10 How to Build and Deploy an Issue Tracking Application

Storing information in an Oracle database organizes it into tables that group similar information together and removes redundancies. Using the Oracle Application Express development environment, you can quickly build an application that enables a user to view and update information stored in an Oracle Database.

This tutorial describes how to create and deploy an application that tracks the assignment, status, and progress of issues related to a project.

Note:

This tutorial takes approximately four to five hours to complete. It is recommended that you read through the entire document first to become familiar with the material before you attempt specific exercises.

Topics in this section include:

• Planning and Project Analysis

• Designing the Database Objects

• Implementing Database Objects

• Loading Demonstration Data

• Building a Basic User Interface

• Adding Advanced Features

• Deploying Your Application

Planning and Project Analysis

Effective project management is the key to completing any project on time and within budget. Within every project there are always multiple issues that need to be tracked, prioritized, and managed.

In this business scenario, MRVL Company has several projects that must be completed on time for the company to be profitable. Any missed project deadlines will result in lost revenue. The company's project leads use various methods to track issues, including manually recording statuses in notebooks, organizing issues in text documents, and categorizing issues with spreadsheets.

By creating a hosted application in Oracle Application Express, project leads can easily record and track issues in one central location. This approach allows each project lead to access to just the data they need and makes it easier for management to determine if critical issues are being addressed.

Planning and Project Analysis

Before beginning development on an Oracle Application Express application, you first need to define application requirements. Then, you use the defined requirements to design a database and an outline that describes how the user interface accepts and presents data.

For this business scenario, the project leads establish requirements that define the information that must be tracked, security requirements, data management functions, and how to present data to users.

Topics in this section include:

• Gathering the Necessary Data

• Defining Security Requirements

• Selecting Data Management Functions

• Selecting Data Presentation Functions

• Defining Special Function Requirements

Gathering the Necessary Data

Currently, each project lead tracks information slightly differently. Together, everyone agrees that the application should include the following information:

• Summary of the issue

• Detailed description of the issue

• Who identified the issue

• The date the issue was identified

• Which project the issue is related to

• Who the issue is assigned to

• A current status of the issue

• Priority of the issue

• Target resolution date

• Actual resolution date

• Progress report

• Resolution summary

Defining Security Requirements

Because the project leads were concerned about everyone having access to all the information, they agree upon the following access rules:

• Each team member and project lead is only assigned to one project at a time

• Each team member and project lead must be assigned to a project

• Managers are never assigned to a specific project

• Only managers can define and maintain projects and people

• Everyone can enter new issues

• Once assigned, only the person assigned or a project lead can change data about the issue

• Management needs views that summarize the data without access to specific issue details

Selecting Data Management Functions

Next, the project leads determine how information will be entered into the system. For this project, users must be able to:

• Create issues

• Assign issues

• Edit issues

• Create projects

• Maintain projects

• Create people

• Maintain people information

• Maintain project assignments

Selecting Data Presentation Functions

Once the data is entered into the application, users need to view the data. The team decides that users must be able to view the following:

• All issues by project

• Open issues by project

• Overdue issues, by project and for all

• Recently opened issues

• Unassigned issues

• Summary of issues by project, for managers

• Resolved issues by month identified

• Issue resolution dates displayed on a calendar

• Days to Resolve Issues by person

Defining Special Function Requirements

Finally, the project leads determine that the application must support the following special functions:

• Notify people when an issue is assigned to them

• Notify the project lead when any issue becomes overdue

Designing the Database Objects

Once you have defined the database requirements, the next step is to turn these requirements in a database design and an outline that describes how the user interface accepts and presents data. In this step you need to think about how information should be organized in the tables in the underlying database. Given the requirements described "Planning and Project Analysis", for this project you need to create three tables:

• Projects tracks all current projects

• People contains information about who can be assigned to handle issues

• Issues tracks all information about an issue, including the project to which it is related and the person assigned to the issue

In addition to the tables, you also need to create additional database objects, such as sequences and triggers, to support the tables. System generated primary keys will be used for all tables so that all the data can be edited without executing a cascade update.

Topics in this section include:

• About the Projects Table

• About the People Table

• About the Issues Table

About the Projects Table

Each project must include project name, project start date, target date, and actual end date columns. These date columns help determine if any outstanding issues are jeopardizing the project end date. Table 10-1 describes the columns to be included in the Projects table.

Table 10-1 Project Table Details

Column Name	Type	Size	Not Null?	Constraints	Description
project_id	integer	n/a	Yes	Primary key	A unique numeric identification number for each project. Populated by a sequence using a trigger.
project_name	varchar2	100	Yes	Unique key	A unique alphanumeric name for the project.
start_date	date	n/a	Yes	None	The project start date.
target_end_date	date	n/a	Yes	None	The targeted project end date.
actual_end_date	date	n/a	No	None	The actual end date.

About the People Table

Each person will have a defined name and role. Project leads and team members will also have an assigned project. To tie the current user to their role within the organization, email addresses will be used for user names.

Table 10-2 describes the columns that will be included in the People table.

Table 10-2 People Table Details

Column Name	Type	Size	Not Null?	Constraints	Description
person_id	integer	n/a	Yes	Primary key	A numeric ID that identifies each user. Populated by a sequence using a trigger.
person_name	varchar2	100	Yes	Unique key	A unique name that identifies each user.
person_email	varchar2	100	Yes	None	User email address.
person_role	varchar2	7	Yes	Check constraint	The role assigned to each user.

Note:

For the purposes of this exercise, this application has been simplified. User data is usually much more elaborate and is often pulled from a corporate Human Resource system. Also, users typically work on more than one project at a time. If the roles that are assigned to a user need to be dynamic, you would implement roles as a separate table with a foreign key that relates to the people table.

About the Issues Table

When the project leads defined their application requirements, they decided to track separate issues assigned to each person. Issues will be included columns along with additional columns to provide an audit trail. The audit trail will track who created the issue, when it was created, as well as who last modified the issue and on what date that modification was made.

Table 10-3 describes the columns to be included in the Issues table.

Table 10-3 Issue Table Details

Column Name	Type	Size	Not Null?	Constraints	Description
issue_id	integer	n/a	Yes	primary key	A unique numeric ID that identifies an issue. Populated by a sequence using a trigger
issue_summary	varchar2	200	Yes	None	A brief summary of the issue.
issue_description	varchar2	2000	No	None	A detailed description of the issue.
identified_by	integer	n/a	Yes	foreign key to People	The user who identifies the issue.
identified_date	date	n/a	Yes	None	The date the issue was identified
related_project	integer	n/a	Yes	foreign key to Projects	Projects related to the issue.
assigned_to	integer	n/a	No	foreign key to People	The person who owns this issue.
status	varchar2	8	Yes	check constraint	The issue status. Automatically set to Open when new and set to Closed when actual resolution date entered
priority	varchar2	6	No	check constraint	The priority of the issue.
target_resolution_date	date	n/a	No	None	The target resolution date.
progress	varchar2	2000	No	None	The progress of the issue.
actual_resolution_date	date	n/a	No	None	Actual resolution date of the issue.
resolution_summary	varchar2	2000	No	None	Resolution summary.
created_date	date	n/a	Yes	None	Populated by a trigger.
created_by	varchar2	60	Yes	None	User who created this issue.
last_modified_date	date	n/a	No	None	Populated by a trigger.

Note:

A real-world application might need more extensive auditing. For example, you might need to track each change to the data rather than just the last change. Tracking each change to the data would require an additional table, linked to the issues table. If the valid priorities assigned to issues needed to be dynamic, you would need to add a separate table with a foreign key that relates to the issues table.

Implementing Database Objects

This first step in building an application is to create the database objects.

Topics in this section include:

• Build the Database Objects

• View the Created Database Objects

Build the Database Objects

There are several ways to create objects in Oracle Application Express. You can:

• Create an Object in Object Browser. Use Object Browser to create tables, views, indexes, sequences, types, packages, procedures, functions, triggers database links, materialized views, and synonyms. A wizard walks you through the choices necessary to create the selected database object. To create an object in Object Browser, navigate to Object Browser and click Create. See "Managing Database Objects with Object Browser" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide.

• Execute SQL Commands. Run SQL Commands by typing or pasting them into the SQL Commands. To access SQL Commands, click the SQL icon on Database Home Page and then click SQL Commands. See "Using SQL Commands" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide.

• Upload a script. Upload a script to the SQL Script Repository that contains all the necessary create object statements. To upload a script, click SQL on the Database Home Page, click SQL Scripts, and then click Upload. See "Uploading a SQL Script" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide.

• Create script online. Create a script online in the Script Repository. You will use this method to create database objects for this exercise. To create a script online, click the SQL icon on the Database Home Page, select SQL Scripts, and then click Create. See "Creating a SQL Script in the Script Editor" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide.

To build database objects by creating a script:

1. Log in to Oracle Database Express Edition.

2. On the Database Home Page, click the SQL icon.

3. Click SQL Scripts.

4. Click Create.

5. In the Script Editor:

   1. For Script Name, enter DDL for Issue Management Application.

   2. Copy the DDL (data definition language) in "Create Application Database Objects DDL" and paste it into the script.

   3. Click Save.

To run the DDL for Issue Management Application script:

1. On the SQL Scripts page, select the DDL for Issue Management Application icon.

   The Script Editor appears.

2. Click Run.

   A summary page appears.

3. Click Run again.

   The Manage Script Results page displays a message that the script has been submitted for execution.

View the Created Database Objects

You can view database objects using Object Browser.

To view database objects in Object Browser:

1. Return to the Database Home Page by clicking the Home breadcrumb link.

2. On the Database Home Page, click the Object Browser icon.

3. From the Object list on left side of the page, select Tables.

4. To view the details of a specific object, select one of the following tables:

   • HT_ISSUES

   • HT_PEOPLE

   • HT_PROJECTS

See Also:

"Managing Database Objects with Object Browser" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide.

Loading Demonstration Data

Once you have created all the necessary database objects, the next step is to load data into the tables. You can manually load data using the import functionality available in SQL Scripts. In the following exercise, you use SQL Scripts to load demonstration data.

Look at the DDL you copied from "Create Application Database Objects DDL". Notice that the sequences used for the primary keys start at 40 in order to leave room for the demonstration data. Because the BEFORE INSERT triggers are coded so that the sequence is only accessed if a primary key value is not provided, they will not need to be disabled in order for you to load data.

Topics in this section include:

• Load Projects Data

• Load People Data

• Load Issues Data

Load Projects Data

To import data into the Projects table:

1. Return to the Database Home Page by clicking the Home breadcrumb link.

2. On the Database Home Page, click the SQL icon.

3. Click the SQL Scripts icon.

4. Click Create.

5. In the Script Editor:

   1. In Script Name, enter Load Project Data.

   2. In Script, copy and paste the following:

      INSERT INTO ht_projects
            (project_id, project_name, start_date, target_end_date)   VALUES
            (1, 'Internal Infrastructure', sysdate-150, sysdate-30)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_projects 
            (project_id, project_name, start_date, target_end_date)   VALUES
            (2, 'New Payroll Rollout', sysdate-150, sysdate+15)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_projects 
            (project_id, project_name, start_date, target_end_date)   VALUES
            (3, 'Email Integration', sysdate-120, sysdate-60)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_projects 
            (project_id, project_name, start_date, target_end_date)   VALUES
            (4, 'Public Website Operational', sysdate-60, sysdate+30)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_projects 
            (project_id, project_name, start_date, target_end_date)   VALUES
            (5, 'Employee Satisfaction Survey', sysdate-30, sysdate+60)
      /
      
      

   3. Click Save.

6. On the SQL Scripts page, select the Load Project Data icon.

7. Click Run.

   A summary page appears.

8. Click Run again.

   The Manage Script Results page displays a message that the script has been submitted for execution.

Update Dates to Make the Projects Current

Although you have created the projects, the dates need to be updated to make the projects current. To accomplish this, you run another script.

To update the project dates and make the projects current:

1. Click the SQL Scripts breadcrumb link.

2. Click Create.

3. In the Script Editor:

   1. In Script Name, enter Update Project Dates.

   2. In Script, copy and paste the following:

      UPDATE ht_projects
         SET start_date = sysdate-150,
             target_end_date = sysdate-30
       WHERE project_id = 1
      /
      
      UPDATE ht_projects
         SET start_date = sysdate-150,
             target_end_date = sysdate+15
       WHERE project_id = 2
      /
      UPDATE ht_projects
         SET start_date = sysdate-120,
             target_end_date = sysdate-60
       WHERE project_id = 3
      /
      UPDATE ht_projects
         SET start_date = sysdate-60,
             target_end_date = sysdate+30
       WHERE project_id = 4
      /
      UPDATE ht_projects
         SET start_date = sysdate-30,
             target_end_date = sysdate+60
       WHERE project_id = 5
      /
      
      

   3. Click Save.

4. On the SQL Scripts page, select the Update Project Dates icon.

5. Click Run.

   A summary page appears.

6. Click Run again.

   The Manage Script Results page displays a message that the script has been submitted for execution.

Load People Data

After you have loaded data into the Project table, you can load People data. Because of foreign keys in the Projects table, People data must be loaded after Project data. You load data into the People table by creating and running a script in SQL.

To load data into the People table:

1. Click the SQL Scripts breadcrumb link.

2. Click Create.

3. In the Script Editor:

   1. In Script Name, enter Load People Data.

   2. In Script, copy and paste the following:

      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (1, 'Joe Cerno', '[e-mail]', 'CEO', null)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (2, 'Kim Roberts', '[e-mail]', 'Manager', null)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (3, 'Tom Suess', '[e-mail]', 'Manager', null)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (4, 'Al Bines', '[e-mail]', 'Lead', 1)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (5, 'Carla Downing', '[e-mail]', 'Lead', 2)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (6, 'Evan Fanner', '[e-mail]', 'Lead', 3)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        values
           (7, 'George Hurst', '[e-mail]', 'Lead', 4)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
      VALUES
           (8, 'Irene Jones', '[e-mail]', 'Lead', 5)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (9, 'Karen London', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 1)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
         values
           (10, 'Mark Nile', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 1)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (11, 'Jane Kerry', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 5)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (12, 'Olive Pope', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 2)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (13, 'Russ Sanders', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 3)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
           (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
           (14, 'Tucker Uberton', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 3)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
            (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
            (15, 'Vicky Williams', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 4)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
            (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
            (16, 'Scott Tiger', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 4)
      /
      INSERT INTO ht_people
            (person_id, person_name, person_email, person_role, assigned_project)
        VALUES
            (17, 'Yvonne Zeiring', '[e-mail]', 'Member', 4)
      /
      
      

   3. Click Save.

4. On the SQL Scripts page, select the Load People Data icon.

5. Click Run.

   A summary page appears.

