Keeping with the tradition, here is the 2013 Top Openomics Blog Posts roll-up.

Data comes from Adobe SiteCalalyst aka Omniture.

Have you heard?

There will be a Public Sector Fusion Middleware User Group in Chicago scheduled for Wednesday February 26th from 9:45am to 2:15pm.  This User Group will be sponsored by Oracle Platinum Partner Sofbang. The User Group Meeting will be at 233 South Wacker Dr. Suite 4500, Chicago, IL 60606

Oracle Customer Chicago Park District will be the guest speaker

Check out the Chicago Park District Case Study - http://www.sofbang.com/Portals/0/SofbangFiles/CaseStudies/Sofbang-CaseStudy-CPD.pdf

For more information or if you would like to attend the user group, please contact Gwen Richardson at gwen.richardson@oracle.com

jcMod, which stands for Java clustered modelling, is a collaborative modelling platform developed in South Africa. It integrates the many modelling tasks found at a typical inflation targeting central bank in a controlled, multi-user environment and offers advanced functionality for data capture, modelling, simulating and reporting. It also maintains a repository of all past data, models and reports for future reference.

The application is fairly advanced but also highly customized to the needs of a central bank, especially if that bank is an inflation targeting central bank. It can also be used at any econometric modelling institution. The problem is that a typical modelling institution will have to use multiple applications in order to be able to construct the diverse suite of models required today. This leads to huge integration issues. The application offers a lot of integrated modelling, data and report writing functionality and thus allows for easy collaboration.

jcMod supports a large number of models, such as exponential smoothing, OLS, NLS, ARIMA, ARCH, GARCH, VAR, SVAR and VECM models. jcMod can simulate and optimise multivariate models, Kalman filters and DSGE models and can sample, using Gibbs or MCMC sampling, parameters from these models. Its modular nature means jcMod can easily be extended to support more models, with neural networks planned for the nearby future for example.

jcMod's reports are used by both the modelling team and the monetary policy committee (MPC) and its report editor, apart from normal editing, also allows for the layout of equations and advanced plotting of data, such as histograms and fan charts. Reports and images can be exported in bitmapped or vector (EMF and EPS) formats.

jcMod makes heavy use of Java and NetBeans Platform 7.4 but takes care not to introduce any other external dependencies and jcMod clients can run on any recent JVM.

More screenshots:

As part of the Fusion Middleware Partner Community Forum 2014 we offer hands-on Coherence 12c Bootcamp The conference is ONLY for Oracle Partners, for details please visit our registration page!

Trainer:Maciej Gruszka, Senior Principal Product Manager at Oracle
Agenda Highlights

• Basic knowledge in Java and JavaEE
• Understanding the Application Server concept
• Basic knowledge in older releases of WebLogic Server

Technical Requirements:

• Laptop 6 GB RAM
• Pentium 4 CPU with minimal 1.6 GHz (better Dual-Core)
• Minimum 15 GB free disk space

Take this opportunity and register now for the Oracle Fusion Middleware Partner Community Forum that will be held in the Hilton Malta on February 18th and 19th 2014 with hands-on training on February 20th & 21st 2014- Like last year we expect that the conference is booked out –register asap!

• SOA Suite 12c& Cloud integration
• BPM Suite 12c& Adaptive Case Management 12c
• Internet of Things & mobile strategy & fast data
• WebLogic 12c the foundation of Oracle Fusion Middleware.

WebLogic Partner Community

For regular information become a member in the WebLogic Partner Community please visit: http://www.oracle.com/partners/goto/wls-emea ( OPN account required). If you need support with your account please contact the Oracle Partner Business Center.

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The moustaches came in all shapes and sizes - there were Hungarian, Dali, Imperial, Freestyle, Handlebars, Horseshoes – so many varieties of facial fuzz, it was hard to keep up! One thing for sure, the men of Oracle took their moustache growing very seriously during the month ofMovember as the finest facial hair and the most marvellous Mo’s sprouted up around Oracle Offices in Dublin and Malaga.

