Meridian Terminology

Meridian Terminology

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Convenience Copy -- Refers to any copy made of a Master Record for reference or for the convenience of multiple users.  When an electronic image (copy) is created from a hard copy or paper original, it is acceptable to declare the electronic image to be the Master Record and that will render all other copies, including the orignal hard copy, to be Convenience Copies.  Convenience Copies may be disposed when the University Operations retention period has been met (typically FE+2 except when this is greater than the official UT Records Retention for the document).  No authorization from Records Management is required for Convenience Copy disposal.

 

Document Manager (Process Role)  -- Provides administrative support for the document management system from a business process or records management perspective.  Responsible for establishing and managing controls that comply with UT Records Retention policies.  May also be referred to as the Vault Administrator.

 

Documents -- Documents in a Meridian Enterprise vault are like files in a file system. They are located in folders where you can copy, rename, move, and delete them. However, vault documents differ from files in a file system in some important ways:

• Each document is assigned a document type that is different from its file type. The document type determines what additional intelligence (metadata properties, workflow, and so on) is given to the document by Meridian.
• Revision history is maintained so that you can retrieve, view, and compare different revisions.
• Document names and locations may be controlled by the vault configuration. This means that when you create a new document, Meridian Enterprise can automatically name it and store it in the correct folder.
• Documents can be linked together to represent various relationships that may exist between them, such as subassemblies to parts, drawings to specifications, floor plans to elevation drawings, and so on.

The fundamental difference between vault documents and ordinary files is that Meridian Enterprise distinguishes between a document and its contents. A document’s contents may be regarded as the file to which you are accustomed. Meridian Enterprise considers a document to be the file and its container (metadata). In Meridian, a document can exist without contents (for example, to represent a hardcopy-only document), but contents cannot exist without a container. The contents of a document can be replaced. It is these containers and how to work with them that are described in the following topics.

Document Properties --Meridian stores and displays data about each document called metadata. The metadata is stored in properties, which can be considered database fields. Meridian uses properties in a manner similar to the way Windows keeps track of a file’s name, size, date created, and date modified. The properties in Meridian are used to track and manage the documents and may include such properties as Revision Number, Project Number, Status, Title, and many more. The document type of a document determines which properties are associated with the document.

You will encounter three kinds of properties when working in Meridian:

• Read-only: You cannot change the values of these properties. Examples are Creation Time and Size.
• Restricted: You can only select a value from a list of standard values.
• Unrestricted: You may enter a value you want.
  

Meridian displays properties on property pages. Each property page contains properties that are related to one another in some way. The document type of a document determines which property pages are associated with the document. Every vault document displays at least a Document property page that contains basic metadata such as workflow Status, To-Do, Location, Type, and so on. Property pages appear for existing documents and may also appear when you create new documents so that you can enter any known information. That information may be used to automatically name the document and store it in the correct folder.

To edit the properties of a document:

1. Select the document whose properties you want to edit.
2. Display the property page that contains the properties that you want to edit.
3. Click the Edit button.
4. Edit the desired properties and click OK.
   

Note Your ability to edit properties is determined by the document’s current workflow status, your security privileges, and the vault configuration. In most cases, you will only be able to edit properties while a document is under change by you.

Entity -- The term used in the classification system to represent the group, office or unit to which the document or record applies. The entity list includes the service units within the University Operations portfolio, UT Austin and UT System offices as well as local, state and federal governments.

Explorer View --The Explorer view is special among all of the Navigation views. It displays the documents and folders as they are actually organized in the vault, similar to Windows Explorer. When you create new documents and move existing documents, you do so relative to the Explorer folder view structure regardless of the current view or work area.

The other Navigation views represent logical folder structures based on other document property values. That is, the documents don’t actually reside in the folders shown in non-Explorer views; the folders are simply groupings of documents with the same property values. The Explorer view also works like Windows Explorer. The same actions you can take in Windows Explorer, like cut, copy, paste and drag and drop, also work in the Explorer view.

Note Meridian security roles are applied at the folder level in the Explorer view. Thus, your ability to perform certain actions may be different in some folders as opposed to others.

Mail Receiver / Mail Logger -- A process role that can be performed by anyone within the office receiving and importing the mail into the Meridian University Operations vault.

