Html preview as Email body" unchecked
"Use HTML markup in body" unchecked
When both options are unchecked then the text entered in field "New e-mail body" will be used as the body of the new e-mail created out of a Work Item. Any special markup (Work Item fields in curly braces \{\}) will be expanded but no additional markup (HTML) can be used. The e-mail body will be encoded as plain text.
Will appear as the following in the new e-mail:
3. "Using Work Item Html preview as Email body" unchecked
"Use HTML markup in body" checked
When the option "Use HTML markup in body" is checked then the text entered in field "New e-mail body" will be used as the body of the new e-mail created out of a Work Item. Any special markup (Work Item fields in curly braces \{\}) will be expanded and the use of HTML markup is possible. With this option checked one special Work Item mapping field, \{TeamCompanion.WorkItemUrl\}, can be used. This field will be expanded to an Url link to the Team Foundation Work Item. The e-mail body will be encoded as HTML.
Will appear as the following in the new e-mail:
The third checkbox, which is by default checked, is a new feature intended for sending multiple Work Items by an e-mail. If you turn on this feature in the list below you can You have the possibility to check or uncheck this checkbox and add or remove one or more fields by clicking on the Add field or Remove field button, defining the columns a new table will consist of.
When this checkbox is checked and multiple Work Items are selected, (at least two, ) only one e-mail will be created with the table containing Work Item information listed in columns previously defined.
New e-mail will have the following content:
When this checkbox is unchecked and multiple Work Items selected, a multiple e-mails will be created, one for each Work Item selected.
Results in:
In the Create Work Item tab, the Default Work Item Type and the list of Work Item fields which will be set when creating a Work Item out of an e-mail can be defined.
To define the Default Work Item Type, select one Work Item type from the drop-down menu.
To add one or more Work Item fields, click the Select the Work Item field to use (1) button and - in the fields list open - select the field to be added. To transfer that field to the Field Name list, click the Plus button. Values for each new field in the list must be defined. To do that, enter the appropriate value in the Field Value, by clicking the Add a field from the fields available in an Email (2) button, selecting it in the fields list and then clicking the Plus button, to transfer it to the list.
To remove Work Item field(s) from the list, select one or more Work Item fields and click the Remove mapping (3) button.
In the Create Appointment tab, one can define which Work Item fields will be mapped to which appointment fields. To add one or more fields, click the Add Field button and select the appropriate field to be added.
To define a New appointment date field, click the Select a Work Item field to use (1) button and then select it from the list.
The License info tab contains information about the user`s TeamCompanion license and version.
When the Ordering info button is clicked, you will be redirected to the Ekobit web site where TeamCompanion can be purchased.
When the License Agreement button is clicked, the TeamCompanion license agreement will be displayed.
To Activate the TeamCompanion, click the Activate TeamCompanion button. The Activate TeamCompanion dialog box opens, where a registered e-mail and the registration code you received when obtaining registration must be entered.
Having activated the TeamCompanion, the link to Registration Info will be also activated. The Registration Info includes the list of all registered products a specific customer is using.
To deactivate the current license, click the Deactivate Current License button. A deactivated license can be used on other computers.
Trial period expired
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Once you downloaded a trial version of the TeamCompanion you can use it free of charge for the next 90 days. After the trial period expires, any time you start your Outlook application a Trial period expired popup screen shows up, reminding you that you have to purchase the license in order to continue using the TeamCompanion.
Project Portal
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By clicking the Project Portal button, located on the TeamCompanion toolbar, or by selecting the Project Portal submenu from the TeamCompanion menu, the default project portal opens in your browser. The default project is the one whose title is visible in the Project control, on the TeamCompanion toolbar.
Customization
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You can customize the current Query view columns by clicking the Customize View button, located on the TeamCompanion toolbar, or finding it in the TeamCompanion menu. The Customize view dialog box opens.
Select the project and the Work Item type from that project in order to get the Available columns list filled. In the Available columns list, where all available Work Item fields for the currently selected Work Item type are displayed, select one or more Work Item fields that will be displayed as columns in the Work Item list. After selecting one or more Work Item fields and clicking the Add button, these will be automatically transferred to the Selected columns list, where all currently displayed Work Item fields are listed.