6. Click Run again.

   The Manage Script Results page displays a message that the script has been submitted for execution.

Load Issues Data

The last data you need to load is the Issues data. As with People data, you create and run a script to populate the Issues table.

To load data into the Issues table:

1. Click the SQL Scripts breadcrumb link.

2. Click Create.

3. In the Script Editor:

   1. In Script Name, enter Load Issue Data.

   2. In Script, copy and paste the script in "Create Issues Script".

   3. Click Save.

4. On the SQL Scripts page, select the Load Issue Data icon.

5. Click Run.

   A summary page appears.

6. Click Run again.

   The Manage Script Results page displays a message that the script has been submitted for execution.

Building a Basic User Interface

After you create the objects that support your application and load the demonstration data, the next step is to create a user interface. In this exercise, you use the Create Application Wizard in Application Builder to create an application and then the pages that support the data management and data presentation functions described in "Planning and Project Analysis".

Topics in this section include:

• Create the Application

• Add Pages to Maintain Projects

• Add Pages to Track People

• Add Pages to Track Issues

• Create Summary Reports

• Add Content to the Home Page

• Add a Breadcrumb Menu

Create the Application

You use the Create Application Wizard to create an application containing pages that enable users to view reports on and create data for selected tables within a schema. Alternatively, you can create an application first and then add pages to it. Since the application requirements include customized overview pages, for this exercise you will use the latter approach.

To create the application:

1. Click the Home breadcrumb link.

2. On the Database Home Page, click the Application Builder icon.

3. Click Create.

4. For Method, select Create Application.

5. For Name:

   1. In Name, enter a Issue Tracker.

   2. For Create Application, select From scratch.

   3. Click Next.

6. Add a blank page:

   1. Under Select Page Type, select Blank.

   2. Click Add Page.

   3. Click Next.

7. For Tabs, select No Tabs and click Next.

8. For Shared Components, accept the default and click Next.

9. For Attributes, accept the defaults for Authentication Scheme, Language, and User Language Preference Derived From and click Next.

10. For User Interface, select Theme 10 and click Next.

11. Click Create.

To view the application:

1. Click the Run Application icon on the Applications home page.

2. When prompted, enter your database account username and password and click Login.

   This authentication is part of the default security of any newly created application. As shown in Figure 10-1, the home page appears.

   Figure 10-1 Issue Tracking Application Home Page

   
   Description of "Figure 10-1 Issue Tracking Application Home Page"
   
   

   Although the page has no content, notice that the Create Application Wizard created the following items:

   • Navigation Links - A navigation bar entry displays in the upper right of the page. Logout enables the user to log out of the application.

   • Developer Links - The Developer toolbar appears at the bottom of the page. These links only display if you are logged in as a developer. Users who only have access to run the application cannot see these links. From left to right, the Developer toolbar contains the following links:

     • Edit Application - Edit the application by linking to the Application Builder home page.

     • Edit Page 1 - Edit the current running page. This link takes you to Page Definition for the current page.

     • Create - Add a new component to the current page.

     • Session - Open a new page containing session details for the current page.

     • Debug - Display the current page in debug mode.

     • Show Edit Links - Displays edit links next to each object on the page that can be edited. Each edit link resembles two colons (::) and appears to the right of navigation bar items, tabs, region titles, buttons, and items. Clicking an edit link displays another window where you can edit the object.

3. Click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar to return to Application Builder home page.

   Notice that the Create Application Wizard also created a Login page.

Once you have created the basic application structure, the next step is to create individual pages.

Add Pages to Maintain Projects

First, you need to create pages that enable users to view and add data to tables. To accomplish this, you use the Form on a Table with Report Wizard. This wizard creates a report page and maintenance page for each table.

Topics in this section include:

• Create Pages for Maintaining Projects

• Refine the Appearance of the Projects Report Page

• Refine the Create/Edit Project Page

Create Pages for Maintaining Projects

To create pages for maintaining the HT_PROJECTS table:

1. On the Application Builder home page, click Create Page.

2. Select Form and click Next.

3. Select Form on a Table with Report and click Next.

4. For Table/View Owner, select the appropriate schema and click Next.

5. For Table/View Name, select HT_PROJECTS and click Next.

6. For Define Reports Page:

   1. For Page, enter 2.

   2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter Projects.

   3. Click Next.

7. For Tab Options, accept the default selection Do not use tabs and click Next.

8. For Select Column(s), select every column except PROJECT_ID and click Next.

   Note that Project Name is unique and identifies the project. The ID was added to simplify the foreign key and enable cascading updates.

9. For Edit Link Image, select the third option (the word Edit in blue with a white background) and click Next.

10. For Define Form Page:

    1. For Page, enter 3.

    2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter Create/Edit Project.

    3. Click Next.

11. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

12. For Primary Key, accept the default PROJECT_ID and click Next.

13. For Source Type, accept the default Existing Trigger and click Next.

14. For Select Column(s), select all columns and click Next.

15. Under Identify Process Options, accept the defaults for Insert, Update and Delete, and click Next.

16. Review your selections and click Finish.

17. Click the Run Page icon.

As shown in Figure 10-2, the newly created report displays the demo data.

Figure 10-2 Projects Page

Description of "Figure 10-2 Projects Page"

Click the Edit icon to view an existing row or click the Create button to create a new record. If you click the Edit icon to the left of Employee Satisfaction Survey, a form resembling Figure 10-3 appears.

Figure 10-3 Create/Edit Project Form

Description of "Figure 10-3 Create/Edit Project Form"

Refine the Appearance of the Projects Report Page

You can change the appearance of the Projects report page by adding a format mask to the dates.

To add a format mask to the dates on the Create/Edit Project page:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 2, Projects:

   1. Click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar.

   2. On the Application home page, select 2 - Projects.

2. Under Regions, select Report adjacent to Projects.

3. Edit the format for START_DATE:

   1. Click the Edit icon the left of START_DATE.

      The Column Attributes page appears.

   2. For Number/Date Format, enter DD-MON-YYYY.

4. Edit the format for the TARGET_END_DATE:

   1. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next Report Item.

      The Column Attributes page appears.

   2. For Number/Date Format, enter DD-MON-YYYY.

5. Edit the format for the ACTUAL_END_DATE:

   1. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next Report Item.

      The Column Attributes page appears.

   2. For Number/Date Format, enter DD-MON-YYYY.

6. Click Apply Changes.

   The Report Attributes page appears.

7. For PROJECT_ID, delete the Heading Edit.

8. For the START_DATE, TARGET_END_DATE and ACTUAL_END_DATE columns, select center for Column Alignment and Heading Alignment.

9. To enable column heading sorting, check Sort for all columns except PROJECT_ID.

10. For PROJECT_NAME, select 1 for Sort Sequence.

    This selection specifies PROJECT_NAME as the default column to sort on. Note this functionality can overridden by any user selections.

11. Scroll down to Sorting. For Ascending and Descending Image, select the light gray arrow.

12. Under Messages, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

    No Projects found.
    
    

13. Scroll up to the top of the page and click Apply Changes.

To view your changes, click the Run Page icon in the upper right of the page.

As shown in Figure 10-4, note the addition of a sort control on the Project Name column and the format of the dates in the Start Date and Target End Date columns.

Figure 10-4 Projects Page with Sort Control

Description of "Figure 10-4 Projects Page with Sort Control"

Refine the Create/Edit Project Page

Next, you need to customize the Create/Edit Project page to make the Project Name field larger and the date fields smaller. You also need to change the date picker type, add a format mask for dates, and add validations that check if the target and actual end dates are after the start date.

To make the Project Name field larger and the date fields smaller:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for Page 3, Create/Edit Project.

   1. From the Developer toolbar, click Edit Application.

   2. Select 3 - Create/Edit Project.

2. Under the Page Rendering section, select the Items heading.

3. Scroll to the right and locate the Width column:

   1. For Project Name, enter 60.

   2. For Start Date, enter 12.

   3. For Target End Date, enter 12.

   4. For Actual End Date, enter 12.

   5. Click Apply Changes.

4. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner of the page to return to the Page Definition.

To change the date picker type and add a format mask for dates:

1. Edit the item P3_START_DATE.

   1. Under Items, select P3_START_DATE.

   2. Under Name, for Display As select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY).

   3. Click Apply Changes.

   Edit the item P3_TARGET_END_DATE.

   1. Under Items, select P3_TARGET_END_DATE.

   2. Under Name, for Display As select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY).

   3. Click Apply Changes.

   Edit the item P3_ACTUAL_END_DATE.

   1. Under Items, select P3_ACTUAL_END_DATE.

   2. Under Name, for Display As select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY).

   3. Click Apply Changes.

To add validations to check if the target and actual end dates are after the start date:

1. Under the Validations section, click the Create icon.

2. For Level, accept the default Item level validation and click Next.

3. For Item, select Create/Edit Project: 40. P3_TARGET_END_DATE (Target End Date) and click Next.

4. For Validation Method, select PL/SQL and click Next.

5. Specify the type of validation you want to create. Accept the default PL/SQL Expression and click Next.

6. For Validation Name, enter TARGET_AFTER_START and click Next.

7. For Validation and Error Message:

   1. For Validation, enter:

      to_date(:P3_ACTUAL_END_DATE,'DD-MON-YYYY') >= to_date(:P3_START_DATE,'DD-MON-YYYY')
      
      

   2. For Error Message, enter:

      Actual End Date must be same or after Start Date.
      
      

   3. Click Next.

8. For Conditions:

   1. For Condition Type, select Value of Item in Expression 1 Is NOT NULL, or click the shortcut link [item not null].

   2. For Expression 1, enter:

      P3_ACTUAL_END_DATE.
      
      

      This selection ensures that this validation only executes if the user enters an Actual End Date.

   3. Click Create.

To view your changes, click the Run Page icon in the upper right of the page. (See Figure 10-5.)

Figure 10-5 Modified Create/Edit Project

Description of "Figure 10-5 Modified Create/Edit Project "

Add Pages to Track People

Once the initial Projects pages are complete, you create pages for maintaining people.

Topics in this section include:

• Create Pages for Maintaining People

• Modify the People Report Page

• Refine the Create/Edit People Page

Create Pages for Maintaining People

To create pages for maintaining the HT_PEOPLE table:

1. Return to the Application home page. If you are viewing the Create/Edit Project form, click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Form and click Next.

4. Select Form on a Table with Report and click Next.

5. For Table/View Owner, select the appropriate schema and click Next.

6. For Table/View Name, select HT_PEOPLE and click Next.

7. For Define Report Attributes:

   1. For Page, enter 4.

   2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter People.

   3. Click Next.

8. For Tab Options, accept the default, Do not use tabs, and click Next.

9. For Select Column(s), select all columns except PERSON_ID and click Next.

10. For Edit Link Image, select the third option (the word Edit in blue with a white background) and click Next.

11. For Define Form Page:

    1. For Page, enter 5.

    2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter Create/Edit Person. Information.

    3. Click Next.

12. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

13. For Primary Key, accept the default PERSON_ID and click Next.

14. Specify the source for the primary key columns. Accept the default Existing Trigger and click Next.

15. For Select Column(s), select all the columns and click Next.

16. For Insert, Update and Delete, accept the defaults and click Next.

17. Review your selections and click Finish.

To preview your page, click Run Page. As shown in Figure 10-6, notice the newly created report displays the demo data.

Figure 10-6 People Page

Description of "Figure 10-6 People Page"

To preview the page for adding or editing people, click the Edit button in the far left column.

Modify the People Report Page

Next, you alter the People Report by changing the query to include a join to the Projects table and modify the headings.

To change the query to include a join to the Projects table:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 4 - People:

   1. If you are viewing a running form, click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar.

   2. When the Application home page appears select 4 - People.

2. Under Regions, select People.

3. Scroll down to Source.

4. In Region Source, replace the existing query with the following:

   SELECT a."PERSON_ID", 
          a."PERSON_NAME",
          a."PERSON_EMAIL",
          a."PERSON_ROLE",
          b."PROJECT_NAME"
      FROM "#OWNER#"."HT_PEOPLE" a,
           "#OWNER#"."HT_PROJECTS" b
    WHERE a.assigned_project = b.project_id (+)
   
   

   Note that the outer join is necessary because the project assignment is optional.

5. Select the Report Attributes tab at the top of the page.

   1. For PERSON_ID, remove the Heading Edit.

   2. For PERSON_NAME, change Heading to Name.

   3. For PERSON_EMAIL, change Heading to Email.

   4. For PERSON_ROLE, change Heading to Role.

   5. For PROJECT_NAME, change Heading to Assigned Project and select left for Heading Align.

6. Enable column heading sorting by selecting Sort for all columns except PERSON_ID.

7. For PERSON_NAME, select 1 for Sort Sequence.

   This selection specifies PERSON_NAME as the default column to sort on. Note this functionality can overridden by user selections.

8. Scroll down to Sorting. For Ascending and Descending Image, select the light gray arrow.

9. Under Messages, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No people found.
   
   

10. Click Apply Changes.

To view your changes, click the Run Page icon in the upper right of the page. As shown in Figure 10-7, note the addition of a sort control on the Name column.

Figure 10-7 Revised People Page

Description of "Figure 10-7 Revised People Page"

Refine the Create/Edit People Page

Next, you customize the Create/Edit People page by adding lists of values to make it easier for users to select a Role or Assigned Project.

Add Lists of Values

To add a list of values for Projects:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 5, Create/Edit Person:

   1. If you are viewing a running form, click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar.

   2. When the Application home page appears select 5 - Create/Edit Person.

2. Under Shared Components, locate the Lists of Values section and click the Create icon.

3. For Source, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

4. For Name and Type:

   1. For Name, enter PROJECTS.

   2. For Type, select Dynamic.

   3. Click Next.

5. In Query, replace the existing statements with the following:

   SELECT project_name d, project_id v
     FROM ht_projects
    ORDER BY d
   
   

6. Click Create List of Values.

To add a list of values for Roles:

1. Under Shared Components, locate the Lists of Values section and click the Create icon.

2. For Source, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

3. For Name and Type:

   1. For Name, enter ROLES.

   2. For Type:, select Static

   3. Click Next.

4. Enter the display value and return value pairs shown in Table 10-4:

   Table 10-4 Display Value and Return Value pairs

   Display Value	Return Value
   CEO	CEO
   Manager	Manager
   Lead	Lead
   Member	Member

   
   

5. Click Create List of Values.

6. Return to the Page Definition for Page 5. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner.

Edit Display Attributes

To edit display attributes for P5_PERSON_ROLE:

1. Under Items, select P5_PERSON_ROLE.

2. Under Name, select Radiogroup from the Display As list.

3. Scroll down to Label.

4. Change Label to Role.

5. Under Element, enter the following in Form Element Option Attribute:

   class="instructiontext"
   
   

   This specifies that the text associated with each radio group option is the same size as other items on the page.

