Contextual folders and cabinets are repository containers with optional rich-text descriptions and built-in discussions.

Rich-text descriptions display at the top of a contextual folder, like a room’s welcome message. They can provide, for example, document summaries, instructions for using project materials, or pointers to other locations. Because they can include formatted text, pictures, and hyperlinks, folder descriptions can be informative, personalized, and appealing so they are an immediate draw for users’ attention.

Discussions embedded on a contextual folder page encourage team members to focus communication towards the nexus of their work (such as for document reviews) instead of using email, for example, for project correspondence. Organized in a “tree” of comments, these discussions help to collect and preserve the work-related flow of information.

In some form or another, all project teams converse about a variety of topics, such as case issues, scheduling decisions, development plans, product ideas, and customer feedback. Discussions in contextual folders let teams save and have ready access to such ad hoc but historically valuable exchanges.

A folder’s description is part of its metadata, just like a property field.