To remove Work Item field(s), select one or more currently displayed Work Item fields from the Selected columns list and click the Remove button.
You can also customize the order of currently displayed Work Item fields. In the Selected columns list, select one Work Item field and by clicking the up or down arrow, define order as needed.
Refresh
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To refresh My or Team Queries Folder, for a specific project, click on the folder you want to refresh and then select the Refresh Folder submenu on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or, in the TeamCompanion menu. Refreshing equals updating the list of queries, not execution of the queries.
To refresh one or more Work Items, select Work Item(s) to refresh in the Work Items list, followed by clicking the Refresh WI button on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or, select the Refresh WI submenu on the TeamCompanion menu.
You can also refresh Query folders and Work Items by clicking the right mouse button on the specific folder or Work Item and selecting the Refresh option.
New Work Item
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To create a new Work Item, click the New WI button on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or select the New WI submenu in the TeamCompanion menu.
If connected to the Team Foundation Server, the Create new Work Item dialog box opens, where server, project and the Work Item Type to create can be selected.
If the default server and/or default project are not defined, the Current server/project dialog box opens, where the server and project to connect to must be defined. There is the possibility to set selected server and project as default.
Having selected the server and the project to connect to, the Create new Work Item dialog opens, as described above.
After defining Work Item Type to create, the Work Item dialog box opens.
Attach to WI
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This feature is used to attach one or more e-mails to one Work Item and is enabled only if one or more e-mails are selected.
In the Mailbox, select e-mail(s) to attach and click the Attach to WI button on the TeamCompanion Toolbar or, in the TeamCompanion menu, select the Attach to WI submenu.
E-mail can also be attached to one Work Item if the right mouse button is clicked on the selected e-mail and then the Attach to WI option selected.
A new dialog box opens. There are several methods for finding available Work Items. Having selected one Work Item, previously selected e-mail(s) will be automatically attached to it.
New WI from Mail
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In the Mailbox, select one e-mail from which Work Item will be created and click the New WI button in the TeamCompanion menu, which is enabled only if one e-mail is selected.
Also, new Work Item from mail can be created if the right mouse button is clicked on selected e-mail and the New WI from Mail option is selected.
The Create new Work Item dialog box opens, where Work Item Type to create can be defined as well as whether source e-mail and its attachments will be attached to the new Work Item.
Next, the Work Item dialog box opens, with some Work Item fields mapped to certain e-mail fields and some Work Item fields automatically filled, which is configured in the Options feature, as described above.
New E-mail from WI
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In the TeamCompanion menu, select the New e-mail from WI submenu or, using the TeamCompanion Toolbar, click the New e-mail from WI button, which is enabled only if one Work Item is selected. Otherwise the button will be disabled.
New e-mail from Work Item can also be created by clicking the right mouse button on the specific Work Item and selecting the New e-mail from WI option or, in the opened Work Item window, clicking on the New e-mail from WI toolbar button.
The e-mail dialog box opens, with some e-mail fields mapped to certain Work Item fields, which is configured in the Options feature, as described above.
New Appointment from WI
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In the TeamCompanion main menu, select the New appointment from WI submenu or, using the TeamCompanion Toolbar, click the New appointment from WI button, which is enabled only if one Work Item is selected. Otherwise the button will be disabled.
New appointment from Work Item can also be created by clicking the right mouse button on the specific Work Item and selecting the New appointment option.
The appointment dialog box opens, with some appointment fields mapped to certain Work Item fields, which is configured in the Options feature, as described above.
Search
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TeamCompanion allows for the use of the standard Outlook Instant search feature for searching all Work Items that have been retrieved locally. In the Search input field, enter the term(s) you wish to search for and the list of all Work Items that match the search is displayed.
The example shows search results that display all Work Items containing the term "untitled" - as entered in the Search input field. As shown, the search feature scans not only text fields in the Work Items, but also the names of the attachments as well.
Server Input Field
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The TeamCompanion Toolbar includes a Server input field which enables switching between multiple servers already connected to. The Server input field defines the default server.
Project Input Field
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The TeamCompanion Toolbar includes a Project input field which enables switching between multiple projects already connected to. The Project input field defines the default project.