6. Scroll down to List of Values.

7. From the Named LOV list, select ROLES.

8. Click Apply Changes.

To edit display attributes for P5_ASSIGNED_PROJECT:

1. Under Items, select P5_ASSIGNED_PROJECT.

2. Under Name, select Select List from the Display As list.

3. Scroll down to List of Values.

4. Under List of Values:

   1. From the Named LOV list, select PROJECTS.

      Next, specify that the underlying column is not mandatory.

   2. For Null display value, enter:

      - None -
      
      

5. Click Apply Changes.

To alter the display of fields and field labels:

1. Under the Page Rendering section, select the Items heading.

2. For P5_PERSON_NAME:

   1. For Prompt, enter Name.

   2. For Width, enter 60.

3. For P5_PERSON_EMAIL:

   1. For Prompt, enter Email Address.

   2. For Width, enter 60.

4. Click Apply Changes.

5. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner to return to the Page Definition for Page 5.

Create a Validation

The Form on a Table with Report Wizard created not null validations for Name, Email, and Role. You must manually create another validation to ensure that Leads and Members have an assigned project while the CEO and Managers do not. As a best practice, it is generally best to use built-in validation types because they are faster. However, for this compound type of validation, you will write a PL/SQL validation.

To add validations to ensure the correct people are assigned projects:

1. Under the Validations section, click the Create icon.

2. On Level, accept the default Item level validation and click Next.

3. On Item, select Create/Edit Person Information: 50. P5_ASSIGNED_PROJECT (Assigned Project) and click Next.

4. On Validation Method:

   1. Select PL/SQL and click Next.

   2. Accept the default, PL/SQL Expression, and click Next.

5. For Validation Name, enter PROJECT_MAND_FOR_LEADER_AND_MEMBER and click Next.

6. For Validation and Error Message:

   1. For Validation, enter:

      (:P5_PERSON_ROLE IN ('CEO','Manager') AND
      :P5_ASSIGNED_PROJECT = '%'||'null%') OR
      (:P5_PERSON_ROLE IN ('Lead','Member') AND
      :P5_ASSIGNED_PROJECT != '%'||'null%')
      
      

      Oracle Application Express passes nulls as %null%. It also replaces %null% with a null when it processes data so to keep it in the validation, you need to break the string apart so that it is not recognized and replaced.

   2. For Error Message, enter:

      Leads and Members must have an Assigned Project. CEO and Managers cannot have an Assigned Project.
      
      

   3. Click Next.

7. Click Create.

To view your changes, click the Run Page icon in the upper right of the page. (See Figure 10-8.)

Figure 10-8 Revised Create/Edit Person Information Form

Description of "Figure 10-8 Revised Create/Edit Person Information Form"

Try entering some records to test the validation. Enter a CEO with a project and then enter a Lead without a project. Both cases should fail and display the error message you defined.

Add Pages to Track Issues

Lastly, you need to create pages for HT_ISSUES. This application needs multiple views on Issues. You can create these views as single reports or as separate reports. For this exercise, you create a complex report that includes an Issues maintenance form. You then link this maintenance form in multiple places. Ultimately, the Issues report will display Issues by the person who identified the issue, project, assigned person, status, or priority.

Topics in this section include:

• Create a Report for HT_ISSUES

• Refine the Create/Edit Issues Page

• Refine the Issues Report

• Add a Page to Support Assigning Multiple Issues Simultaneously

Create a Report for HT_ISSUES

To create a report for maintaining HT_ISSUES:

1. Return to the Application home page. If you are viewing a running form, click Edit Application on the Developer toolbar.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Form and click Next.

4. Select Form on a Table with Report and click Next.

5. For Table/View Owner, select the appropriate schema and click Next.

6. For Table/View Name, select HT_ISSUES and click Next.

7. On Define Report Page:

   1. For Page, enter 6.

   2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter Issues.

   3. Click Next.

8. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

9. For Select Column(s), select the following and click Next:

   • ISSUE_SUMMARY

   • IDENTIFIED_BY

   • RELATED_PROJECT

   • ASSIGNED_TO

   • STATUS

   • PRIORITY

   • TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE

   • ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE

10. For Edit Link Image, select the third option (the word Edit in blue with a white background) and click Next.

11. On Define Form Page:

    1. For Page, enter 7.

    2. For Page Name and Region Title, enter Create/Edit Issues.

    3. Click Next.

12. For Tab Options, accept the default, Do not use tabs, and click Next.

13. For Primary Key, accept the default, ISSUE_ID, and click Next.

14. For Select Column(s), press SHIFT and select all the columns and click Next.

15. For Insert, Update and Delete, accept the default value, Yes, and click Next.

16. Review your selections and click Finish.

Refine the Create/Edit Issues Page

When you refine the Create/Edit Page you:

• Add lists of values to make it easier for users to select foreign key columns

• Organize and clean up items

• Change the display of audit columns

• Add a button to make data entry faster

Add Lists of Values

Next, you need to add lists of values for Status, Priorities, and People.

To add a list of values for Status:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 7.

2. Under the Lists of Values section, click the Create icon.

3. For Create List of Values, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

4. On Create List of Values (LOV):

   1. For Name, enter STATUS.

   2. For Type, select Static.

   3. Click Next.

5. Enter the Display Value and Return Value pairs shown in Table 10-5:

   Table 10-5 Display Value and Return Value Pairs

   Display Value	Return Value
   Open	Open
   On-Hold	On-Hold
   Closed	Closed

   
   

6. Click Create List of Values.

To add a list of values for Priorities:

1. Return to the Page Definition for Page 7. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner.

2. Under the Lists of Values section and click the Create icon.

3. For Create List of Values, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

4. On Create List of Values (LOV):

   1. For Name, enter PRIORITIES.

   2. For Type, select Static.

   3. Click Next.

5. Enter the Display Value and Return Value pairs shown in Table 10-6.

   Table 10-6 Display Value and Return Value Pairs

   Display Value	Return Value
   High	High
   Medium	Medium
   Low	Low

   
   

6. Click Create List of Values.

To add a list of values for People:

1. Return to the Page Definition for Page 7. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner.

2. Under the Lists of Values section and click the Create icon.

3. For Create List of Values, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

4. On Create List of Values (LOV):

   1. For Name, enter PEOPLE.

   2. For Type, select Dynamic.

   3. Click Next.

5. In Query, replace the existing statements with the following:

   SELECT person_name d, person_id v
      FROM ht_people
    ORDER BY 1
   
   

6. Click Created List of Values.

Edit Specific Items

Next, you edit individual items.

To edit P7_IDENTIFIED_BY:

1. Return to the Page Definition for Page 7 by clicking the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner.

2. Under Items, select P7_IDENTIFIED_BY.

3. Under Name, select Select List from the Display As list.

4. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PEOPLE.

   2. For Display Null, select Yes. The base column is mandatory but you do not want the first name in the list becoming the default value.

   3. For Null display value, enter:

      - Select Person -
      
      

5. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_IDENTIFIED_DATE:

1. Navigate to P7_IDENTIFIED_DATE.

2. Under Name, select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY) from the Display As list.

3. Scroll down to Default:

   1. For Default value, enter:

      to_char(sysdate,'DD-MON-YYYY')
      
      

   2. For Default Value Type, select PL/SQL Expression.

4. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_RELATED_PROJECT:

1. Navigate to P7_RELATED_PROJECT.

2. Under Name, select Select List from the Display As list.

3. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PROJECTS.

   2. For Display Null, select Yes.

   3. For Null display value, enter:

      - Select Project -
      
      

4. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to P7_STATUS.

To edit P7_STATUS:

1. Navigate to P7_STATUS.

2. Under Name, select Radiogroup from the Display As list.

3. In Label, enter:

   Status:
   
   

4. Scroll down to Element. Enter the following in the Form Element Option Attributes:

   class="instructiontext"
   
   

5. Scroll down to Default. In Default Value, enter Open.

6. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select STATUS.

   2. For Columns, enter 3.

      This selection enables the three valid values to display side by side.

7. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to P7_PRIORITY.

To edit P7_PRIORITY:

1. Navigate to P7_PRIORITY.

2. Under Name, select Radiogroup from the Display As list.

3. In Label, enter:

   Priority:
   
   

4. Scroll down to Element. Enter the following in the Form Element Option Attributes:

   class="instructiontext"
   
   

5. Scroll down to Default. In Default value, enter Open.

6. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PRIORITIES.

   2. For Display Null, select Yes.

   3. For Columns, enter 4.

      This selection reflects that fact there are three valid values plus the null value.

   4. For Null display value, enter -None-.

7. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE:

1. Navigate to P7_TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE.

2. Under Name, select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY) from the Display As list.

3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to P7_ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE.

To edit P7_ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE:

1. Navigate to P7_ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE.

2. Under Name, select Date Picker (DD-MON-YYYY) from the Display As list.

3. Click Apply Changes.

Create Regions to Group Items

Currently all items are grouped into one large region. Displaying items in logical groups makes data entry easier for users. Next, you create four new regions named Buttons, Identification, Progress, Resolution, and Auditing.

To create new regions to group items:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select Multiple HTML.

3. For the first row:

   • For Sequence, enter 5.

   • For Title, enter Buttons.

   • For Template, select Button Region without Title.

4. For the second row, in Title enter Progress.

5. For the third row, in Title enter Resolution.

6. For the fourth row, in Title enter Audit Information.

7. Click Create Region(s).

Now that the new regions exist, rename the first region, Create/Edit Issues:

1. Under Regions, select Create/Edit Issue.

2. In Title, enter:.

   Issue Identification
   
   

3. Click Apply Changes.

Move Items to the Appropriate Regions

Next, move each item to the appropriate region. Note that you also need to modify some item widths.

To move items to the appropriate regions:

1. Under the Page Rendering section, select the Items heading.

2. Under Region, select Progress for the following items:

   • P7_ASSIGNED_TO

   • P7_STATUS

   • P7_PRIORITY

   • P7_TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE

   • P7_PROGRESS

3. Under Region, select Resolution for the following items:

   • P7_ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE

   • P7_RESOLUTION_SUMMARY

4. Under Region, select Audit Information for the following items:

   • P7_CREATED_DATE

   • P7_CREATED_BY

   • P7_LAST_MODIFIED_DATE

   • P7_LAST_MODIFIED_BY

5. For P7_ISSUE_SUMMARY, enter 60 for Width.

6. For P7_IDENTIFIED_DATE, enter 12 for Width.

7. For P7_TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE, enter 12 for Width.

8. For P7_ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE, enter 12 for Width.

9. Click Apply Changes.

10. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right to return the Page Definition of Page 7.

To move buttons to the Button region:

1. Return to the Page Definition for Page 7.

2. Under the Page Rendering section, select the Buttons heading.

3. Under Region for all buttons, select Buttons.

4. Click Apply Changes.

5. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right to return the Page Definition of Page 7.

Change the Display of Audit Columns

Because the Audit columns should be viewable but not editable, you need to make them display only. In the following exercise, you create a condition for the Audit Information region. As a result, the Audit Information region displays when a user edits an existing issue, but does not appear when a user creates a new issue.

To create a condition for the Audit Information region.

1. On the Page Definition for Page 7, under Regions, select Audit Information.

2. Scroll down to Conditional Display.

3. From Condition Type, select Value of Item in Expression 1 is NOT NULL.

4. In Expression 1, enter P7_ISSUE_ID.

5. Click Apply Changes.

Next, change the audit columns to display only.

To edit P7_CREATED_DATE:

1. Under Items, select P7_CREATED_DATE.

2. Under Name, select Display as Text (saves state) from the Display As list.

3. Scroll down to Label:

   1. For Label, enter:

      Created Date:
      
      

   2. For Template, select Optional Label with Help.

   3. For HTML Table Cell Attributes, enter:

      class="instructiontext"
      
      

4. Scroll down to Source and enter the following in Format Mask:

   DD-MON-YYYY
   
   

5. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_CREATED_BY:

1. Under Name, select Display as Text (saves state) from the Display As list.

2. Scroll down to Label:

   1. For Label, enter:

      Created By:
      
      

   2. For Template, select Optional Label with Help.

   3. For HTML Table Cell Attributes, enter:

      class="instructiontext"
      
      

3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_LAST_MODIFIED_DATE:

1. Under Name, select Display as Text (saves state) from the Display As list.

2. Scroll down to Label:

   1. For Label, enter:

      Last Modified Date:
      
      

   2. For Template, select Optional Label with Help.

   3. For HTML Table Cell Attributes, enter:

      class="instructiontext"
      
      

3. Scroll down to Source and enter the following in Format Mask:

   DD-MON-YYYY
   
   

4. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next item.

To edit P7_LAST_MODIFIED_BY:

1. Under Name, select Display as Text (saves state) from the Display As list.

2. Scroll down to Label:

   1. For Label, enter:

      Last Modified By:
      
      

   2. For Template, select Optional Label with Help.

   3. For HTML Table Cell Attributes, enter:

      class="instructiontext"
      
      

3. Click Apply Changes.

Remove Unnecessary Validations

The Form on a Table with Report Wizard created not null validations for Issue Summary, Identified By, Related Project, Status, Created Date, and Created By. Since the Audit columns are set by a trigger, you need to remove these validations.

To remove not null validations:

1. Under Validations, select P7_CREATED_DATE not null.

2. Click Delete.

   A dialog box displays prompting you to confirm the deletion.

3. Click OK to confirm your selection.

4. Under Validations, select P7_CREATED_BY not null.

5. Click Delete.

   A dialog box displays prompting you to confirm the deletion.

6. Click OK to confirm your selection.

Return the User to the Calling Page

Because this Create/Edit page will be called from several places, when users finish with the display they should return to the calling page. To accomplish this, you create an item and change the branch on the Create/Edit page. Every time the Create/Edit page is called, the item must be set with the number of the calling page.

To create a hidden item:

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Hidden and click Next.

3. For Display Position and Name:

   1. For Item Name, enter:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   2. For Region, select Issue Identification.

   3. Click Next.

4. Click Create Item.

   The Page Definition for page 7 appears.

   Next, edit the Cancel button.

To edit the Cancel button:

1. Under Buttons, select Cancel.

2. Scroll down to Optional URL Redirect.

3. In Page, enter:

   &P7_PREV_PAGE.
   
   

   Note the period at the end.

4. Click Apply Changes.

   Next, edit the branch.

To edit the branch:

1. Under Action, enter the following in Page (be sure to include the period):

   &P7_PREV_PAGE.
   