Movember is an annual charity campaign which asks men to grow a moustache throughout the month of November to raise money and awareness for men’s health. It specifically funds programmes for testicular and prostate cancer and the men who are affected by the disease. The annual Movember campaign, now in its 10th year was originally started in Australia in 2003, and last year raised €110 million with 1.1 million bros taking part from around the world.

Veronica Bodano, organiser of the ‘last push’ for the Movember fund raising campaign in Oracle Direct said:

“Movember is about raising awareness about men’s health and men’s cancer as well as raising much needed funds for research. Most of the guys who participated in Movember really believe in the cause as they know people – whether it’s a friend or a family member who have been affected by cancer. “

This year over 50 guys from the Dublin and Malaga offices grew some fabulous Mo’s for the Oracle Direct Movember fundraising campaign, raising €4700 in total for this worthwhile cause.

Some of the Movember bro’s had their impressive Mo’s shaved off at a charity shaving event held in Block I Canteen in Dublin on Monday 2nd December. In a show of solidarity, the girls from Oracle joined in by wearing fake Mo’s for the day – a look they are not likely to repeat again and all in the name of raising awareness and much needed funds for charity!

Jimmy Kehoe, one of the main organisers of this year’s event said:

“The reality is that 1 in 8 Irish men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. Movember is an opportunity for us guys to get together and do our bit for Men’s Health while having a bit of fun”.

The Movember guys and girls would like to thank everyone for their generosity towards the cause and remind anyone who would still like to contribute that they can do so at the following link: http://ie.movember.com/team/984333

---- written by Susan Farrelly----  

One of the things I get to do as manager of OTN's Architect Community is work with community members who submit articles for publication on OTN. These articles typically deal with SOA, middleware, business intelligence, and other topics relevant to software architects. Thirty-seven such articles were published in calendar year 2013. The list below represents the Top 10 most popular of those articles.

Congratulations to the authors of these technical articles!

1. Cookbook: Installing and Configuring Oracle BI Applications 11.1.1.7.1 [August 2013]
   by Mark Rittman and Kevin McGinley
   Oracle ACE Directors and business intelligence specialists Rittman and McGinley take the #1 slot with their step-by-step guide to installing, configuring, and loading an initial set of tables within Oracle BI Applications 11.1.1.7.1. using data sourced from Oracle E-Business Suite 12.1.3
2. Enterprise Service Bus [July 2013]
   by Jürgen Kress, Berthold Maier, Hajo Normann , Danilo Schmeidel , Guido Schmutz , Bernd Trops, Clemens Utschig-Utschig, Torsten Winterberg
   Members of the Masons of SOA, including several Oracle ACE Directors, use concrete examples to provide answers to some of the most important questions surrounding the term "enterprise service bus." Part of the Industrial SOA Series.
3. Set Up and Manage Oracle Data Guard using Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control 12c [August 2013]
   by Porus Homi Havewala
   Havewala is the author of Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control 12c: Managing Data Center Chaos (2012, Packt Publishing) and Oracle Enterprise Manager Grid Control: Advanced OEM Techniques for the Real World (2010, Rampant TechPress), as well as a prolific blogger. In this article he describes how to use Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control 12c's Oracle Data Guard setup and management capabilities to control downtime and simplify disaster recovery.
4. SOA Blueprint: A Toolbox for Architects [April 2013]
   by Jürgen Kress, Berthold Maier, Hajo Normann , Danilo Schmeidel , Guido Schmutz , Bernd Trops, Clemens Utschig-Utschig, Torsten Winterberg
   Also from the Industrial SOA Series, this article introduces the foundations that need to be established in order to implement functional SOA processes, defining a broadly applicable SOA blueprint whose individual modules can be topped up with commercial products or increasingly available open source offerings.
5. SOA and User Interfaces
   by Jürgen Kress, Berthold Maier, Hajo Normann , Danilo Schmeidel , Guido Schmutz , Bernd Trops, Clemens Utschig-Utschig, Torsten Winterberg
   Yes, it's another chapter from the Industrial SOA Series -- and a clear indication that OTN readers have SOA on their minds.  This article examines best practices for overcoming the challenges to developing user interfaces in a service oriented architecture.
6. Fanning Out Events on the Oracle SOA Suite 11g Event Delivery Network [February 2013]
   by Lucas Jellema
   Oracle ACE Director Lucas Jellema is a prolific blogger, frequent OTN contributor, and a familiar speaker on SOA and middleware at Oracle user group events. His article describes how events can be used in Oracle SOA Suite 11g to have business processes impact each other in a meaningful way with maximum decoupling.
7. Industrial SOA: Preface [April 2013]
   by Jürgen Kress, Berthold Maier, Hajo Normann , Danilo Schmeidel , Guido Schmutz , Bernd Trops, Clemens Utschig-Utschig, Torsten Winterberg
   No, it's not deja vu! The lead-off chapter in the Industrial SOA Series is the fourth article from that series to appear in this Top 10 list. This time the by-now familiar team of SOA experts describes how "service-orientation continues to evolve towards a factory approach, towards industrializing integrated platforms, such as BI, master data management (MDM), mobile front-ends, BPM, adaptive processes, Big Data and Cloud Computing."
8. On the Integrity of Data [April 2013]
   by Lucas Jellema
   Oracle ACE Director Lucas Jellema makes his second appearance in the 2013 Top 10 list with this introduction to the basics of data integrity enforcement in a variety of environments.
9. Moving to Oracle WebCenter Content 11g Web Services [April 2013]
   by Jon McDonald
   McDonald, a principle solutions architect with the Oracle WebCenter Content Architecture Team (A-Team), offers examples for working with the generic and native web services provided in Oracle WebCenter Content 11g.
10. Track Down a Memory Leak
    by Dr. Frank Munz
    Munz, an Oracle ACE Director and 2011 Oracle Technologist of the Year, shares provided this sample chapter from his latest book, Oracle WebLogic Server 12c: Distinctive Recipes.

