- You can get a little creative with LotusScript or Java and create Notes Document Link (NDL) files and send them as attachments to external users. As long as those users have the Lotus Notes client installed and the .NDL file extension is properly associated with Lotus Notes, launching the .NDL file will launch Notes and automatically open the document.
- You may also be able to send external users a URL link built with the Notes protocol. The Notes protocol provides a way to create a URL that launches a Notes database, view, document, etc. It has this format:
notes://server/db/viewUNID/docUNID
You can get this information manually for a document (in R5+) by selecting a document in a view, opening up the document properties infobox and choosing the <+> tab. At the bottom of the infobox, you will see the full Notes protocol URL to open that document. You can also use LotusScript to programmatically build the URL with the information above.
Caveats: The Notes protocol works in R5+, but prior to version 5.0.9, installations of Lotus Notes did not automatically set the proper registry setting for the Notes protocol to work.
For more details (and caveats) on these techniques, please refer to the following Lotus Advisor articles:
Send Notes Links Outside of Domino
Make Notes Links Work for You
Integrate Notes Client Data into Your Portal
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This was first published in November 2004