   

2. Click Apply Changes.

Add Functionality to Support Adding Multiple Issues Sequentially

Next, you add functionality that enables users to add more than one issue at time. To accomplish this, you first add a new button and then create a new branch.

To add a new button:

1. Under Buttons, click the Copy icon.

2. Under Name, select CREATE.

3. For Target Page, accept the default 7 and click Next.

4. For Button Name, enter CREATE_AGAIN.

5. For Label, enter Create and Create Another.

6. Click Copy Button.

Functionally, the Copy Button currently works the same as the CREATE button. Next, create a branch that keeps the user on the create page.

Note that this branch also resets P7_PREV_PAGE because the value of that item will be lost when the cache of the page is cleared. The sequence of this new branch will be 0. Setting the sequence to 0 makes the branch fire before the default branch but only when the Create and Create Another button is used.

To create a branch that keeps the user on the create page:

1. Under Branches, click the Create icon.

2. For Point and Type, accept the defaults and click Next.

3. For Target:

   1. For Page, enter 7.

   2. For Clear Cache, enter 7.

   3. For Set these items, enter the following:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   4. For With these values, enter (be sure to include the period):

      &P7_PREV_PAGE.
      
      

   5. Click Next.

4. For Branch Conditions:

   1. For Sequence, enter 0.

   2. For When Button Pressed, select CREATE_AGAIN.

5. Click Create Branch.

   The Page Definition for page 7 appears.

6. Under Branches, select the newly created branch.

7. Under Action, select include process success message.

8. Click Apply Changes.

   To see the changes, click the Run Page icon. (See Figure 10-9.)

   Figure 10-9 Create/Edit Issues Form

   
   Description of "Figure 10-9 Create/Edit Issues Form"
   
   

   The branch you just created is looking for a value in P7_PREV_PAGE. Since the page was not called from another page, the value has not been set. You need to fix that next.

Refine the Issues Report

Next, you refine the Issues report page to support dynamic modification of the query. To accomplish this, you must:

• Move the Create button to a new region and edit the label

• Create new items that enable the user to restrict the query

• Add a WHERE clause to reference those new items

• Alter the report column attributes to display each person's name and the project

• Modify headings

Move Create Button to a New Region

To create a new region of the Create button:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 6, Issues.

2. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

3. Select HTML and click Next.

4. Specify the type of HTML region container you want to create. Select HTML and click Next.

5. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Buttons.

   2. For Region Template, select Button Region without Title.

   3. For Display Point, select Page Template Body (2. items below region content).

   4. Click Next.

6. Click Create Region.

To move the Create button to the Buttons region:

1. Under Buttons, select the CREATE button.

2. In Text Label, enter:

   Add a New Issue
   
   

3. From Display in Region, select Buttons.

4. Scroll down to Optional URL Redirect:

   1. For Set These Items, enter:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   2. For With These Values, enter 6.

5. Click Apply Changes.

Alter the Query and Display

Next, alter the query to display the actual values for people and projects instead of the ID and then clean up the report display.

To edit column attributes for ISSUE_ID:

1. Under the Regions section, select Report adjacent to Issues.

   The Report Attribute page appears.

2. Click the Edit Icon to the left of ISSUE_ID.

3. Scroll down to Column Link.

   1. For Item 2, for Name enter:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   2. For Item 2, for Value enter 6.

4. Click Apply Changes.

To edit column attributes for IDENTIFIED_BY, RELATED_PROJECT and ASSIGNED_TO:

1. Click the Edit Icon to the left of IDENTIFIED_BY.

2. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From the Display As list, select Display as Text (based on LOV, does not save state).

3. Scroll down to List of Values. For Named LOV, select PEOPLE.

4. Return to the top of the page and click the Next (>) icon.

   The Column Attributes page for RELATED_PROJECT appears.

5. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From the Display As list, select Display as Text (based on LOV, does not save state).

6. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PROJECTS.

   2. For Display Null, select Yes.

   3. In Null Text, enter a hyphen (-).

7. Return to the top of the page and click the Next (>) icon.

   The Column Attributes page for ASSIGNED_TO appears.

8. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From the Display As list, select Display as Text (based on LOV, does not save state).

9. Scroll down to List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PEOPLE.

   2. For Display Null, select Yes.

   3. In Null Text, enter a hyphen (-).

10. Click Apply Changes.

    The Report Attributes page appears.

Next, you customize how the report displays by changing report attributes.

To alter the report display:

1. From Headings Type, select Custom.

2. For ISSUE_ID, delete the current entry under Heading.

3. For ISSUE_SUMMARY, change Heading to Summary.

4. For TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE:

   1. Force the heading to wrap. In Heading, enter:

      Target<br>Resolution<br>Date
      
      

   2. For Column Align., select center.

   3. For Heading Align. select center.

5. For all columns except ISSUE_ID, check Sort.

6. For ISSUE_SUMMARY, select 1 for Sort Sequence.

7. Scroll down to Layout and Pagination:

   1. For Show Null Values as, enter a hyphen (-).

   2. For Number of Rows, enter 5.

8. Under Sorting, select the light gray arrow for Ascending and Descending Image.

9. Under Messages, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No issues found.
   
   

10. Click Apply Changes.

Add Support of Filtering

Although the report now displays nicely, it does not support filtering by the end user. To add this functionality, you first create items that enable the user to set values to query against. You will store these new items in a new region which will display above the report.

To create a new region:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select HTML and click Next.

3. Select the type of HTML region container you want to create. Select HTML and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Issue Report Parameters.

   2. For Region Template, select accept the default of Reports Region.

   3. For Sequence, enter 5.

   4. Click Next.

5. Click Create Region.

Next, create the items.

To create the item for Identified By:

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default selection Select List and click Next.

4. On Display Position and Name:

   1. For Item Name, enter P6_IDENTIFIED_BY.

   2. For Region, select Issue Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On Identify List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PEOPLE.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

6. For Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter:

   -1
   
   

8. Click Create Item.

To create an item for Assigned To:

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default selection Select List and click Next.

4. For Display Position and Name:

   1. For Item Name, enter P6_ASSIGNED_TO.

   2. For Region, select Issue Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On Identify List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PEOPLE.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

6. For Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter:

   -1
   
   

8. Click Create Item.

To create an item for Status.

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default selection Select List and click Next.

4. On Display Position and Name:

   1. For Item Name, enter P6_STATUS.

   2. For Region, select Issue Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On Identify List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select STATUS.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

6. For Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter:

   -1
   
   

8. Click Create Item.

To create an item for Priority.

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default selection Select List and click Next.

4. On Identify Item Name and Display Position:

   1. For Item Name, enter P6_PRIORITY.

   2. For Region, select Issue Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PRIORITIES.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

6. For Identify Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter:

   -1
   
   

8. Click Create Item.

To create an item for Related Project:

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default selection Select List and click Next.

4. On Identify Item Name and Display Position:

   1. For Item Name, enter P6_RELATED_PROJECT.

   2. For Region, select Issue Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On Identify List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PRIORITIES.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

6. For Identify Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter:

   -1
   
   

8. Click Create Item.

Next, create a Go button. This button enables the user to execute the query once they select report parameters. Buttons can be created in region positions or displayed among items.

To create Go button:

1. Under Buttons, click the Create icon.

2. For Button Region, select Issue Report Parameters and click Next.

3. For Button Position, select Create a button displayed among this region's items.

   This selection displays the button to the right of the last report parameter.

4. click Next.

5. For Button Attributes:

   1. For Button Name, enter P6_GO.

   2. For Button Style, select Template Based Button.

   3. For Template, select Button.

6. Click Create Button.

   The Page Definition for page 6 appears.

Currently the items display stacked on top of one another. To use space more efficiently, change the position of P6_RELATED_PROJECT, P6_STATUS, and P6_PRIORITY so they display next to each other. Place P6_RELATED_PROJECT, P6_STATUS on the first line and P6_PRIORITY on the second line.

To change the position of 6_RELATED_PROJECT, P6_STATUS, and P6_PRIORITY:

1. 1. Under the Page Rendering section, select the Items heading.

2. For P6_RELATED_PROJECT, P6_STATUS, and P6_PRIORITY, select No for New Line.

3. Click Apply Changes.

4. Click the Edit Page icon in the upper right corner to return to the Page Definition for page 6.

Next, you need to modify the report to react to the parameters. To accomplish this, you need to modify the query's WHERE clause as follows:

WHERE (IDENTIFIED_BY = :P6_IDENTIFIED_BY OR 
       :P6_IDENTIFIED_BY = '-1')
   AND (RELATED_PROJECT = :P6_RELATED_PROJECT OR 
       :P6_RELATED_PROJECT = '-1')
   AND (ASSIGNED_TO = :P6_ASSIGNED_TO OR 
       :P6_ASSIGNED_TO = '-1')
   AND (STATUS = :P6_STATUS OR 
       :P6_STATUS = '-1')
   AND (PRIORITY = :P6_PRIORITY OR 
       :P6_PRIORITIY = '-1')

To use the preceding WHERE clause, you must convert the Issues region into a PL/SQL Function Body Returning a SQL Query.

To turn the Issues region into a PL/SQL Function Body Returning a SQL Query:

1. Under Regions, select Issues.

2. For Type, select SQL Query (PL/SQLfunction body returning SQL query).

3. For Region Source, replace the existing statements with the following:

   DECLARE
   
      q VARCHAR2(32767); -- query
      w VARCHAR2(4000) ; -- where clause
      we VARCHAR2(1) := 'N'; -- identifies if where clause exists
   
   BEGIN
   
      q := 'SELECT "ISSUE_ID", '||
           ' "ISSUE_SUMMARY", '||
           ' "IDENTIFIED_BY", '||
           ' "RELATED_PROJECT", '||
           ' "ASSIGNED_TO", '||
           ' "STATUS", '||
           ' "PRIORITY", '||
           ' "TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE", '||
   
           ' "ACTUAL_RESOLUTION_DATE" '||
           ' FROM "#OWNER#"."HT_ISSUES" '; 
   
      IF :P6_IDENTIFIED_BY != '-1'
         THEN 
         w := ' IDENTIFIED_BY = :P6_IDENTIFIED_BY ';
         we := 'Y';
      END IF;
   
      IF :P6_RELATED_PROJECT != '-1'
         THEN 
         IF we = 'Y'
            THEN 
            w := w || ' AND RELATED_PROJECT = :P6_RELATED_PROJECT ';
         ELSE
            w := ' RELATED_PROJECT = :P6_RELATED_PROJECT ';
            we := 'Y';
         END IF;
      END IF;
   
      IF :P6_ASSIGNED_TO != '-1'
         THEN 
         IF we = 'Y'
            THEN 
            w := w || ' AND ASSIGNED_TO = :P6_ASSIGNED_TO ';
       ELSE
            w := ' ASSIGNED_TO = :P6_ASSIGNED_TO ';
            we := 'Y';
       END IF;
      END IF;
   
      IF :P6_STATUS != '-1'
         THEN 
         IF we = 'Y'
            THEN 
            w := w || ' AND STATUS = :P6_STATUS ';
         ELSE
            w := ' STATUS = :P6_STATUS ';
            we := 'Y';
         END IF;
   END IF;
   
      IF :P6_PRIORITY != '-1'
          THEN 
          IF we = 'Y'
             THEN 
             w := w || ' AND PRIORITY = :P6_PRIORITY ';
          ELSE
             w := ' PRIORITY = :P6_PRIORITY ';
             we := 'Y';
          END IF;
      END IF;
   
      IF we = 'Y'
         THEN q := q || ' WHERE '|| w;
      END IF;
   
   RETURN q;
   
   END;
   
   

4. Click Apply Changes.

Note that this function first sets the variable q to the original SELECT statement. It then builds a WHERE clause (w) composed of just the variables set by the user. If any variables have been set, it appends the WHERE clause to the original SELECT and passes that new SELECT to the database.

The report is now complete. Click the Run Page icon. (See Figure 10-10).

Figure 10-10 Issues Report

Description of "Figure 10-10 Issues Report"

To change the report parameters, make new selections under Issue Report Parameters and click Go.

Add a Page to Support Assigning Multiple Issues Simultaneously

Currently, you can assign an issue by editing it. Next, you add a new page that enables users to assign multiple issues at once and modify the Related Project, Status, and Priority.

Create a Tabular Form

To add a new page to support assigning multiple issues:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Form and click Next.

4. Select Tabular Form and click Next.

5. For Table/View Owner, select the appropriate schema.

   Since the purpose of this form is to enable users to assign issues, it is assumed users will only update existing records, not create or delete issues.

6. To enforce this assumption, select Update Only from the Allowed Operations list and click Next.

7. For Table/View Name, select HT_ISSUES and click Next.

8. For Displayed Columns, press CTRL, select the following columns, and click Next:

   • ISSUE_SUMMARY

   • IDENTIFIED_BY

   • IDENTIFIED_DATE

   • RELATED_PROJECT

   • ASSIGNED_TO

   • STATUS

   • PRIORITY

9. For Primary Key, accept the default ISSUE_ID and click Next.

10. For Primary Key Source, accept the default Existing trigger and click Next.

11. For Updatable Columns, press CTRL, select the following, and click Next:

    • RELATED_PROJECT

    • ASSIGNED_TO

    • STATUS

    • PRIORITY

12. For Page and Region Attributes:

    1. For Page, enter 8.

    2. For Page Name, enter Assign Issues.

    3. For Region Title, enter Assign Issues.

    4. Click Next.

13. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

14. On Button Labels:

    1. For Cancel Button Label, accept the default.

    2. For Submit Button Label, enter Apply Changes.

    3. Click Next.

15. For Branching, accept the defaults and click Next.

16. Review your selections and click Finish.

Add Lists of Values

Once you have created the initial tabular form, you need to add lists of values to make it easier to select issues. Additionally, you need to restrict the query to only display unassigned issues.

To add lists of values:

1. From the Success page, select Edit Page.

   The Page Definition for page 8, Assign Issues, appears.

2. Under Regions, select Assign Issues.

3. In Region Source, replace the existing statements with the following:

   SELECT "ISSUE_ID",
          "ISSUE_SUMMARY",
          "IDENTIFIED_BY",
          "IDENTIFIED_DATE",
          "RELATED_PROJECT",
          "ASSIGNED_TO",
          "STATUS",
          "PRIORITY"
     FROM "#OWNER#"."HT_ISSUES"
   WHERE assigned_to IS NULL
   
   

To edit report attributes:

1. Select the Report Attributes tab at the top of the page.

2. Under Report Column Attributes:

   1. For ISSUE_SUMMARY, edit the existing Heading to read:

      Summary
      
      

   2. For all columns except ISSUE_ID, select Sort.

   3. For IDENTIFIED_DATE, for Sort Sequence, select 1.

3. Click the Edit icon to the left of IDENTIFIED_BY and edit the following attributes:

   1. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From the Display As list, select Display as Text (based on LOV, does not save state).