Go to Work Item Input Field
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The TeamCompanion Toolbar includes a Go to Work Item input field which enables immediate opening of the Work Item needed. To do that, just enter the Work Item ID and press enter. The specific Work Item opens.
Work Item List Grouping and Filtering
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The TeamCompanion allows for the use of the standard Outlook capabilities for grouping and filtering Work Item lists.
Open one Work Item list and click the right mouse button on the specific column to be grouped by and select Group By This Field option.
The example shows all active bugs grouped by priority and then by the Assigned to column.
Cancel Synchronization
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When refreshing one query folder in the Mail Folders list or when opening it for the first time, the TeamCompanion fetches Work items from the server. Synchronization can be cancelled by clicking the right mouse button on the specific query folder and selecting the Cancel synchronization option.
TeamCompanion performs this action in the background. Once synchronization has been cancelled, the data loaded before canceling will be available so that the user can continue working. The Refresh option can be selected any time after canceling synchronization and the rest of data loaded.
Send to OneNote action
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Another Outlook feature, TeamCompanion can take advantage of, is Send to OneNote action. This feature is accessible by clicking the right mouse button on every Work Item query.
Bulk Reassign To
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This feature is used to reassign selected Work Item(s) to other members of the project. Select the Work Items you would like to reassign and choose the team member from the list.
Improved New Appointment from WI logic
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When working in online mode and creating new appointment from a Work Item, in the Scheduling tab, attendee list ‘All Attendees’ will be automaticly filled with the names of all team members who have already worked on and changed this Work Item. This information is read from the Work item’s history.
When working in the offline mode and creating new appointment from a Work Item, in the Scheduling tab, the attendee list will be empty, since the history information isn’t available in the offline working mode and the system cannot connect this Work Item with the specific project members.
Desktop search integration - full text search for Work Items
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You can use this feature by clicking the Windows button on the Windows toolbar and entering the required term in the Start search input filed or by clicking the Search button on the Start menu and entering the required term in the Search input field in the Search dialog box.
Prerequisite to use this feature is to have Windows Vista or Windows XP with desktop search installed and either Microsoft Outlook 2003 or 2007 version.
If you use Microsoft Outlook 2007 version, whether it is running or not, after clicking on a link in the search result list, the Work Item containing required term will be opened, in usual standard Work Item edit form. If Outlook was not running previously, the application will be started, minimized and the Work item form will be displayed.
If you use Microsoft Outlook 2003 version, and it is running, after clicking on a link in the search result list, the Work Item containing required term will be opened, in usual standard Work Item edit form. If the Outlook was not running, it will be started, minimized and the Work item form will be displayed as if you selected the Send by Mail option.
Work Item query management support
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This feature enables you to create, edit, rename or delete Team System queries using the TeamCompanion user interface. To manage Work Item Queries select one query folder and select the Add query or Edit query option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Configuring "Group by" columns is now a part of the work item query editor. This setting doesn’t change the query itself of course. It rather defines the way the query result will be displayed in Outlook.
Editing areas and iterations support
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Using this feature you can create, edit, rename or delete Team System areas and iterations. To edit areas and iterations, simply select one query folder and click the Areas and Iterations button on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Scheduling Work Item queries
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Scheduling Work Item queries allows you to control the Work Item queries recurrence pattern and to stay up to date with all the changes made by the other team members. To schedule Work Item query select one query and select the Schedule option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Subscription to TFS alert notifications support
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Receiving regular notifications from the Team Foundation Server enables you to stay informed about all the actions and changes taken in the project(s). With this feature you can define project(s) and taken actions you want to be alerted about and to specify on which e-mail addresses the above defined alerts will be sent to. To receive TFS alert notifications select one or more Work Items or queries and click the Alert Subscriptions button.
Integration with Excel and Project
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TeamCompanion integrates with Microsoft Excel and Project which allows you to export Work Items or entire Work Item queries to Excel or Project. To do that, use the Open Selection in Microsoft Excel/Project option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Outlook Tasks support
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This feature allows you to create new task from a specific Work Item by selecting one Work Item and activating the New Task from Work Item option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Besides that you can even create new Work Item from a specific task by selecting one Task and activating the New Work Item option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
All options regarding Outlook Task support can be edited in the TeamCompanion Options dialog.
