You have finished preparing a molecular model and want a collaborator to inspect it, continue working, or use it as a starting point. Then comes a deceptively important question: what will they be able to access? A document that is too restricted can interrupt a handoff; one shared more broadly than intended may expose work to people who were not part of the plan.
SAMSON Connect lets you publish documents from SAMSON and choose their visibility. The useful part is not just knowing where the Publish button is—it is understanding what each visibility option means before you share the link.
Choose visibility by the audience
- Public: everyone can use the document, but editing requires access rights. Choose this when broad use is appropriate and editing should remain permission-controlled.
- Hidden: anyone with the link can use the document, while editing requires access rights. This is suited to sharing with people who have the link, rather than making the document publicly discoverable.
- Restricted: using or editing the document requires access rights. Choose this when access itself should be limited.
These options distinguish between being able to use a document and being able to edit it. Before publishing, ask two separate questions: who should be able to use this model, and who should be able to edit it? That small pause can prevent a common collaboration snag: sending a link that does not match what the recipient is expected to do.
Publish from SAMSON
In SAMSON, select Home > Publish to open the publishing workflow.
In the dialog, enter a document name and description, then choose the visibility that fits the intended audience. A clear name and description help collaborators identify the right file, especially when several versions or related models are being shared. Once the details are set, click Publish document. SAMSON Connect shares the document and provides its link in the same window.
Keep the link and the visibility choice in mind together: the link is how a collaborator reaches the document, while the visibility setting determines the access conditions. If your sharing needs change, you can access and manage shared documents—and documents shared with you—from your SAMSON Connect account. The documentation also points to the collaboration guide for managing shared-document access rights.
When someone sends you a document
Shared documents can be downloaded in SAMSON using Home > Download. This gives the recipient a route from a shared document on SAMSON Connect into their SAMSON workflow.
For a smoother handoff, include a short note with the link: identify the document, say what you want the recipient to do with it, and clarify whether they should use it or edit it. This does not change access rights, but it makes the purpose of the share easier to understand.
For the exact steps and screenshots, see the SAMSON documentation on sharing documents.
Note: SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. Get SAMSON.