   2. Scroll down to List of Values. From Named LOV list, select PEOPLE.

   3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to IDENTIFIED_DATE.

4. Edit the following attributes for IDENTIFIED_DATE:

   1. Under Column Formatting, enter DD-MON-YYYY in Number/Date Format.

   2. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next column.

5. Edit the following attributes for RELATED_PROJECT:

   1. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From Display As, select Select List (Named LOV).

   2. Scroll down to List of Values. From the Named LOV list, select PROJECTS.

   3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next column.

6. Edit the following attributes for ASSIGNED_TO:

   1. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From Display As, select Select List (Named LOV).

   2. Scroll down to List of Values:

      • From the Named LOV list, select PEOPLE.

      • For Display Null, select Yes.

      • For Null Text, enter a hyphen (-).

   3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next column.

7. Edit the following attributes for STATUS:

   1. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From Display As, select Select List (Named LOV).

   2. Scroll down to List of Values. From the Named LOV lists, select STATUS.

   3. Click the Next button (>) at the top of the page to navigate to the next column.

8. Edit the following attributes for PRIORITY:

   1. Scroll down to Tabular Form Element. From Display As, select Select List (Named LOV).

   2. Scroll down to List of Values:

      • From Named LOV, select PRIORITIES.

      • For Display Null, select Yes.

      • For Null Text, enter a hyphen (-).

   3. Click Apply Changes.

   The Report Attributes page appears.

9. Scroll down to Sorting. Under Ascending and Descending Image, select the light gray arrow.

10. Under Messages, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

    No Unassigned Issues.
    
    

11. Click Apply Changes.

The wizard created an unnecessary Cancel button.

To delete the Cancel button:

1. On the Page Definition for page 8, select the CANCEL button.

2. Click Delete.

   A dialog box displays prompting you to confirm the deletion.

3. Click OK to confirm your selection.

The tabular form is now complete. To view the new form, click the Run Page icon. (See Figure 10-11.)

Figure 10-11 Assign Issues

Description of "Figure 10-11 Assign Issues"

To assign an issue, make a selection from the Assigned To list and click Apply Changes. Notice that once an issue has been assigned, the issue no longer displays.

Create Summary Reports

Lastly, you need to add four summary reports.

Topics in this section include:

• Add an Issue Summary by Project Report

• Add Resolved by Month Identified Report

• Add a Target Resolution Dates Report

• Add an Average Days to Resolve Report

Add an Issue Summary by Project Report

The Issue Summary report enable users to select a project and then see a summary of issues related to that project. This report includes the following summary information:

• Date first issue identified

• Date last issue closed

• Total number of issues

• Number of issues by status

• Number of open issues by priority

• Assignments by status

To create this report, you code the information in two SQL statements. The first statement gathers information having a a singular result and the second statement gathers information having multiple results.

To add an Issue Summary by Project report:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Report and click Next.

4. Select SQL Report and click Next.

5. On Page Attributes:

   1. For Page, enter 9.

   2. For Page Name, enter Issue Summary by Project.

   3. Click Next.

6. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

7. For SQL Query, enter the following SQL SELECT statement and click Next:

   SELECT MIN(identified_date) first_identified, 
          MAX(actual_resolution_date) last_closed,
          COUNT(issue_id) total_issues,
          SUM(DECODE(status,'Open',1,0)) open_issues,
          SUM(DECODE(status,'On-Hold',1,0)) onhold_issues,
          SUM(DECODE(status,'Closed',1,0)) closed_issues,
          SUM(DECODE(status,
                     'Open',decode(priority,null,1,0),
                     0))                     open_no_prior,
          SUM(DECODE(status,
                     'Open',decode(priority,'High',1,0),
                     0))                     open_high_prior,
          SUM(DECODE(status,
                     'Open',decode(priority,'Medium',1,0),
                     0))                     open_medium_prior,
          SUM(DECODE(status,
                     'Open',decode(priority,'Low',1,0),
                     0))                     open_low_prior
      FROM ht_issues
   WHERE related_project = :P9_PROJECT
   
   

8. For Report Attributes:

   1. For Region Name, enter Issue Summary by Project.

   2. Click Next.

9. Review your selections and click Finish.

Now that you have the first query, you need to edit the headings and create the item to control the related project. First, create a region to display above the report to contain the Project parameter.

Create a New Region

To create a new region to display above the report:

1. From the Success page, click Edit Page.

   The Page Definition for page 9, Issue Summary by Project appears.

2. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

3. Select HTML and click Next.

4. Select the type of HTML region container you want to create. Select HTML and click Next.

5. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Issue Summary Report Parameters.

   2. For Display Point, select Page Template Body (2. items below region content).

   3. For Sequence, enter 5.

   4. Click Next.

6. Click Create Region.

Create the Project Item

To create the Project item:

1. Under Items, click the Create icon.

2. For Select Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

3. For Select List Control Type, accept the default Select List and click Next.

4. On Display Position and Name:

   1. For Item Name, enter P9_PROJECT.

   2. For Region, select Issue Summary Report Parameters.

   3. Click Next.

5. On List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PROJECTS.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - Select -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter -1.

   4. Click Next.

6. On Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. On Source, for Default, enter -1.

8. Click Create Item.

Create a Go Button

To create a Go button to execute the query:

1. Under Buttons, click the Create icon.

2. For Button Region, select Issue Summary Report Parameters and click Next.

3. For Button Position, select Create a button displayed among this region's items and click Next.

4. On Button Attributes:

   1. For Button Name, enter P9_GO.

   2. For Button Style, select Template Based Button.

   3. For Template, select Button.

5. Click Create Button.

Edit Headings and Report Settings

Next, you need to edit the headings and report setting for the report region. You also need to set the report regions to conditionally display when the user has selected a project.

To edit the headings and report settings:

1. Under Regions, select Report adjacent to Issue Summary by Project.

2. For Headings Type, select Custom.

3. Under Column Attributes:

   1. Change the Heading for FIRST_IDENTIFIED to:

      First Issue Identified:
      
      

   2. Change the Heading for LAST_CLOSED to:

      Last Issue Closed:
      
      

   3. Change the Heading for TOTAL_ISSUES to:

      Total Issues:
      
      

   4. Change the Heading for OPEN_ISSUES to:

      Open Issues:
      
      

   5. Change the Heading for ONHOLD_ISSUES to:

      On-Hold Issues:
      
      

   6. Change the Heading for CLOSED_ISSUES to:

      Closed Issues:
      
      

   7. Change the Heading for OPEN_NO_PRIOR to:

      Open Issues with No Priority:
      
      

   8. Change the Heading for OPEN_HIGH_PRIOR:

      Open Issues of High Priority:
      
      

   9. Change the Heading for OPEN_MEDIUM_PRIOR to:

      Open Issues of Medium Priority:
      
      

   10. Change the Heading for OPEN_LOW_PRIOR:

       Open Issues of Low Priority:
       
       

4. Scroll down to Layout and Pagination:

   1. For Show Null Values as, enter a hyphen (-).

   2. For Pagination Scheme, select - No Pagination Selected -.

5. Select the Region Definition tab at the top of the page.

   1. Scroll down to Conditional Display.

   2. For Condition Type, select Value of Item in Expression 1 Is NOT Contained within Colon Delimited List in Expression 2.

   3. In Expression 1, enter P9_PROJECT.

   4. For Expression 2, enter -1.

6. Click Apply Changes.

Create a Query to Retrieve Assignments

To create a query to retrieve assignments by status.

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select Report and click Next.

3. For Report Implementation, select SQL Report and click Next.

4. On Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Assignments by Status.

   2. For Column, select 2.

   3. Click Next.

5. For Source:

   1. In Enter SQL Query, enter:

      SELECT p.person_name, 
             i.status, 
             COUNT(i.issue_id) issues
        FROM ht_issues i,
             ht_people p
      WHERE i.related_project = :P9_PROJECT
        AND i.assigned_to = p.person_id
      GROUP BY person_name, status
      
      

   2. For Rows Per Page, enter 20.

   3. For Break Columns, select Column 1.

   4. Click Next.

6. For Conditional Display:

   1. From Condition Type, select Value of Item in Expression 1 Is NOT Contained within Colon Delimited List in Expression 2.

   2. In Expression 1 enter:

      P9_PROJECT
      
      

   3. For Expression 2 enter -1.

7. Click Create Region.

To edit headings and report settings:

1. Under Regions, select Report adjacent to Assignments by Status.

2. For Headings Type, select Custom.

3. For PERSON_NAME, change Heading to Assigned To.

4. Scroll down to Layout and Pagination. From Pagination Scheme, select Row Ranges 1-15 16-30 in select list (with pagination).

5. Scroll down to Messages and enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No issues found.
   
   

6. Click Apply Changes.

To see your newly created report, click the Run Page icon. Note that initially no data displays since no project is selected. Select a project. Your report should resemble Figure 10-12.

Figure 10-12 Issue Summary by Project Report

Description of "Figure 10-12 Issue Summary by Project Report"

Add Resolved by Month Identified Report

The Resolved by Month Identified report is a line chart. This report first calculates the number of days it took to resolve each closed issue, averaged by the month the issue was identified, and finally displayed by the month.

To add a Resolved by Month Identified report:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Chart and click Next.

4. Select Line and click Next.

5. For Page Attributes:

   1. For Page, enter 10.

   2. For Page Name and Region Name, enter Resolved by Month Identified.

   3. Click Next.

6. For Tab (Optional), accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

7. For Query:

   1. For Series Name, enter Resolved .

   2. In SQL, enter:

      SELECT NULL l,
             TO_CHAR(identified_date,'Mon YYYY') month, 
             AVG(actual_resolution_date-identified_date) days
         FROM ht_issues
        WHERE status = 'Closed'
        GROUP BY TO_CHAR(identified_date,'Mon YYYY')
      
      

      Note that this query has no link (that is, the l column). It extracts the month from the identified date so that the data can be grouped by month. Lastly, it calculates the average number of days it took for the issues to be closed that were identified in that month.

   3. For When No Data Found Message, enter:

      No Closed Issues found.
      
      

8. Click Next.

9. Review your selections and click Finish.

Next, add a correct axis label and turn off the Chart Title and legend.

To edit the chart:

1. From the Success page, select Edit Page.

   The Page Definition for page 10, Resolved by Month Identified, appears.

2. Under Regions, select Chart, adjacent to Resolved by Month Identified.

3. Under Chart Settings:

   1. For Chart Height, enter 300.

   2. Disable Show Legend.

4. Scroll to Axes Setting:

   1. For X Axis Title, enter Date Identified.

   2. For Y Axis Title, enter Days to Resolve.

5. Click Apply Changes.

To view your newly created line chart, click the Run Page icon. Your line chart should resemble Figure 10-13.

Figure 10-13 Resolved by Month Identified Line Chart

Description of "Figure 10-13 Resolved by Month Identified Line Chart"

Add a Target Resolution Dates Report

The Target Resolution Dates report is a calendar which displays issues that have not yet closed and the assigned person on the day that corresponds to the issue target resolution date.

Create a Calendar

To create a calendar of target resolution dates:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Calendar and click Next.

4. Select SQL Calendar and click Next.

5. For Page Attributes:

   1. For Page, enter 11.

   2. For Page Name and Region Name, enter Target Resolution Dates.

   3. Click Next.

6. For Tab Options, accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

7. 1. For Table/View Owner:

   1. For Enter SQL Query, enter the following:

      SELECT I.TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE,
             I.ISSUE_SUMMARY || 
                ' ('||nvl(P.PERSON_NAME,'Unassigned') ||') ' disp,
             I.ISSUE_ID
        FROM HT_ISSUES I, 
             HT_PEOPLE P
        WHERE I.ASSIGNED_TO = P.PERSON_ID (+)
         AND (I.RELATED_PROJECT = :P11_PROJECT OR
              :P11_PROJECT = '-1')
         
      AND I.STATUS != 'Closed'
      
      

   2. Click Next.

   Note that:

   • The target_resolution_date is the date on which the issue displays

   • The issue_summary is concatenated with the person assigned

   • The issue_id does not display, but is used to create a link to enable the user to view and edit the issue

8. For Date/Display Columns:

   1. For Date Column, select TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE.

   2. For Display Column, select DISP.

   3. Click Next.

9. Review your selections and click Finish.

Add an Item to Support Project Look Up

To enable the user to look up one project or all projects, you need to add an item.

To add an item to support project look up:

1. From the Success page, select Edit Page.

   The Page Definition for page 11, Target Resolution Dates, appears.

2. Under Items, click the Create icon.

3. For Item Type, select Select List and click Next.

4. For Select List Control Type, select Select List again and click Next.

5. For Display Position and Name, enter P11_PROJECT for Item Name, accept the remaining defaults, and click Next.

6. For List of Values:

   1. For Named LOV, select PROJECTS.

   2. For Null Text, enter:

      - All Projects -
      
      

   3. For Null Value, enter:

      -1
      
      

   4. Click Next.

7. For Item Attributes, accept the defaults and click Next.

8. For Source, enter the following for Default:

   -1
   
   

9. Click Create Item.

Create a Go Button

To create a Go button to execute the query:

1. Under Buttons, click the Create icon.

2. For Button Region, select Target Resolution Dates and click Next.

3. For Button Position, select Create a button displayed among this region's items and click Next.

4. For Button Attributes:

   1. For Button Name, enter P11_GO.

   2. For Button Style, select Template Based Button.

   3. For Template, select Button.

5. Click Create Button.

Modify Calendar Attributes

Lastly, you need to modify the Calendar Attributes to add link support for viewing and editing the displayed issues. To accomplish this, you need to call page 7, View/Edit Issues, clear any data from the page and pass in the current issue ID along with the fact that page 11 was the calling page. Then, you need to add a note that displays when the query excludes Closed issues.

To modify the Calendar Attributes:

1. Under Regions, select CAL to the left of Target Resolution Dates.

2. Scroll down to Column Link:

   1. For Page, enter 7.

   2. For Clear Cache, enter 7.

   3. For Set these items, enter:

      P7_ISSUE_ID,P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   4. For With these values, enter:

      #ISSUE_ID#,11
      
      
      

3. Select the Region Definition tab at the top of the page.

4. Scroll down to Header and Footer Text.

5. Enter the following in Region Footer:

   This excludes Closed issues.
   
   

6. Click Apply Changes.

To see your newly created calendar, click the Run Page icon. Your report should resemble Figure 10-14. Note that you can click the text displayed for an issue to display the Edit Issue page. To return to the calendar, click Cancel.

