Updated Oracle Visual Builder Studio

Here are some key things you can now do to extend your application pages using Visual Builder Studio:

  • Global functions

When your application routinely uses similar JavaScript functions to transform or manipulate data, you can now extract those functions as global functions and reuse them in pages (fragments or any other container), both within and across extensions. For more information, see Add JavaScript Modules As Global Functions.

  • Changes to application UI settings

    The Show in Ask Oracle property in the flow-level Settings editor, which adds a flow to the Oracle Cloud Application or Ask Oracle Navigator menu, is now changed to the Add to Oracle Cloud Applications menu. This property is now not available from the page-level Settings editor.

    The Add to Oracle Cloud Applications menu is now automatically enabled for an application UI's default flow, so the default flow always appears in the Navigator menu. For non-default flows, you must still make this selection manually.

    Further, when the Add to Oracle Cloud Applications menu is selected to display a flow (default or otherwise) in the Navigator menu, the Let other App UIs navigate to this flow property is also selected. So, navigation from other application UIs is always enabled to the default page in that flow. For more information, see Manage a Flow's Settings.

  • Support for External Flexfields in business rules

External Flexfield (EFF) segments are now listed in Regions and Fields for business rules. A user can now configure the Required, Hidden, and Read Only properties of an EFF segment. See Set Properties for Regions and Fields.

  • Advanced Expression editor

You can now create more complex expressions in JavaScript using a new Advanced Expressions editor. The editor's palette contains a set of actions based on JavaScript functions and supports the extension's global functions. The editor can be used in Validation rules to create conditions and in business rules for creating conditions and defining default values. For more information, see Build Advanced Expressions.

  • Support for Validation message

You can now add rule-based validation messages to dynamic layouts in pages that use business rules. Validation rules allow users to configure rule-based validation errors and warning messages. You create conditions for Validation rules using a condition builder (as in the Business Rules editor) and define the messages that are displayed when the conditions are met. For more information, see Display Messages When Conditions are Met. This functionality is also supported in Express mode.

  • Express mode enhancements

Express mode now supports editors that were only available in Advanced mode:

You can now view and edit page constants directly in the Properties pane. For more information, see Work With Constants.

  • Dark theme

You can now personalize the Designer's theme to switch from the default light theme to a dark theme more suited for low-light conditions. You can also sync your environment's color palette with your OS settings. For visual applications, see Tour the Designer. For extensions, see What is the Designer?This functionality is also supported in Express mode.

  • Buffering Data Provider type

Oracle JET's Buffering Data Provider, which temporarily stores data changes in a buffer until they are ready to be committed to the data source, is now available as a type out of the box in VB Studio. You can create variables based on the Buffering Data Provider type and bind them to tables, list views, or any component that accepts a data provider. For visual applications, see Create Variables to Temporarily Store Data in a Buffer. For extensions, see Create Variables to Temporarily Store Data in a Buffer.

  • Build-related logs

You can now troubleshoot build-related issues that prevent your app from being shared or deployed. Build logs are available in a new Logs tab at the bottom of your browser. For visual applications, see Troubleshoot Build Issues. For extensions, see Troubleshoot Build Issues.

  • Audit improvements

We've made several improvements, including performance updates, to enhance the auditing experience, key among them being:

  • Navigator badge to indicate audit error

Audit errors are now badged in the Navigator to indicate that action must be taken to resolve the issue. The badge persists until the error is fixed or until the session ends.

  • New Copy to Clipboard option

A new Copy to Clipboard option in the right-click menu allows you to copy one or all audit issues to your clipboard for further processing.

For visual applications, see Audit Application Code. For extensions, see Debug and Audit Your Code.

  • Event and action chain changes

We've made several enhancements to improve the design-time experience when working with events and action chains. We also renamed the Actions tab as Action Chains. Other enhancements include:

  • Changes to the Assign Variable action
    • The Assign Variable action can now be used to create a local variable, by adding the action and using the Properties pane to define it.
    • Consecutive Assign Variable actions are now consolidated into a single action.

For visual applications, see Add an Assign Variable Action. For extensions, see Add an Assign Variable Action.

  • Support to drag and drop an action into an else branch

You can now drag and drop an action into an else branch on the canvas.

  • Event editor updates to improve developer productivity

We've reworked how new action chains are generated when you create a listener for an event. Previously, you would use several clicks to create a new action chain at the desired scope with a particular name in the Create Event Listener wizard. Now, you simply click the Create {scope} Action Chain option to generate an action chain with a name in the {event/varId}ChangeListener format.

We've also added a shortcut to create a listener when you're working with custom events in the Events editor. Simply select the new Create Event Listener option in an event's right-click menu to create a new event listener, called {eventId}ChangeListener, in the same scope as the event.

For visual applications, see Create Event Listeners for Events. For extensions, see Create Event Listeners for Events.

  • Quick start enhancements

Quick start enhancements include:

  • Quick start in endpoint picker for customized fragment variable display

When an object-type input parameter in a fragment is customized to display an endpoint picker, fragment users can use the Configure Endpoint quick start to select a suitable endpoint and choose its URI parameters. For visual applications, see Customize How a Fragment Variable is Displayed in the Properties Pane. For extensions, see Customize How a Fragment Variable is Displayed in the Properties Pane.

  • Automatic endpoint selection in collection quick starts

When using a business object or a service with expected endpoints, VB Studio now automatically selects the correct endpoint in the Add Create Page, Add Edit Page, and Add Detail Page quick starts. You only need to select the fields you want to display on your pages. For visual applications, see Use the Create Page Quick Start, Use the Add Edit Page Quick Start, and Use the Add Detail Page Quick Start. For extensions, see How Do Quick Starts Work?

  • General improvements

General enhancements include:

  • Core Pack in Components palette

The next generation of Oracle JET components, known as Core Pack components, are now available in the Components palette as part of the Early Access category. These components, written entirely using the VComponent API and the JET Virtual DOM architecture, are available as a completely new set of components, so you can use Core Pack and legacy components side by side in your application. Core Pack components provide improved rendering performance over legacy components. For visual applications, see Add Components to Pages. For extensions, see Add Components to Pages.

  • Highlighting of default flow/page in the navigator

The default page and flow within your app are now badged as default in the navigator for easier identification. This way, you can quickly identify the entry points for your app without having to check artifact configuration. For visual applications, see How are Applications Structured? For extensions, see How Are App UIs Structured?

  • Page input parameters from parent flows

When input parameters for a page are defined beyond its current scope (say, at the app or flow level), those parameters are now listed in the Page Input Parameters dialog, allowing you to readily pass the input parameter from parent flows and pages. For visual applications, see Enable Variables as Input Parameters. For extensions, see Enable Variables as Input Parameters.

The new Visual Builder Studio functionality provides you with a platform to extend your Fusion Applications extensively.

Steps to Enable

You don't need to do anything to enable this feature.

Key Resources