PeopleTools Global Technology Overview

Oracle's PeopleSoft applications are functionally equipped for implementation in global enterprises. However, country-specific application business logic is not enough to make an application global-ready. The technology behind the applications, Oracle's PeopleTools, provides the core global functionality that is common to all PeopleSoft application products, including support for multiple languages in a single database, data display formats that use the standards that users expect with their language and country, and multiple time zone support. PeopleTools is designed so that a single implementation can serve users in different regions: users can share the same data while operating in different languages and applying different date, time, and numeric formatting conventions.

This PeopleBook covers many aspects of global technology implementation of interest to a variety of users:

  • Administrators responsible for installing and maintaining the PeopleSoft database and applications.

  • Developers designing new PeopleTools and PeopleSoft application objects.

  • Translators translating PeopleTools and PeopleSoft application objects into new languages.

  • End users setting up their user preferences or working with multiple languages.

PeopleTools global technology implementation can be divided into four main task areas:

  1. Installation-level globalization tasks.

    These tasks include selecting and setting up character sets and sort orders, installing PeopleSoft-delivered translations, and setting up currency and time zone options.

    Many installation-level globalization tasks are required in a multinational implementation, even if you use only English-language data.

  2. Post-installation globalization setup tasks.

    These tasks include a variety of setup tasks, some of them optional, that can be performed by administrators, developers, and end users.

  3. PeopleSoft application translations.

    The PeopleSoft application delivers non-English translations in a number of languages, which enables users to process data in multiple languages from a single database. The PeopleSoft application also provides tools that enable users to modify delivered translations to suit local needs.

    You may also need to translate applications or application objects into languages that are not supplied by the PeopleSoft application, or you may need to translate your customizations. PeopleTools provides translation tools and recommendations for successful translations.

  4. Global application object development.

    Development for global applications requires special tools and special considerations. This book describes the PeopleTools that developers need and the practices that developers should follow to develop successful global, translatable applications.