Figure 10-14 Target Resolution Dates Report

Description of "Figure 10-14 Target Resolution Dates Report"

Add an Average Days to Resolve Report

The Average Days to Resolve report is a bar chart that calculates the number of days it takes to resolve each closed issue and then averages that number that by assigned person.

To add the Average Days to Resolve report:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Chart and click Next.

4. Select Bar (HTML) and click Next.

5. On Page Attributes:

   1. For Page, enter 12.

   2. For Page Name, enter Average Days to Resolve.

   3. For Region Name, enter Average Days to Resolve.

   4. Click Next.

6. For Tab (Optional), accept the default Do not use tabs and click Next.

7. On Chart Definition:

   1. In Chart SQL, replace the existing statements with the following:

      SELECT NULL l,
             NVL(p.person_name,'None Assigned') person, 
             AVG(i.actual_resolution_date-i.identified_date) days   
        FROM ht_issues i,
             ht_people p
       WHERE i.assigned_to = p.person_id (+)
         AND i.status = 'Closed'
       GROUP BY p.person_name
      
      

      In the above SELECT statement:

      • The first item selected is the link. Because this report does not link to any other page, NULL was selected.

      • The second item is the person's name, or None Assigned if assigned_to is NULL.

      • The third item selected is the average number of days it took for that person to resolve all their issues so the issues have a status of closed.

   2. For Include in summary, select only Number of data points. Deselect all other options.

   3. Click Next.

8. Review your selections and click Finish.

To view your newly created bar chart, select Run Page. Your report should resemble Figure 10-15.

Figure 10-15 Average Days to Resolve Report

Description of "Figure 10-15 Average Days to Resolve Report"

Add Content to the Home Page

Now that you have completed all the detail pages, next you need to add content to the home page and tie all the pages together. In this section, you modify the home page to display the following information:

• A menu of all available reports

• Navigation to the maintenance pages

• A button to Add a New Issue

• Overdue Issues

• Recently Opened Issues

• Open Issues by Project as a chart

• Unassigned Issues

Topics in this section include:

• Add a Reports Menu

• Add Maintenance Navigation

• Add a New Issues Button

• Add An Overdue Issues Report

• Add an Unassigned Issues Report

• Add a Recently Opened Issues Report

• Add an Open Issues by Project Pie Chart

Add a Reports Menu

First, you add a menu implemented as a list.

To add a menu:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click the Shared Components icon.

3. Under Navigation, select Lists.

4. Click Create.

5. For Name, enter Main Menu.

6. For List Template, select Vertical Sidebar List.

7. Click Create.

Create List Entries

Now that the list has been created, you add list items to it. You need to add one list item for each report page.

To add a list item for Assign Issues:

1. Click Create List Entry.

2. For List Entry Label, enter Assign Issues.

3. Under Target:

   1. For Page, select 8.

   2. Select reset pagination for this page.

4. Click Create.

Now you need to create four more list items, one for each of the reports in your application.

To add list items for each of the other reports in your application:

1. Click Create List Entry.

2. To define list item attributes for Issues:

   1. For Sequence, enter 20.

   2. For List Entry Label, enter Issues.

   3. Under the Target section:

      • For Page, select 6.

      • Select reset pagination for this page.

      • For Clear Cache, enter 6.

        This clears any selections for page 6 from the session state.

3. Click Create and Create Another.

4. To define list item attributes for Issue Summary:

   1. For Sequence, enter 30.

   2. For List Entry Label, enter Issue Summary by Project.

   3. Under the Target section:

      • For Page, select 9.

      • Select reset pagination for this page.

      • For Clear Cache, enter 9.

5. Click Create and Create Another.

6. To define list item attributes for Resolved by Month Identified:

   1. For Sequence, enter 40.

   2. For List Entry Label, enter Resolved by Month Identified (chart).

7. Click Create and Create Another.

8. To define list item attributes for Target Resolution Dates:

   1. For List, select Main Menu.

   2. For Sequence, enter 50.

   3. For List Entry Label, enter Target Resolution Dates (calendar).

   4. Under the Target section:

      • For Page, select 11.

      • Select reset pagination for this page.

9. Click Create and Create Another.

10. To define list item attributes for Average Days to Resolve:

    1. For Sequence, enter 60.

    2. For List Entry Label, enter Average Days to Resolve (chart).

    3. Under Target, select 12 for Page.

11. Click Create.

Include the List on the Home Page

Now that the list is created, you need to include it on the home page. To display the list in the left margin, you need to change the page template to one that supports the appropriate region position.

To change the page template on the home page:

1. Click the Edit Page icon.

   The Page Definition for page 12, Average Days to Resolve, appears.

2. In the Page field, enter 1 and click Go.

3. Click Edit Attributes.

4. Locate Display Attributes.

5. From the Page Template list, select No Tabs with Sidebar.

6. Click Apply Changes.

Next, create a region to contain your menu.

To create a a new region:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select List and click Next.

3. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Menu.

   2. For Region Template, select No Template.

   3. For Display Point, select Page Template Region Position 2 (or select the quick link [Pos. 2].

   4. Click Next.

4. For Source, select Main Menu.

5. Click Create List Region.

Add Maintenance Navigation

Next, you need to add maintenance navigation as a list. This list will display just below the reports in the left margin.

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click the Shared Components icon.

3. Under Navigation, select Lists.

4. Click Create.

5. For Name, enter Maintenance.

6. For List Template, select Vertical Sidebar List.

7. Click Create.

Next, create three list items. The first list item acts as a separator between the two navigation regions. The other two enable users to view people and projects.

To add list items:

1. Click Create List Entry.

2. To define list item attributes for the first list item:

   1. For List Entry Label, enter:

       
      
      

   2. Under Target, select 1 for Page.

3. Click Create and Create Another.

4. To define list item attributes for Projects:

   1. For Sequence, enter 20.

   2. For List Entry Label, enter:

      Projects
      
      

   3. Under Target:

      • For Page, select 2.

      • Check reset pagination for this page.

5. Click Create and Create Another.

6. To define list item attributes for People:

   1. For Sequence, enter 30.

   2. For List Entry Label, enter:

      People
      
      

   3. Under Target:

      • For Page, select 4.

      • Check reset pagination for this page.

7. Click Create.

To create a region to display the new list.

1. Click the Edit Page icon.

2. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

3. Select List and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Maintenance.

   2. For Region Template, select No Template.

   3. For Display Point, select Page Template Region Position 2 (or select the quick link [Pos. 2].

   4. Click Next.

5. For Source, select Maintenance.

6. Click Create List Region.

Add a New Issues Button

Next, you create a button to navigate the user to page 7, Create/Edit Issue.

To create a region to contain the button:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select HTML and click Next.

3. Select the type of HTML region container you want to create. Select HTML and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Buttons.

   2. For Region Template, select No Template.

   3. For Display Point, select Page Template Region Position 1 (or select the quick link [Pos. 1].

   4. Click Next.

5. Click Create Region.

To add a button:

1. Under Buttons, click the Create icon.

2. For Button Region, select Buttons and click Next.

3. For Button Position, accept the default Create a button in a region position and click Next.

4. For Button Attributes:

   1. For Button Name, enter ADD.

   2. For Label, enter:

      Add a New Issue
      
      

   3. For Action, select Redirect to URL without submitting page.

   4. Click Next.

5. For Button Template, select Button and click Next.

6. For Position, select Top of Region and click Next.

   On the Branching page, you need to call the correct page, clear the cache, and specify that the Create and Cancel buttons returns the user to the home page.

7. On Branching:

   1. For Page, select 7.

   2. For Clear Cache, enter 7.

   3. For Set these items, enter:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   4. For With these values, enter 1.

8. Click Create Button.

Add An Overdue Issues Report

Next, add some content to the home page. In this exercise you add a report to display overdue issues. The query for this report retrieves all unclosed issues with a past target resolution date.

To add a report to display overdue issues:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select Report and click Next.

3. For Report Implementation, select SQL Report and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes, enter Overdue Issues for Title and click Next.

5. For Source, enter the following in Enter SQL Query:

   SELECT i.issue_id,
          i.priority,
          i.issue_summary, 
          p.person_name assignee,
          i.target_resolution_date, 
          r.project_name
     FROM ht_issues i,
          ht_people p,
          ht_projects r
    WHERE i.assigned_to = p.person_id (+)
      AND i.related_project = r.project_id
      AND i.target_resolution_date < sysdate
      AND i.status != 'Closed'
   
   

   The outer join is necessary because the assignment is optional.

6. Click Create Region.

Now that the region has been created, you need to edit the headings and turn the summary into a link to display the issue details.

To edit the column headings:

1. Under Regions, select Report to the left of Overdue Issues.

2. For Headings Type, select Custom.

3. For ISSUE_ID, remove the Heading.

4. For ISSUE_SUMMARY, edit the Heading to read:

   Summary
   
   

5. For ASSIGNEE, change the Heading to:

   Assigned To
   
   

6. For TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE:

   1. For Heading, enter:

      Target<br>Resolution<br>Date
      
      

   2. For Column Align, select center.

   3. For Heading Align, select center.

7. For ISSUE_ID, deselest Show.

   This enables the query to pass in the link, but not display it.

8. Select Sort for all columns except ISSUE_ID.

9. For TARGET_RESOLUTION_DATE, select 1 for Sort Sequence.

10. For ISSUE_SUMMARY, select 2 for Sort Sequence.

To edit column attributes for ISSUE_SUMMARY:

1. Click the Edit icon to the left of ISSUE_SUMMARY.

2. Scroll down to Column Link:

   1. For Link Text, click the quick link of [Icon 3].

   2. For Page, select 7.

   3. For Clear Cache, select 7.

   4. For Item 1, enter the Name:

      P7_ISSUE_ID
      
      

   5. For Item 1, enter the Value:

      #ISSUE_ID#
      
      

   6. For Item 2, enter the Name:

      P7_PREV_PAGE
      
      

   7. For Item 2, enter the Value:

      1
      
      

3. Click Apply Changes.

To select layout and pagination attributes:

1. Scroll down to Layout and Pagination:

   1. For Pagination Scheme, select Search Engine 1,2,3,4 (set based pagination).

   2. For Number of Rows, enter 5.

2. Under Sorting, select the light gray arrow for Ascending and Descending Image.

3. Under the Messages section, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No Overdue Issues.
   
   

4. Click Apply Changes.

Add an Unassigned Issues Report

The next report you add displays unassigned, open issues. This report is very similar to Overdue Issues. Rather than creating it manually, you can copy the Overdue Issues report and modify it.

To create the Unassigned Issues report by copying an existing report:

1. Under Regions, click the Copy icon.

2. Under Name, select Overdue Issues.

3. For To Page, accept the default 1 and click Next.

4. For New Region, enter Unassigned Issues.

5. Click Copy Region.

To modify the query and edit the report region:

1. Under the Regions section, select Unassigned Issues in Region Name.

2. For Region Source, replace the existing statements with the following:

   SELECT i.issue_id,
          i.priority,
          i.issue_summary, 
          i.target_resolution_date, 
          r.project_name,
          p.person_name identifiee
     FROM ht_issues i,
          ht_people p,
          ht_projects r
    WHERE i.assigned_to IS NULL
      AND i.status != 'Closed'
      AND i.related_project = r.project_id
      AND i.identified_by = p.person_id
   
   

3. Select the Report Attributes tab at the top of the page.

   Note that previously defined columns have retained their modified attributes.

4. For IDENTIFIEE, enter the following Heading:

   Identified By
   
   

5. 21. Scroll down to Messages and enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No Unassigned Issues.
   
   

6. Click Apply Changes.

Add a Recently Opened Issues Report

Lastly, you add a report of recently opened issues. The underlying query displays the five most recently opened issues.

To create a report of recently opened issues by copying an existing report:

1. Under Regions, click the Copy icon.

2. Under Name, select Unassigned Issues.

3. For To Page, accept the default 1 and click Next.

4. For Region Name, enter Recently Opened Issues.

5. Click Copy Region.

To modify the query and edit the report region:

1. Under Regions, click the Report to the left of Recently Opened Issues.

2. For all columns:

   1. Disable sorting by deselecting Sort.

   2. Set Sequence to -.

3. Select the Region Definition tab.

4. For Region Source, replace the existing statements with the following:

   SELECT issue_id,
          priority,
          issue_summary, 
          assignee,
          target_resolution_date, 
          project_name,
          identifiee
   FROM 
   (
   SELECT i.issue_id,
          i.priority,
          i.issue_summary, 
          p.person_name assignee,
          i.target_resolution_date, 
          r.project_name,
          p2.person_name identifiee
     FROM ht_issues i,
          ht_people p,
          ht_people p2,
          ht_projects r
    WHERE i.assigned_to = p.person_id (+)
      AND i.related_project = r.project_id
      AND i.identified_by = p2.person_id
      AND i.created_date > (sysdate - 7)
    ORDER BY i.created_date desc
   )
    WHERE rownum < 6
   
   

5. Select the Report Attributes tab at the top of the page.

6. For ASSIGNEE, click the gray up arrow to the right of the Edit column until ASSIGNEE appears after ISSUE_SUMMARY.

7. For ASSIGNEE, change Heading to:

   Assigned To
   
   

8. Scroll down to the Layout and Pagination section. From Pagination Scheme, select - No Pagination Selected -.

9. Under the Messages section, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No Recently Opened Issues.
   
   
   

10. Click Apply Changes.

Add an Open Issues by Project Pie Chart

Next, add a pie chart displaying Open Issues by Project.

To add a pie chart:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. Select Chart and click Next.

3. Select Pie and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes, enter Open Issues by Project in Title and click Next.

5. For Source, enter the following in SQL:

   SELECT NULL LINK,
          NVL(r.project_name,'No Project') label,
          COUNT(r.project_name) value
     FROM ht_issues i,
          ht_projects r
    WHERE i.status = 'Open'
      AND i.related_project = r.project_id
   GROUP BY NULL, r.project_name
   ORDER BY r.project_name
   
   

   Note that this query does not include a link, the label is the Project Name, and the value calculated and used for the pie chart is the total number of open issues by project.

6. Click Create Region.

To edit the chart.

1. Under Regions, select Chart to the left of Open Issues by Project.

2. For Chart Width, enter 500.

3. For Chart Height, enter 200.

4. For Chart Title, remove the title.

5. Under Chart Query, enter the following in When No Data Found Message:

   No Open Issues.
   
   

6. Under Font Settings, for Legend select 14 for the Font Size.

7. Click Apply Changes.

To view the revised page, click the Run Page icon. Your home page should resemble Figure 10-16.

