Changes in sub-projects

[3326ubb]

Working with MSP2002 Pro w/o project server.
Monitoring all activities thr' Master project with sub-projects
inserted. Periodic updation being done in sub-projects & scheduling in
Master. Some-times planner also changes the resource units or introduce
start or finish constraint.

We want changes in sub-projects to be highlighted in Master project for
scheduler to know what changes are made by individual sub-project
owners.
Can anybody suggest a way?

The idea is, the scheduler who controls & monitors all activities
across projects, will take note of the changes & plan in a better
manner. In absence of this information, whenever he opens Master
project file on alternate day, he is just not able to comprehend
changes.

 

[John]

Working with MSP2002 Pro w/o project server.
Monitoring all activities thr' Master project with sub-projects
inserted. Periodic updation being done in sub-projects & scheduling in
Master. Some-times planner also changes the resource units or introduce
start or finish constraint.

We want changes in sub-projects to be highlighted in Master project for
scheduler to know what changes are made by individual sub-project
owners.
Can anybody suggest a way?

The idea is, the scheduler who controls & monitors all activities
across projects, will take note of the changes & plan in a better
manner. In absence of this information, whenever he opens Master
project file on alternate day, he is just not able to comprehend
changes.

3326ubb,
Sure, I've got one way - there may be others. First build a static
master. To do that simply uncheck the "link to project" option in the
lower right of the Insert Project window. Save that static master as
version 1. The next time the planners update their schedules, create
another static master - version 2. Then use the Compare Project Versions
utility to compare version 1 and 2. It will show the changes.

Just remember that a static master is a snapshot in time. Once created,
it has no relationship to the subprojects, other than it was crated from
them at a point in time.

John
Project MVP

 

[3326ubb]

Thank you very much John for the inputs. But questions here!

The 'link to project' option is available only when you are inserting a
project. To create a version, how to dislink already inserted projects?
Secondly, where is the functionality of comparing version available? I
could not find the same in MSP02 Pro.

Your advise is highly appreciated.

 

[JulieS]

Hi 332ubb,

Pardon me for jumping in. To answer your first question:
Double click on the Inserted Project Task (it will display with an icon in
the indicator column) On the advanced tab, uncheck the "Link to project"
checkbox..

The Compare project versions utility is on the Compare Project Versions
toolbar. It is an add-in and may not have been installed initially.

I hope this helps. Let us know how you get along.

Julie

 

[John]

Thank you very much John for the inputs. But questions here!

The 'link to project' option is available only when you are inserting a
project. To create a version, how to dislink already inserted projects?
Secondly, where is the functionality of comparing version available? I
could not find the same in MSP02 Pro.

Your advise is highly appreciated.

3326ubb,
You're welcome. It looks like Julie closed the loop. If you have further
questions, let us know.

John
Project MVP

 

[3326ubb]

Thanks John/JulieS,
It is really wonderful to interact with you experts.
Project Version comparison was somehow not available to me.
As John pointed out, I solved my problem with a different but simple
approach. Here it is for everybody's information.

I made a simple macro which populated Start1/Finish1 dates with
start/finish dates when the subproject opens.
Then I created a simple number fields (Number1 & Number2, customised)
in sub-projects, in which the formula creates a value if the start date
changes because of the changes made by planner. Simple date difference
calculation.

When the master projects with inserted projects is opened, user has to
run a macro (again a very simple macro, which turns date fields into
red bold font if number1 or number2 field value is unequal to zero) to
see changes. If any changes are there, the date value of those
activities become red bold.

This solves my problem, but with small error. If planner opens his
project again during the same day before master scheduler has seen the
changes, the changes get erased. Wish me luck to find some solution.

 

[John]

Thanks John/JulieS,
It is really wonderful to interact with you experts.
Project Version comparison was somehow not available to me.
As John pointed out, I solved my problem with a different but simple
approach. Here it is for everybody's information.

I made a simple macro which populated Start1/Finish1 dates with
start/finish dates when the subproject opens.
Then I created a simple number fields (Number1 & Number2, customised)
in sub-projects, in which the formula creates a value if the start date
changes because of the changes made by planner. Simple date difference
calculation.

When the master projects with inserted projects is opened, user has to
run a macro (again a very simple macro, which turns date fields into
red bold font if number1 or number2 field value is unequal to zero) to
see changes. If any changes are there, the date value of those
activities become red bold.

This solves my problem, but with small error. If planner opens his
project again during the same day before master scheduler has seen the
changes, the changes get erased. Wish me luck to find some solution.

3326ubb,
You're welcome. I'm glad you were able to be creative and come up with a
novel solution. But I don't quite understand your remaining problem.
Maybe all you need to do is to set up the macros to run when the
subproject file is closed (i.e. Close Event). That way any changes made
by the planner will populate the Start1, Finish1 and number fields with
the most current information.

John