Ad-hoc queries including all standard services
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Using this feature you can define filter criteria to easily and quickly search and find wanted Work Items. Besides that, all the basic operations on Work Items are also available through this query editor. Select the server node and Search Work Items button on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu and define the filter criteria.
Add related Work Item action support
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This feature allows you to add a Work Item of specific type related to Work Item already selected. To do that, use the Add Related Work Item option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu. Created Work Item will have appropriate fields copied from the original Work Item and a link between those two Work Items will be created.
Additional simplified toolbar
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The new toolbar style provides better organization of functionalities by grouping them into submenus. For example, each time a Work Item is selected, the Work Item(s) submenu is activated, enabling specific Work Item functionalities.
Support for Reminders, To-Do Bar view integration
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TeamCompanion provides support for reminders enabling you better organization of your work and time. You can set reminder for one or more Work Items which will be visible in To-Do Bar list, together with other Outlook Tasks.
Bulk state change
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This feature enables you to change state of one or more Work Items at the same time.
Create Work Item from RSS feed entry, Attach RSS feed to Work Item
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This feature allows you to create new Work Item from a specific RSS post by selecting one RSS post and activating the New Work Item from RSS post option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Besides that you can attach one or more RSS post to a specific Work Item by selecting one or more RSS posts and activating the Attach RSS post to Work Item option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
All the options regarding RSS feeds support can be edited in the TeamCompanion Options dialog.
"Send Query Results by Mail" action on Work Item queries
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You can send all Work Items in a Query at the same time by selecting the Query and activating Send Query Results by Mail option on the TeamCompanion toolbar or menu.
Reports (including multiple saved parameter sets for each report)
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Reports are yet another feature introduced in the TeamCompanion v2.1. It integrates standard Team System reports with Outlook, thus making it not only easy to track and analyze the status of the project but also to send that further. In addition to that, support for reports in TeamCompanion simplifies the way you work with the same report used with different parameters by saving multiple parameter sets and making them available with just one click.
First of all there is a new Reports folder in the tree beneath the project folder containing all reports. If you open a report it will be shown embedded in the Outlook UI:
The report itself looks just the way you would expect it, but there’s a new toolbar at the top of the window. It lets you send the contents of the report as a mail, create an appointment or an Outlook task with the report contents attached. In the popup menus for each of these options in the toolbar the default action, executed if you just click on the toolbar button, is displayed bolded (it can be configured in the Options dialog).
One of the most annoying things regarding reports is the necessity to enter the same report parameters each time you use the report: current iteration, area for the part of the project you are interested in, start and end dates and different other parameters over and over again. TeamCompanion with saved parameter sets comes to rescue: just click the Save as button in the reports toolbar and create a new parameter set. A new entry appears in the tree beneath the original report node and with just one click you can open the report with already populated parameters. And you can preset multiple different versions of the report with different parameter configurations (e.g. one for the current iteration, one for the previous iteration etc.).
And to make your preconfigured reports even more accessible, put them in the favorite folders. This way wherever you are in Outlook, with just one mouse click you will be able to open your favorite reports with parameters already set and start to analyze your project status straight away.
"Query by example" Work Item Query editor (including full-text search support)
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TeamCompanion features the standard grid based work item query editor since the version 2.0. This editor is powerful, very flexible and supports lots of options, which makes it overly complex for most standard everyday queries. Although there are only a handful of work item fields usually used in the queries, user needs to pick them from a long list of fields each time over and over again. From the names in the list it is not always even clear which is the right field for specific criteria. These are only some of the issues with the standard query editor that led us to the idea to make better querying experience possible.
In order to enable easy and efficient work item query editing and work item search in general we have decided to implement a new kind of work item query editor in TeamCompanion v 2.1 - Query by Example (usually referred to just as QBE). In the QBE, the standard fields are already predefined and user only needs to fill in the values. Defining search criteria this way is easier, faster, and more straightforward – most of the queries can be defined with just few clicks.
In QBE, fields are grouped in 5 different groups and presented in as many tabbed dialogs:
1. General (for general query filter fields like Project name, State, Work Item Type, Area and Iteration path, Id etc.),
2. State transitions (for the fields related to the work item state transitions like Created on, Created by, Resolved on etc.),
3. Text (for full text search over different text fields),
4. Historical Queries (for the ASOF wiql operator)
5. Additional criteria (for the fields that are not provided in previous dialogs; in the picture below we have arbitrarily added two fields: Discipline and Triage).