Figure 10-16 Revised Home Page

Description of "Figure 10-16 Revised Home Page"

Add a Breadcrumb Menu

In the previous exercise, you created menus on the home page to enable users to navigate to various pages within your application. Next, you need to provide users with a way to navigate to the home page. You can accomplish by utilizing breadcrumbs. When you created your application, the wizard automatically created a breadcrumb.

In the next exercise, you add breadcrumb entries and then include that breadcrumb within a region on page 0. Adding components to page 0 makes them display on all pages with an application.

Topics in this section include:

• Navigate to the Breadcrumbs Page

• Add Breadcrumb Entries

• Create a Page 0

• Create a Region to Contain the Breadcrumb

Navigate to the Breadcrumbs Page

To navigate to the Breadcrumbs page:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Shared Components.

3. Under Navigation, select Breadcrumbs.

4. Select the breadcrumb, Breadcrumb.

Add Breadcrumb Entries

Next, add breadcrumb entries.

To edit the existing breadcrumb entry for page 1:

1. Under Breadcrumb Entries, click Page 1.

2. Under Breadcrumb, enter 1 in Page.

3. Under Entry, enter Home for Short Name.

4. Under Target, enter 1 in Page.

5. Click Apply Changes.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 2:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb, enter 2 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Projects.

4. Under Target, enter 2 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 3:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb, enter 3 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Projects.

   2. For Short Name, enter Create/Edit Projects.

4. Under Target, enter 3 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 4:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 4 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter People.

4. Under Target, enter 4 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 5:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 5 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select People.

   2. For Short Name, enter Create/Edit Person Information.

4. Under Target, enter 5 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 6:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 6 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Issues.

4. Under Target, enter 6 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 7:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 7 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Create/Edit Issue.

4. Under Target, enter 7 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 8:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 8 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Assign Issues.

4. Under Target, enter 8 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 9:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 9 in Page.

3. For Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Issue Summary by Project.

4. Under Target, enter 9 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 10:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 10 in Page.

3. Under Menu Option:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Resolved by Month Identified.

4. Under Target, enter 10 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry option for page 11:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb enter 11 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Target Resolution Dates.

4. Under Target, enter 11 in Page.

5. Click Create.

To create a breadcrumb entry for page 12:

1. Click Create Breadcrumb Entry.

2. Under Breadcrumb, enter 12 in Page.

3. Under Entry:

   1. For Parent Entry, select Home.

   2. For Short Name, enter Average Days to Resolve.

4. Under Target, enter 12 in Page.

5. Click Create.

Create a Page 0

Now that the breadcrumb exists, you need to create page 0 and then create a region to contain your Breadcrumb menu. Adding components to page 0 makes them display on all pages with an application.

To create a page 0:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Create Page.

3. Select Blank Page and click Next.

4. For Page Attributes, enter 0 for Page and click Next.

5. For Page Name, enter Breadcrumbs for Name and click Next.

6. On Tabs, accept the default, No, and click Next.

7. Review your selections and click Finish.

Create a Region to Contain the Breadcrumb

To create a region to contain your breadcrumb:

1. From the Success page, select Edit Page.

   The Page Definition for page 0 appears.

2. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

3. For Select a common region type, select Breadcrumb and click Next.

4. For Breadcrumb Container Region:

   1. For Region Title, enter Breadcrumbs.

   2. For Region Template, select No Template.

   3. For Display Point, select Page Template Region Position 1.

      This selection displays the breadcrumb above all other content on the page.

   4. Click Next.

5. For Breadcrumb, accept the defaults and click Next.

6. For Breadcrumb Entry, accept the defaults and click Next.

7. Click Finish.

Return to the home page by clicking Edit Page. When the Page Definition for page 0 appears, click the Next Page button (>). The Page Definition for page 1 appears. To see your completed home page, click the Run Page icon. Your home page should resemble Figure 10-17.

Figure 10-17 Revised Home Page with Breadcrumb Menu

Description of "Figure 10-17 Revised Home Page with Breadcrumb Menu"

Notice the Breadcrumb in the top bar. Click one of the items on the Maintenance menu on the left side of the page. Notice how the breadcrumb menu changes.and watch the breadcrumb change.

At this stage your application is fully functional, but is missing the security and email notification. Those topics are discussed in the next section.

Adding Advanced Features

Once your application is fully functional you can focus on adding advanced features outlined during the planning and project analysis phase.

Topics in this section include:

• Add Support for Email Notification

• Add Application Security

Add Support for Email Notification

The planning and project analysis phase produced two email requirements:

• Notify people when an issue is assigned to them

• Notify the project lead when any issue becomes overdue

Topics in this section include:

• How Email Notification Works

• Add Notification of New Assignments

• Add a Notification for Overdue Issues

How Email Notification Works

To send mail from within an Oracle Application Express application, you create a PL/SQL process that calls the supplied HTMLDB_MAIL package.

Email is not sent immediately, but is stored in a temporary queue until a DBMS_JOB pushes the queue. The DBMS_JOB utilizes two preferences, SMTP Host Address and SMTP Host Port, to send mail in the queue. By default, these preferences are set to localhost and 25. If Oracle Application Express is not configured for SMTP services, you need to change your Email Environment Settings.

See Also:

"How to Send Email from an Application" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide to learn about configuring Email Environment settings.

The following is a description of the SEND procedure of the HTMLDB_MAIL package.

PROCEDURE SEND
Argument Name                  Type                    In/Out Default?
------------------------------ ----------------------- ------ --------
P_TO                           VARCHAR2                IN
P_FROM                         VARCHAR2                IN
P_BODY                         VARCHAR2                IN
P_BODY_HTML                    VARCHAR2                IN     DEFAULT
P_SUBJ                         VARCHAR2                IN     DEFAULT
P_CC                           VARCHAR2                IN     DEFAULT
P_BCC                          VARCHAR2                IN     DEFAULT

Add Notification of New Assignments

First, you add a notification to a person when he or she has a new assignment. An assignment can be made or changed from two different pages: Create/Edit Issue and Assign Issues.

On the Create/Edit Issue page, you can store the initial values and then check them against any changes to see if an assignment has been made or changed. Because Assign Issues is a tabular form, there is no way to check the old values against the new values. For that reason, the best way to implement the notification is with a before insert and update trigger on HT_ISSUES. You can create this trigger programmatically using SQL.

Important:

The trigger you are about to create sends emails. If you plan on using this application, change the p_to and p_from within the Trigger Body to your own valid email address. Otherwise, you create emails with invalid addresses each time you assign or reassign an issue.

To create a before insert and update trigger on HT_ISSUES:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the Object Browser icon.

2. Click Create.

3. For Select the type of database object you want to create, select Trigger and click Next.

4. For Name:

   1. For Schema, select the appropriate schema and click Next.

   2. For Table Name, select HT_ISSUES and click Next.

5. For Action, keep the default of Create Trigger and click Next.

6. For Define:

   1. For Trigger Name, enter BIU_HT_ISSUES_NOTIFY_ASSIGNEE.

   2. For Firing Point, select AFTER.

   3. For Options, select insert, update.

   4. For Trigger Body, enter following, replacing the p_to and p_from with your own valid email address:

      IF (INSERTING AND 
          :new.assigned_to IS NOT NULL) 
         OR
         (UPDATING AND
          (:old.assigned_to IS NULL OR 
           :new.assigned_to != :old.assigned_to) AND
         :new.assigned_to IS NOT NULL)
         THEN
            FOR c1 IN 
               (SELECT person_name, person_email
                  FROM ht_people
                 WHERE person_id = :new.assigned_to)
            LOOP
      
            IF c1.person_email IS NOT NULL
               THEN
                  FOR c2 IN 
                      (SELECT project_name
                         FROM ht_projects
                        WHERE project_id = :new.related_project)
                  LOOP
      
                  HTMLDB_MAIL.SEND(
                     p_to => c1.person_email,
                     p_from => c1.person_email,
                     p_body => 
                        'You have been assigned a new issue. '||
                        'The details are below. ' ||chr(10)||
                         chr(10)||
                        ' Project: '|| c2.project_name ||chr(10)||
                        ' Summary: '||:new.issue_summary ||chr(10)||
                        ' Status: '||:new.status ||chr(10)||
                        'Priority: '||nvl(:new.priority,'-'),
                    p_subj => 'New Issue Assignment');
                  END LOOP;
            END IF;
      
        END LOOP;
      END IF;
      
      

   5. Click Next.

7. To review the code, expand the SQL icon.

8. Click Finish.

Add a Notification for Overdue Issues

The second email notification notifies the project lead whenever an issue becomes overdue. An issue becomes overdue when the target resolution date has passed, but the issue is not yet closed. Because there is no human interaction to determine if an issues overdue, you cannot check for it on a page or in a trigger.

The best way to check for overdue issues is to write a package that queries the HT_ISSUES table. If it finds any overdue issues, the package initiates an email to the Project Lead. This procedure checks for issues by project so that the project lead can receive just one email with all overdue issues rather than an email for each issue. The package will be called once a day by a dbms_job.

You can use the Create Object function as follows:

• Create the package and package body from within the SQL

• Use SQL Command Processor to run the create commands

To create the package:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the SQL icon.

2. Click SQL Commands.

   SQL Commands appears.

3. Enter the following in the field provided:

   CREATE OR REPLACE package ht_check_overdue_issues
   AS
      PROCEDURE email_overdue;
   END;
   /
   
   

4. Click Run.

To create the package body:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the SQL icon.

2. Click SQL Commands.

   SQL Commands appears.

3. Enter the following in the field provided, changing p_to and p_from to your own email address:

   CREATE OR REPLACE PACKAGE BODY ht_check_overdue_issues
   AS
   
   PROCEDURE email_overdue
   IS
      l_msg_body varchar2(32000) := null;
      l_count number             := 0;
   BEGIN
   
   FOR c1 IN
      (SELECT pr.project_id,
              pr.project_name,
              pe.person_name,
              pe.person_email
         FROM ht_projects pr,
              ht_people pe
        WHERE pr.project_id = pe.assigned_project
          AND pe.person_role = 'Lead')
   LOOP
      FOR c2 IN
         (SELECT i.target_resolution_date,
                 i.issue_summary,
                 p.person_name,
                 i.status,
                 i.priority
            FROM ht_issues i,
                 ht_people p
           WHERE i.assigned_to = p.person_id (+)
             AND i.related_project = c1.project_id
             AND i.target_resolution_date < SYSDATE
             AND i.status != 'Closed'
        ORDER BY i.target_resolution_date, i.issue_summary)
   LOOP
      IF l_count = 0
         THEN
            l_msg_body := 
              'As of today, the following issues '||
              'are overdue:'||chr(10)||
               chr(10)||
              ' Project: '|| c1.project_name ||chr(10)||
               chr(10)||
             '     Target: '||c2.target_resolution_date ||chr(10)||
             '    Summary: '||c2.issue_summary ||chr(10)||
             ' Status:     '||c2.status ||chr(10)||
             ' Priority:   '||c2.priority ||chr(10)||
             'Assigned to: '||c2.person_name;
    ELSE 
           l_msg_body := l_msg_body ||chr(10)||
               chr(10)||
            '     Target: '||c2.target_resolution_date ||chr(10)||
            '    Summary: '||c2.issue_summary ||chr(10)||
            '     Status: '||c2.status ||chr(10)||
            ' Priority:   '||c2.priority ||chr(10)||
            'Assigned to: '||c2.person_name;
   END IF;
   l_count := l_count + 1;
   END LOOP;
   
    IF l_msg_body IS NOT NULL
      THEN
         HTMLDB_MAIL.SEND(
             p_to => c1.person_email,
           p_from => c1.person_email,
           p_body => l_msg_body,
           p_subj => 'Overdue Issues for Project '||
                      c1.project_name);
    END IF;
    l_count := 0;
   
   END LOOP;
   
   END email_overdue;
   
   END ht_check_overdue_issues;
   /
   
   

4. Click Run.

To update demonstration data to include valid email addresses:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the Object Browser icon.

2. From the Object list on the left side of the page, select Tables.

3. Select the HT_PEOPLE table.

4. Select the Data tab.

5. For each person, edit the email address:

   1. Click the Edit icon.

   2. Change Person Email to a valid email address.

   3. Click Apply Changes.

6. Repeat step 5 for all people within the HT_PEOPLE table.

7. Return to the Database Home Page by clicking the Home breadcrumb link.

To create the DBMS_JOB:

Important:

This job generates email. Do not execute the following script if you running on a hosted Oracle Application Express instance. If you are running Oracle Application Express locally and want to test this script, you must update the demonstration data to include valid email addresses as described in the previous procedure.

1. On the Database Home Page, click the SQL icon.

2. Click SQL Commands.

   SQL Commands appears.

3. Enter the following in the field provided:

   DECLARE
      jobno number;
   BEGIN
      DBMS_JOB.SUBMIT(
         job => jobno,
        what => 'BEGIN
                 ht_check_overdue_issues.email_overdue;
                 END;',
   next_date => SYSDATE,
    interval => 'TRUNC(SYSDATE)+(25/24)' 
                );
      COMMIT;
   END;
   /
   
   

4. Click Run.

This dbms_job executes just after midnight each day.

Add Application Security

The planning and project analysis phase produced two security requirements:

• Only the CEO and Managers can define and maintain projects and people

• Once assigned, only the person assigned or a project lead can change data about the issue

Within Oracle Application Express, you can define authorization schemes. Authorization controls user access to specific controls or components based on user privileges. Once defined, you can associate an authorization scheme with any page, region or item to restrict access. Each authorization schema is run only when needed and is defined to validate either once for each page view or once for each session.

Topics in this section include:

• Restrict Project and People Definition

• Restrict Issue Modification

Restrict Project and People Definition

The first requirement states that only the CEO and Managers may define and maintain projects and people. To address this requirement, you:

• Create an authorization scheme to check the current user's role

• Associate the authorization scheme with the items on the Projects and People report that navigate to the Create/Edit pages

• Associate the authorization scheme with the Create/Edit pages themselves so that a user cannot bypass the security by manually editing the URL to the target page.

To reference the current user, use the session variable :APP_USER. This session variable is compared with the person's email address (which is the same as their database user account or workspace name). Whenever coding this type of security, you should always code in a user that can pass all security. You may find this user very useful for development and testing. If you do not take this approach, you may not be able to access the restricted pages unless you define yourself as the CEO or Manager.

