As you make it back into your offices after the year end holiday, we've provided one more package for you to open up. We've taken all the new functionality that we've been discussing with Oracle WebCenter and bundled it together in the Oracle JDeveloper 11g Technology Preview 3. There's a complete listing of services and capabilities here.
All you need to get started with the technical preview is Oracle JDeveloper, which includes the WebCenter Framework and Web 2.0 services such as Tagging, Links, Composer, Portlets, Search, and Document Library. Some services (Tagging and Links, for example) also require an Oracle database. You can begin by following the steps in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Tutorial for WebCenter Developers. Download the tutorial sample files here.
There's three key areas with this Tech Preview that we believe you'll find unmatched in the industry. They are:
Oracle WebCenter Framework breaks down the boundaries between Web-based portals and enterprise applications. In essence, the WebCenter Framework integrates capabilities historically included in portal products directly into the fabric of the JSF environment, specifically, the ability to bind portlets and customize the application at runtime. A complete, standards-based portlet development environment and business user tools support rapid creation of JSR 168-based portlets and deployment of WSRP 2.0-based portlet producers. Content is easily integrated and published using data contronls built to the JCR/JSR 170 standard. JCR adapaters provided for Oracle Content Database, Oracle Portal, and the file system, and optionally available for Documentum, Sharepoint, and Lotus. In addition, all of the framework pieces are integrated into Oracle JDeveloper and implemented as an extension, providing unified access to the components as the application is being built.
With Oracle Composer, information workers can easily create, share, and personalize pages in the running application. Several page templates are provided out of the box to make the creation process easy and quick. After creation, users can easily modify the pages by rearranging components through drag and drop and by editing components in place as indicated by visual clues. The layered customization model for Oracle Composer separates metadata from code. This means that a company can build a single foundational application that individuals, departments, and organizations throughout the company can customize without changing the core application. Subsequently, the core application can be patched and upgraded without any loss of customizations.
Oracle WebCenter Services provides a set of Web 2.0 services that are delivered as resuable, out-of-the-box components. Recognizing the requirements for users in an organization to collaborate, communicate, and share information online, Oracle has extended the number and range of services in WebCenter Release 11 to provide a complete set of leading services that are engineered to work together within a custom application. The level of integration is unique and compelling and allows the services to be accessible in the context of the task or business flow. These reusable components are available during development (JDeveloper) and at runtime (Composer) to create and extend your application. The services available in Tech Preview 3 include: Document Library (file system only), Tagging, Links, Search (withing WebCenter only), and Portlets. The following WebCenter Services are not available in Tech Preview 3, but will be included in Release 11: Forums, Wiki, Announcements, Presence, Tasks, and Worklists.
So welcome back from the holidays and let us know what you think about this exciting new version. We'll post more information here and on the discussion boards to help developers get the most out of the Tech Preview 3 at this location.