Do you have an idea for an OTN technical article? You'll find guidelines here. And if you have any questions, pop them into the comments section and I'll respond as fast as I can type. Who knows, maybe your article will make it to the Top 10 list for 2014.

To help you make the most of Oracle Data Integrator, and to deliver a superior ownership experience in an effort to minimize systems management costs, Oracle recently released Oracle Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator.This new product leverages Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control's advanced management capabilities to provide an integrated and top-down solution for your Oracle Data Integrator environments.Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator supports both 11g (11.1.1.7.0 and higher) and 12c versions of Oracle Data Integrator.

Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator provides a consolidated view of your entire Oracle Data Integrator infrastructure. This enables users to monitor and manage all their components centrally from Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control.

Performance Monitoring and Management

Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator streamlines the monitoring of the health, performance, and availability of each and all components of an Oracle Data Integrator environment – this includes Master and Work Repositories, Standalone and JEE agents, as well as source and target Data Servers.

Figure 1 – Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator - Dashboard

Through an easy-to-use graphical interface, administrators and operators are able to quickly asses the status of their Oracle Data Integrator environments.The Dashboard page provides a summary of the health of each Oracle Data Integrator components, and clearly highlights potential issues with links for drill-down such that users can easily further investigate and assess more details.

Figure 2 – Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator– Repositories Page

The Repositories page clearly offers key database statistics and performance metrics, where users can easily track the growth of the repository tablespace and purge the Oracle Data Integrator logs when needed – one of Oracle Data Integrator’s best practices!

Figure 3 – Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator– Database Execution Details Page

The Load plan Executions/Sessions page allows developers and operators to view the entire Oracle Data Integrator Sessions activities and review detailed execution statistics; such as the overall duration of processes, or the number of inserts, updates, deletes performed.Users can click to access database details on Oracle, or to view a relevant entire SQL statement generated by Oracle Data Integrator.

Figure 4 - Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator– Agents Details Page

The Agents Page provides the list of Oracle Data Integrator Agents and the ability to drill down into each one.Recently triggered alerts or warnings can also be viewed.Overall metrics for agent performance, with quick links to session details are provided.

Configuration Management

To ensure that the configurations of all critical Oracle Data Integrator components in production environments are consistent with staging or test environments, Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator provides Configuration Snapshots to save working configurations into the Management Repository or into an external XML file.These snapshots can then be compared with the active configuration in staging or test environments, or against any historical snapshot.Configuration Comparison is the next logical step which thus allows you to ensure the consistency of configurations in your application environment.Going one step further, Configuration History keeps track of all configuration changes, which can help in diagnosing performance problems that may be related to configuration changes along the way.

