SharePoint 2010 - Terms Introduction

In this article I would like to introduce you to Terms, more exactly Metadata Terms.

What is a Term?

A Term is a keyword that can be associated with content in SharePoint. Associating content along with Terms improves Taxonomy, Accuracy and Searches.



Terms can be hierarchical and stored inside groups called Term Sets. Terms are usually created and managed by an authorized person, thus increasing the quality and accuracy.

For simplicity, you can see terms as tags that can be associated with contents.



A screen shot of Terms is given below:



Why do we need Terms?

Content stored inside SharePoint needs to be classified for better search and retrieval. SharePoint Taxonomy involves classification of contents into separate buckets. Terms help us in Taxonomy. Plus, Terms can be indexed and thus yield faster search results.

In addition to content types, Terms provide a global reusability for content classification.

How to create and manage Terms

We can use the Term Store Management Tool for creating and managing terms. The tool is accessible from "Site Actions" > "Site Settings"  then the "Term Store Management" link.

How to manage Term Permissions

We can assign Term Owners who will have full control of the Term.

The Term Store

References

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ee559337(v=office.14).aspx 

Summary

In this article we have explored Terms. To summarize:

1. Terms are used for Taxonomy
2. Terms improves Accuracy
3. Terms improves Search
4. Term Store Management Tool is used for managing Terms

In the next article we will see how to create and use terms inside SharePoint 2010.