APEX OTN Updates - 3.1 Presentation, and lots more

We spend a lot of effort updating and maintaining the Oracle APEX OTN Pages.

I strongly urge everyone to visit the site regularly to check out the latest content.

Presentations - I have finally loaded up the Oracle Application Express 3.1 Overview Presentation. I know many people have been clamouring to get this completely revamped presentation. This is the same presentation I use when giving Oracle APEX talks and includes a number of excellent slides to help you position, demonstrate, and explain Oracle APEX.

Special thanks to Marc Sewtz for the wealth of incredible images that really help get the message out.

It comes in two parts as it is now 8.5 Mb, so just download the two parts and put humpty-dumpty back together again.

Events are regularly being added to the home page {Right-hand side bar} complete with a dedicated Event Details page. Interested in attending Kaleidoscope 2008 in New Orleans for example, the Event Details list all 18 Oracle APEX sessions. There are also a large number of Oracle APEX training courses offered by Partners which are listed.

Community & Partners is continually growing with new content.
Did you know today there are 46 Consulting Companies and 7 Hosting Companies listed.
There are also 38 Blogs listed.

Want to keep up to date with all the Oracle APEX Blogs then download this OPML file and import into your favorite feed reader, such as Google Reader. Alternatively you can simply bookmark the APEX BLOG Aggregator from APEX Evangelists which also includes some very useful search capabilities, etc.

The Commercial Applications have recently seen an explosion and now lists 21 separate applications. Recent notable inclusions include:

• Paetec Software Corp. have developed a Communications Management Suite which is an enterprise solution which can either be leased, hosted or managed. This thing is huge with 10 discrete solutions built on approximately 900 tables and featuring over 800 applications.
  
• INSUM offers Association Management as a SaaS. These guys haven't built huge numbers of applications, instead they re-use the same applications for each customer with personalized content. The applications are fully translated for French and English so all in all this is a masterful example of re-use and showing how SaaS can be implemented using Oracle APEX to provide individual content for each customer.
• Neoface have developed some sophisticated CRM applications. Currently only available in Portugese but reportedly being translated - looking for big things from them once they are available in other languages.
• Systems Automation provide an enterprise document management system. These guys provide content management incorporated with multiple security measures to ensure your intellectual property is properly maintained and secured.
• Centroid developed an application that allows ERP users in the finance and credit department to have a 360° view of their customers. These guys have extensive Oracle Applications experience and so built a commercial solution for bolting onto the side of your eBusiness suite.

The impressive number of consulting companies and diverse commercial applications really help to demonstrate the popularity of Oracle Application Express and how this tool is far more than just a desktop database replacement.

If you want to be added to any of the Community & Partners pages please send an email to oracle-application-express_ww@oracle.com.

Oracle By Examples (OBEs) are a great, easy-to-follow way to learn about Oracle APEX. Not so long ago we only had one listed - if you go to that page now you will see there are now nine. Marcie Young has done a great job putting these together on many different topics such as Interactive Reports, BLOBs, PDF Printing, Emailing, etc.

Packaged Applications are developed primarily by our development team and provide a number of excellent point solutions that you can easily install, use as-is, customize, or just learn from.
We are currently reworking the majority of our applications to include 3.1 features and hope to have them available soon. There are also a few new ones in the pipeline! So keep your eye out for all of these.


Oracle Application Express' huge success is largely attributable to the support from you the Community so we see these pages as a small way we can help give back.

If you need consulting, hosting, a commercial solution, want to attend training, get some new ideas ... please have a browse through our OTN pages.

Cheers,
David

Calling all those in Quebec and Montreal

I will be traveling to Canada next week for the Quebec APEX User Group Official Launch. It is my first time in Quebec and am really looking forward to meeting up with the APEX community in the area.

The launch starts off in Quebec on Wednesday May 14 and then Montreal Thursday May 15.

This event has been organized by Francis Mignault from Insum and the local Oracle team.

So if you are in the area please join us and support the local APEX community.

This is certainly not my first time to Canada - I used to live in Michigan (very close to Detroit) and went into Windsor, Ontario almost every week in the summer to play golf. My sister also lived in Toronto for a while so I know the boring 401 and slightly less boring 403 highways very well.

Given where I lived, I am a huge fan of the Detroit Red Wings, arguably the best team in the NHL {Happy to argue with you over this} so will be eagerly watching them destroy the Dallas Stars while I am there :) .

Regards,
David