Master Record -- The documentation or recording of a transaction or interaction that we are required to retain.  A Master Record may also be referred to as the original or copy of record.

Metadata -- Most simply, data about data.  With regards to the Meridian document management system, this is the descriptive data captured in the document properties.
 

Name (Document Name) -- In the University Operations vault, name is a document property that the system provides based on the classification path, the document title, the document log number and the file type extension. For example, a name would look something like, "ADM-01.08.01_Sample Document_0000300.pdf". If a document is reclassified or renamed after import, the name will be changed too. In the context of the University Operations vault, Name does not refer to a person's name; for this information, refer to the People properties.

Navigation Views -- Navigation views are different ways of viewing a vault for different purposes. Each view displays documents organized in a hierarchical structure according to a predefined set of properties. All Navigation views display only the latest, released revision of documents. Navigation views help you to find documents based on whatever information you know about the documents you want to find. Finding documents with Navigation views is often quicker and easier than finding documents by searching.

For example, all vaults have the following five views available by default:

• Explorer
• All To-Do Lists
• Document Type - File Type
• My To-Do List
• Status – Person

If you need to find a document but only know who is currently working on it, you can probably find it with the All To-Do Lists view or the Status – Person view. If you only know what document type or file type the document is, then you can probably find it with the Document Type – File Type view. A system administrator may create additional views based on your organization’s unique needs and vault configuration.

The folder structure displayed by Navigation views is similar to that shown by Windows Explorer. However, Navigation views combine the folders that are shown in the left pane of Windows Explorer with the column data that is only shown in the right pane of Windows Explorer into a single view that displays both folders and columns in the same pane. Furthermore, file commands that appear on the Windows Explorer shortcut menu also appear on the Meridian Enterprise Document shortcut menu.

Procedure -- The specific course of action required to achieve a process step. Procedures contribute to processes and it may be helpful to think of a Procedure as how a process step will be done. Typically, documented Procedures are depicted in a list or a table and contain very specific instructions about how to do something.

Process (Business Process) -- At a high level, a Process is what will be done. A Process, through a series of steps or activities, produces a desired output from given inputs. Typically a process is represented by a diagram or a flowchart and the steps may be described in a narrative.

Recipient (Process Role)  -- As a process role, the Recipient is the person to whom the incoming mail or record is addressed or the person providing administrative support to the addressee. Recipient's will have an inbox in the University Operations vault and will be responsible for managing the record as well as taking action on the record content.

Title (Document Title) -- In the University Operations vault, title is a document property that the user provides in the Wizard when the document is imported. The title property field is limited to 30 characters. Title may correspond to the original file name or record name (prior to import). The title is a component of the document Name. The title is listed in the General Information section of the Wizard or document properties and can be changed via the Edit Properties function which results in renaming the document.

Transitory Records -- Transitory records are records of temporary usefulness which can be in any medium (e.g. voicemail, email, hard copy, fax, etc.) are routine messages, internal meeting notices, routing slips, incoming letters or memoranda of transmittal that add nothing of substance to enclosures. Transitory information includes routine information that is used for communication, but not for the documentation, of a specific university transaction.  Transitory information should be disposed as soon as it has served its purpose; no authorization from Records Management is required for disposal.

UT Records Retention Schedule (UTRRS) -- UT document certified by the Texas State Library and Archives that is used to determine whether an official state record has met retention and archival review requirements. The UTRRS (produced and managed by the Office of Accounting Records Management) is available here.

Vault -- A vault is a combination of a Meridian database and a document store. It contains all of the documents you place in the vault, the data about those documents, all revisions of those documents made in the vault, and redline data for the documents. BlueCielo allows you to use multiple vaults of any size, but BlueCielo TeamWork allows only one vault with more than 500 documents. If some of your documents use references to other documents, such as with CAD files, then those references between documents will automatically be managed by Meridian. This means that you can move files between folders within the Meridian vault (such as from one project to another), and the references will not be lost, because they are managed by Meridian.

Vital Record -- A vital record is necessary to the resumption or continuation of the operations of the university in an emergency or disaster. In the event of a disaster, a vital record may contribute to the reestablishment of the legal or financial status of the university or the protection and fulfillment of obligations to the people of the state. The UTRRS identifies vital record series. Refer to the University Operations Records Retention Schedule for vital record status.