Create the Authorization Scheme

To create the authorization scheme:

1. On the Database Home Page, click Application Builder.

2. Select the Issue Tracker application.

3. Click Shared Components.

4. Under Security, select Authorization Schemes.

5. Click Create.

6. For Create Authorization Scheme, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

7. Under Authorization Scheme Identification, enter the following in Name:

   USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER
   
   

8. Under Authorization Scheme:

   1. For Scheme Type, select Exists SQL Query.

   2. In Expression 1, enter:

      SELECT '1'
        FROM ht_people
       WHERE (upper(person_email) = UPPER(:APP_USER) AND
              person_role IN ('CEO','Manager'))
          OR (UPPER(:APP_USER) = 'HOWTO')
      
      

   3. For Identify error message displayed when scheme violated, enter:

      You are not authorized to access this function.
      
      

9. Scroll down to Evaluation Point. For Validate authorization scheme, select Once per session.

   This selection is sufficient in this instance since the assigned role typically does not change within a given session.

10. Click Create.

Next, you need to associate the authorization scheme with the appropriate objects.

Associate Objects on the Projects Report

To associate the authorization scheme with the Projects report:

1. Click the Edit Page icon.

2. In Page, enter 2 and click Go.

   The Page Definition for page 2, Projects, appears.

3. Under Regions, select Report to the left of Projects.

4. Click the Edit icon to the left of PROJECT_ID.

5. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

6. Click Apply Changes.

7. Click Cancel.

To associate the authorization scheme with the Create button on the Projects report:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 2.

2. Under Buttons, select the Create button.

3. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

4. Click Apply Changes.

Associate Objects with the Create/Edit Report

To associate the authorization scheme with the Create/Edit Project page:

1. Navigate to page 3 by clicking the Next Page (>) button.

   The Page Definition for page 3, Create/Edit Project, appears.

2. Click Edit Attributes.

3. Scroll down to Security.

4. Select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

5. Click Apply Changes.

Associate Objects with the People Report

To associate the authorization scheme with the People report.

1. Navigate to page 4 by clicking the Next Page (>) button.

   The Page Definition for page 4, People, appears.

2. Under Regions, select Report to the left of People.

3. Click the Edit icon to the left of PERSON_ID.

4. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

5. Click Apply Changes.

6. Click Cancel.

To associate the authorization scheme with the Create button on the People report:

1. Navigate to the Page Definition for page 5.

2. Under Buttons, select Create.

3. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

4. Click Apply Changes.

To associate the authorization scheme with the Create/Edit Person Information page:

1. Navigate to page 5 by clicking the Next Page (>) button.

   The Page Definition for page 5, Create/Edit Person Information, appears.

2. Click Edit Attributes.

3. Scroll down to Security.

4. Select the Authorization Scheme USER_CEO_OR_MANAGER.

5. Click Apply Changes.

You can test this creating a user with the username of HOWTO. The HOWTO user should be able to see the edit link. Then, create another user, HOWTO2. This user should not be able to see the link.

See Also:

"Create Users"

Restrict Issue Modification

The second requirement states that once an issue has been assigned, only the person assigned (or a project lead) can change data about the issue. This requirement is a little trickier since it changes for every issue.

Currently, there are two pages that enable users to modify an issue, the Create/Edit Issue page and the Assign Issues page. On the Assign Issues page, the only issues that display are those that are unassigned. Since the issues are unassigned, security is not necessary.

There are many places that a user can navigate to edit an issue:

• Three regions on the home page display issues or have edit links

• The Issues report has links to edit each issue

• The Target Resolution Dates report enables users to select an issue to edit.

Although other users are not allowed to change the data, you do want to enable users to view all the detailed data about an issue so that they can view the progress and resolution. Given this requirement, the best approach is to create an authorization scheme to be evaluated once for each page view.

The authorization scheme will be associated with both the Apply Changes and Delete buttons on the Create/Edit Issue page. This way, unauthorized users can view all the details, but if they do change something, they have no way of saving that change.

For added security, you can also associate the authorization scheme with the process that performs the insert, update and delete on HT_ISSUES. This protects your application against someone changing the URL to call the Apply Changes process. To let users know why they are not able to make changes, you can add an HTML region which displays an explanation when the authorization fails. The SQL for this scheme must be specific to the Create/Edit Issues page because it needs to reference P7_ISSUE_ID. It also needs to retrieve data from the database because at the time it is evaluated, the necessary data will not be available in the session state. The only item that will be available will be P7_ISSUE_ID because it will be passed by the link.

Create the Authorization Scheme

To create the authorization scheme:

1. Navigate to the Application home page.

2. Click Shared Components.

3. Under Security, select Authorization Schemes.

4. Click Create.

5. For Creation Method, accept the default From Scratch and click Next.

6. Under Authorization Scheme Identification, enter the following in Name:

   P7_ASSIGNED_OR_PROJECT_LEAD
   
   

7. Under Authorization Scheme:

   1. For Scheme Type, select PL/SQL Function Returning Boolean.

   2. For Expression 1, enter:

      DECLARE
         l_related_project   integer;
         l_assigned_to       integer;
         l_person_id         integer;
         l_person_role       varchar2(7);
         l_assigned_project  integer;
      BEGIN
      
      -- User is HOWTO or new Issue
      IF :APP_USER = 'HOWTO' or
         :P7_ISSUE_ID IS NULL
         THEN RETURN TRUE;
      END IF;
      
      FOR c1 IN (SELECT related_project,
                        assigned_to
                   FROM ht_issues
                  WHERE issue_id = :P7_ISSUE_ID)
      LOOP
         l_related_project := c1.related_project;
         l_assigned_to     := c1.assigned_to;
      END LOOP;
      
      -- Issue not yet assigned
      IF l_assigned_to IS NULL
      THEN RETURN TRUE;
      END IF;
      
      FOR c2 IN (SELECT person_id,
                 person_role,
                 assigned_project
            FROM ht_people
           WHERE upper(person_email) = upper(:APP_USER))
      LOOP
         l_person_id        := c2.person_id;
         l_person_role      := c2.person_role;
         l_assigned_project := c2.assigned_project;
      END LOOP;
      
      -- User is lead of related project
      IF l_person_role = 'Lead' and 
         l_assigned_project = l_related_project
         THEN RETURN TRUE;
      
      -- User is assigned to issue
      ELSIF l_assigned_to = l_person_id
         THEN RETURN TRUE;
      ELSE
         RETURN FALSE;
      END IF;
      END;
      
      

   3. For Identify error message displayed when scheme violated, enter:

      This issue is not assigned to you, nor are you the Project Lead. Therefore you are not authorized to modify the data.
      
      

8. Scroll down to Evaluation Point. For Validate authorization scheme, select Once per page view.

   This selection is necessary since each issue may have a different result.

9. Click Create.

Now you need to associate the authorization scheme with the appropriate objects on the Create/Edit Issue page.

Associate Objects with the Create Edit Issues Report

To associate the authorization scheme with buttons and processes:

1. Navigate to Application home page.

2. Select page 7 - Create/Edit Issues.

3. Under Buttons, select DELETE.

   1. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme P7_ASSIGNED_OR_PROJECT_LEAD.

   2. Click Apply Changes.

4. Under Buttons, select SAVE.

   1. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme P7_ASSIGNED_OR_PROJECT_LEAD.

   2. Click Apply Changes.

5. Under Processes, select Process Row of HT_ISSUES.

   1. Under Authorization, select the Authorization Scheme P7_ASSIGNED_OR_PROJECT_LEAD.

   2. Click Apply Changes.

Create an HTML Region

Lastly, create a new region to display an explanation when the authorization fails

To create a new region:

1. Under Regions, click the Create icon.

2. On Region, accept the default HTML and click Next.

3. Next specify the type of region container you wish to create. Select HTML and click Next.

4. For Display Attributes:

   1. For Title, enter Not Authorized.

   2. For Display Point, select Page Template Body (2. items below region content).

   3. Click Next.

5. For Source, enter the following in Enter HTML Text Region Source and click Next:

   You are not authorized to modify the data for this issue because<br>you are not the Project Lead nor is the issue assigned to you.
   
   

6. For Authorization Scheme, select {Not}P7_ASSIGNED_OR_PROJECT_LEAD. This selection makes the region only display when the Authorization Scheme fails.

7. Click Create Region.

Figure 10-18 displays the Create/Edit Issue page being run by a person for whom the Authorization fails. Notice a new region displays at the top of the page and that the only button being displayed is Cancel.

Figure 10-18 New Region Displaying Authorization Failure

Description of "Figure 10-18 New Region Displaying Authorization Failure"

A more elegant solution to this security requirement would be to create a different page for viewing the details of an issue. You would need to have a procedure that would take in the issue_id and current user and pass back a flag for view only or edit. Then you could dynamically build the link for all the reports to call either the View page or the Edit page based upon a call to that procedure. You would still want to protect against someone accessing the edit page without using a link so you would also check permission before firing the insert, update and delete process.

Deploying Your Application

Now that your application is complete, the next step is to deploy it. Typically, developers create applications on one server and deploy it on another. Although this approach is not required, it enables you to resolve bugs without impacting the production instance.

Note:

To deploy an application on another server, you need to install and configure another Oracle Database Express Edition instance.

Topics in this section include:

• Move the Application Definition

• Alternate Authentication Mechanisms to Consider

• Create Users

• Publish the URL

Move the Application Definition

The definition for your application lives within the Oracle database. The application definition includes everything that makes up the application, including the templates, but it does not include database object definitions or the underlying data. To move an application to another Oracle Database Express Edition instance, you must export the application definition from your development server and import it into your production server.

Topics in this section include:

• Export the Application Definition

• Create the Required Objects to Support the Application

• Import the Application Definition into the Production Instance

• Load the Data

Export the Application Definition

To export the application definition from your development server:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the Application Builder icon.

2. Select the application you want to export.

3. Click the Export/Import icon and then Export.

4. For Application, select the application created in this exercise.

5. Click Export Application.

6. When prompted, click to Save the file.

7. Specify a location on your local hard drive and click Save.

Create the Required Objects to Support the Application

On your production instance, you need to create the objects necessary to support the application. Log in to the production instance and follow the directions in "Build the Database Objects".

Note:

Although the supporting objects do not need to exist for you to import the application definition, be aware you cannot test the code until they exist.

Import the Application Definition into the Production Instance

Login to the production instance of Database Home Page:

1. On the Database Home Page, click the Application Builder icon.

2. Select the application you want to export.

3. Click the Export/Import icon and then Import.

4. On Import File:

   1. For Import File, click the Browse button and locate your exported file.

   2. For File Type, select Application/Page Export.

   3. For File Character Set, accept the default and click Next.

   Once the success message appears, the next step is to install the file.

5. Click Install.

6. On Application Install:

   1. For Parse As Schema, select the schema on your production server that contains your application objects.

   2. For Build Status, you select Run and Build Application.

      This option enables other users to run the application and enables you to log in and change the code if necessary. Alternatively, you can select Run Application Only. Be aware that if you select this option you will not be able to access the source code for the application.

   3. For Install As Application, you can select:

      • Reuse Application ID from Export File - Only select this option if the application ID is not being used on the production instance.

      • Auto Assign New Application ID - Select this option to assign a new application ID.

      • Change Application ID - Select this option to change the existing application ID. If you select this option, you will be prompted to enter a new application ID.

        When you install an application having the same ID as an existing application in the current database user account, the existing application is deleted and then the new application is installed. If you attempt to install an application having the same ID as an existing application in a different database user account, an error message appears.

        If all statements are successful the install commits and becomes permanent. If any errors are encountered, the install is rolled back, resulting in no permanent changes.

   4. Click Install Application.

   If the install is successful, the Post-App Install Utility Options page appears. From here, you can select one of the following:

   • Select Run Application to see application running

   • Select Edit Application Attributes to view the application definition within Application Builder

Load the Data

The next step in deploying your application would be to load the data. At a minimum, you would need to populate the project and people tables.

Note there are various mechanisms you could use to accomplish this task, including:

• Use the application itself to create data.

• Use the Data Loader to load data copied from a spreadsheet.

• Use SQL Scripts and run scripts to create data.

• If you have data existing already within an Oracle database, use either export/import to move data between machines or use SQL to retrieve and transform existing data and load it into the application tables.

See Also:

"Loading Demonstration Data" and "Importing, Exporting, Loading, and Unloading Data" in Oracle Database Express Edition 2 Day DBA Guide

Alternate Authentication Mechanisms to Consider

When the application login page calls the login API with a username and password, the Application Express engine calls the credentials verification method specified in the application's current authentication scheme. You have three choices as to how credentials are verified from within the login API:

• Implement the method yourself as a PL/SQL function returning Boolean and put it in your application's schema.

• Use the built-in LDAP authentication method, which checks username and password against the LDAP directory that you specify.

• Use the built-in Oracle Application Express authentication method, which checks the username and password against the Oracle Application Express user account repository.

Your application is currently using the built-in Oracle Application Express authentication method.

See Also:

"Establishing User Identity Through Authentication" in Oracle Database Express Edition Application Express User's Guide

Create Users

In order for your application to be accessible, you need to create users. If you are still using Oracle Application Express authentication, the simplest way to create users it to access the Manage Users page.

To create a new user:

1. Navigate to the Database Home Page and click the Application Builder icon.

2. From the Administration list, select Manage Application Express Users.

3. Select Create User.

4. Under User Identification, enter the required information.

5. Click Create or Create and Create Another.

Publish the URL

Now that you have deployed your application, loaded data, and created users, you can publish your production URL.

You can determine the URL to your application by positioning the mouse over the Run icon on the Application home page. The URL displays in the status bar at the bottom of the page.

The Run icon gets its value from the Home link attribute on the Edit Security Attributes page. This link is only referenced by this icon and by applications that do not use the Application Express Login API. Consider the following example:

http://apex.oracle.com/pls/otn/f?p=11563:1:3397731373043366363

Where:

• apex.oracle.com is the URL of the server

• pls is the indicator to use the mod_plsql cartridge

• otn is the data access descriptor (DAD) name

• f?p= is a prefix used by Oracle Application Express

• 11563 is application being called

• 1 is the page within the application to be displayed

• 3397731373043366363 is the session number

To run this example application, you would use the URL:

http://apex.oracle.com/pls/otn/f?p=11563:1

When each user logs in, he or she receives an unique session number.

As you may recall, you created the Issue Tracker application using the Create Application wizard. This wizard creates a process on the Login page (page 101) that controls authentication. The contents of the process are:

WWV_FLOW_CUSTOM_AUTH_STD.LOGIN(
    P_UNAME => :P101_USERNAME,
    P_PASSWORD => :P101_PASSWORD,
    P_SESSION_ID => :FLOW_SESSION,
    P_FLOW_PAGE => :APP_ID||':1'
    );

Note that the Page is hard coded into this process. Because of this, the page you pass in the URL is overwritten and does not need to be included. You can access the application by using the following URL:

http://apex.oracle.com/pls/otn/f?p=11563:1

As you can see from the example used, the URL has no meaning and can be rather long. The host name can be changed to make it more symbolic.