Luc Bors presented tips for UI reuse in Oracle Application Development Framework (ADF). He discussed using page templates, declarative components, stylesheets, and task flows to create reusable components. Page templates allow defining common page layouts and styles. Declarative components encapsulate combinations of ADF Faces components. Stylesheets define common styles. Task flows create reusable multi-page flows with input parameters and output events. These reusable assets can be packaged in ADF libraries and shared across applications.

1. Luc Bors, june 2013, ODTUG KScope 2013 New Orleans
Tips and Tricks for UI Reuse in Oracle ADF
Don't Reinvent the Wheel

2. Who Am I
• Luc Bors
• Principal Consultant
• AMIS Nieuwegein Netherlands
• Friends of Oracle & Java
• 5 Oracle ACE(D)
• Oracle Partner

3. Topics
• Reuse – ADF Controller and Faces
– Page Templates
– Declarative Components
– Stylesheets
– Task Flows

4. The (somewhat ugly)
Sample Application

5. Page Templates
• Specify the layout structure (of groups) of pages
– For example: top bar, side bar, footer
– Predefine placeholders for pages to inject their contents
• Page can be based on template
– It will provide the content for the placeholders (seen as facets)
– It can pass parameters to the template – for example for the title of the page or the
page bread crumb trail

6. Page Templates
• Centrally specifying the overall structure and some of the look & feel for
all or specific types of pages
• Can also be applied dynamically, depending on some context settings
– This allows a single page to be presented in different ways to different users or under
different conditions
– Templates allow different structure and component ordering for the same page
• Page Templates make maintenance of the overall layout structure much
easier

7. Page Templates
• Create a Page Template
– Embed one or more facetRef elements for the holes to be filled by the pages
based on the template
– Publish the template “API” – the input parameters it supports
• Create pages based on the template
– In these pages, provide content for the facets exposed by the template
– Provide values for input parameters supported by template
• At any point in time:
– change the template (reusing same facetRefs and parameters)
– change the facet contents in any page
– change template ref in a page (to template with same facets)
• Can be done dynamically

8. Defining the template

9. Building the Layout

10. Using the Attributes

11. The Template Definition

12. The Template UI components

13. Demo

14. Custom Components
• Compose reusable ‘packages’ for frequently occurring combinations of
ADF Faces/JSF components
– Declarative reuse for consistency and productivity
– Better encapsulation than page fragments
– Internally a declarative component is built out of a combination of JSF components
• Declarative components can be used like normal JSF components
– They expose a number of attributes (that are wired to attributes of the internal JSF
components)
– They may have facets (to embed other JSF components)
• Examples: LOV/DropDown Switcher, InputTime, Selection components for
static domains, Button bars

15. Custom Components
• Choose JSF Declarative Component in the New Gallery
• Specify the properties for the component
– Name, Package, TaglibName
– The attributes exposed to consumers of the components
• And default values for the attributes
– Methods – name and signature – to use for method bindings
– Names of the facets that are published (and that will be used to embed JSF content
inside the declarative component)
• Create the content of the Component by assembling JSF components –
much like you do for a Page Template
– Using facetRef components, #{attrs.<attrName>} and #{component.<methodName>}

16. Create Custom Component

17. Defining the Component

18. Building the UI

19. Demo

20. Stylesheets

21. Demo

22. Overview
• Reusable components – Bounded Task Flows
– Multi page, isolated memory scope
– Controller and flow logic, executing business logic
– Interface with input parameters and output events
– Dynamically switching between regions
– Role based authorization
– Transaction management
– Savepoints and Rollback support
• Unbounded Task Flow
– Bookmarking, …

23. Examples

24. Create a Bounded Task Flow

25. Taskflows

26. Building a Reusable Task Flow
Catalog
• Organizations may create a catalog of task flows
• Reusable services, encapsulated with clear
interfaces
– Input parameters
– Result
– Events published
• Such task flows can also be published by
– Third parties
– ‘the community’

27. Demo

28. Reusing Reusables:
ADF Libraries
• Sharing reusable assets
– Task Flows, Stylsheets, PageTemplates and Custom Components
– can be deployed and distributed through ADF Libraries (JAR files, design time)
– ADF Libraries are added to consuming applications
– When added, components from library can be reused in consuming application

29. ADF Libraries
• ADF Library enables you to reuse components:
– Package them into ADF Library JAR files
– Add them to a reusable component repository
– Add the library to a project to use its components

30. How does it work
• Deploy the project that contains the component(s) to an ADF Library JAR
– JDeveloper automatically adds the required Tag library for the declarative
component(s)
• Add the Library in consuming projects
– Via the Resource Palette
• Declarative components will show up on the Component Palette
– They are used like normal components with attributes, method bindings and facets

31. Deployment Profile

32. Library Deployment

33. Using an ADF Library

34. Libraries are added

35. What do we have so far ?
• ADF Page Template
• ADF Custom Component
• ADF Style sheet
• ADF Taskflow

36. Using the Template

37. Setting attribute values

38. Using the Stylesheet

39. Using the Custom Component

40. Using the Taskflow

41. Setting up the region

42. Refreshing the region

43. Demo

44. Lets make some Changes
• All Reusable components can be changed
• Will have immediate effect in the application
– After redeployment of the library

45. Other Topic : Reuse in ADF BC
• Declarative Model Driven functionality
– Most Recently Used, UI Hints
– List of Values, Model Driven Query Form
• Entity Object Business Logic Group
• View Criteria
– Multiple faces on the same ViewObject
• Shared Application Module
– Reuse data across sessions

46. Summary
• ADF Provides mechanisms for reuse
• Initial investment
• Payback time is later
• Considerations:
– Is it reusable ?
– Will I reuse it ?
• But also
– Modularity
– Maintainability
– Increased Productivity

48. Luc Bors, AMIS, The Netherlands
Luc.Bors@amis.nl
LucBors@gmail.com
Follow me on : @lucb_