So, how would you define an ordinary Query like "give me all active bugs and tasks assigned to me in the current project"? Actually, all you would need are exactly six mouse clicks. Check the checkboxes for the work item types Bug and Task and select @Me from the list in the "Assigned to" control and Active from the “Status” control. It can’t be simpler than that.
We could add some additional criteria from the State transitions tab (e.g. search for work items that "I have created in the last 30 days"). Another four clicks.
We can even have full text search criteria included in the query.
Just switch tabs from “Query by Example” to "Query Editor" and the same query we have just defined in QBE is available in the standard grid based editor and can be further refined there. We can change any of the criteria just defined in QBE or add some completely new criteria. In QBE there is a constrained set of fields available. In the grid there are no restrictions: you can choose any field you like and as long as you choose AND operator while adding new fields, you will be allowed to switch back to QBE and continue editing the query there.
If QBE were just a elegant way to define queries using hardcoded set of fields, it would clearly be of limited use. But if you add custom fields to the query in the Query Editor and switch back to QBE, these fields will be available there too. That is what Additional criteria tab is used for. If there are additional fields in the work item query, that are not provided by default in any other tab, as long as the query structure is such that the QBE can present it, the fields will be available in the Additional criteria tab.
This way with QBE and grid based Query Editor you get the best of both worlds: efficiency and ease of use of QBE and flexibility of Query Editor.
Following are some best practices regarding QBE that will further improve your usage experience with QBE.
If you want to remove a clause regarding some field on the General tab that comes together with the combo for the operator (like State, ID or Priority etc.), instead of removing the value first and then the operator, clear the operator directly by choosing empty string from the combo – it will empty the value as well.
In the QBE’s State transitions tab, by default After/On (meaning greater than or equal) or Before/On operators are used. In order not to clutter the UI too much, these operators are read only and cannot be changed here. But, if you switch to the grid based Query Editor and replace '>=' with '>' or '=' or replace '<=' with '<' or '=' we will honor it. Switch back to QBE and the operator will be changed appropriately.
There is one basic criterion a query needs to satisfy to be editable in QBE: each filter clause (at the root level) has to be connected using AND operator. Additionally there are some operators QBE doesn’t support. Usually you really don’t need to worry about it – if the query isn’t supported by (editable in) QBE, QBE tab will instantly be disabled. That is not needed all too often though; QBE supports all queries from both standard Microsoft process templates and from Conchango’s Scrum template.
One closing note: after you define the search filter in QBE and/or in the grid based Query Editor, you should go to the third tab and configure the column options for the query: columns displayed, sorting order and grouping. The first two are standard part of any work item query. The third one, grouping, is supported because in TeamCompanion we are leveraging Outlook grouping features.
Summary
Query by Example (QBE) is a simplified Work Item Query editor that makes it easier to define usual everyday Work Item Queries. Queries are defined by entering values in already available placeholders for specific most frequently used Work Item Fields (like State, Priority, Iteration or Area Path etc.). QBE also supports full text search in any text or html work item field. There is full two way synchronization between QBE and standard grid based Query Editor so that you can edit search criteria in any of these two editors and freely switch between them.
Open related object (work item, changeset or build) action for notification mails
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Whenever you receive a notification mail from the TFS that refers to some TFS object this feature called "Open related object" will let you open that object with just one click. It is similar to the ability to configure the work item links in the notification mails introduced with the TFS 2008 SP1 that lets you open work items in the Team System Web Access. But, since we are in a desktop application – Outlook, it would be a shame to have to use web UI. We should be able to open the work item in a nice familiar desktop dialog. That is what “Open related object” is all about. In addition to work items it supports opening changesets and build reports too!
After just one click on the "Open Work Item" button the work item edit form appears:
It works the same way for changesets:
and for the builds:
The same action is available from the context menu too:
Attaching mails to work items using drag-n-drop
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In case you want to attach mails to work items you can drag a mail to the work item’s attachment tab and drop it there. TeamCompanion will take care of the rest. You can also attach files with drag-n-drop or paste pictures easily too.