Service Level Management

Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator allows for a proactive method to monitor Oracle Data Integrator environments at all levels.Many out of the box metrics are automatically collected for each Oracle Data Integrator component (repositories, agents, sources, targets…) which then provides users the ability to set up alerts based on critical or warning thresholds.Notifications can be provided to users in various ways through emails or Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) options.

Historical Analysis and Reporting

While real-time metrics certainly come in handy, there is also something to be said for historical collection of data!Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator stores collected metrics and configurations data in a central repository–allowing users to thus analyze the metrics in various incremental views that include; last 24 hours, last 7 days, last 31 days.In addition, customizable service and system dashboard functionality allows users to create reports on various services and systems for service level availability, usage, performance, and business indicators – all in an effort to facilitate strategic trend analysis and reporting.

In a nutshell, Oracle Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator benefits include:reducing the costs associated with monitoring the overall Oracle Data Integrator infrastructure and providing visibility into complex Oracle Data Integrator deployments across the enterprise, minimizing troubleshooting and performance tuning efforts as well as improving the overall ability to efficiently monitor Service Level Agreement compliance using powerful alerting capabilities.

Oracle Management Pack for Oracle Data Integrator is a new Management Pack, licensed separately.From an installation perspective it is packaged in the Fusion Middleware plug-ins for Enterprise Manager (version 12.1.0.4 and higher) and comes with the base Enterprise Manager 12c download. There is no separate installation file to download.

Try it out!Getting Started with Oracle Fusion Middleware Management Plug-in

Live Webcast: January 8 - 10:00 a.m. PST | 1:00 p.m. EST

Hear direct from the Application Management Pack team on the Advanced Management of Oracle E-Business Suite functionality.  This webcast session covers the value delivered by the current release of Application Management Pack such as Online Patching with for E-Business Suite R12.2, Customization Management, Cloning, System Monitoring, Configuration & Compliance Management and Product Road map. You will come away with an understanding of the value of Application Management Pack for Oracle E-Business Suite applications delivered now and in the future. 

Click here to Register

If you want to know more about similar events, take a look at the Oracle Enterprise Manager Events page.

Hey all,

Happy New Year!

If your using FusionApps, and are wondering what can you modify on the screen, its worth checking out this video. It demonstrates the usage of EL to hide/show fields based on values on the screen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVWrIbf_82Q&list=PL1ZiAfFIniZclvZFvJudjDYmkhmosK13A

If your doing anything with Oracle Fusion Apps, you really ought to read this newly released book. Its a great start, but just beware that some of the content isn't applicable to the "Cloud" variants of Fusion Apps, BUT it really helps to know how it works under the covers.. 

Its available on OReily Safari,  or you can also purchase the book on sites like Amazon

If you want to create an Oracle Text CONTEXT index on multiple columns, you would normally use a MULTI_COLUMN_DATASTORE or USER_DATASTORE to bring in the various columns for indexing.

This works well, but the kernel doesn't know which columns you've used in the index.  As far as the kernel is concerned, you have created the index on a specific column, and it will only update the index when the contents of that column change.

Hence it is common to create a trigger something like the following:

CREATE OR REPLACE TRIGGER customer_update_trg
BEFORE UPDATE OF lastname ON customers
  FOR EACH ROW
BEGIN
  :new.firstname := :new.firstname;
END;

In this case, the index was created on the firtname column, but the multi_column_datastore fetches in both lastname and firstname.  The trigger ensures that whenever lastname is changed, we force an update of firstname in order to reindex the row.

However, things have changed in 12c. As a fix for bug 14155722, triggers check the "before" and "after" state of any referenced column values, and if the column has not changed, then no index updates take place.  So the trigger above won't cause an index update if only lastname has changed.

The original behavior can be restored by an alter session or alter system operation, as follows:

alter session set "_fix_control"='14155722:OFF'

or

alter system set "_fix_control"='14155722:OFF';

If done as an alter session, it must be done before the update operation which invokes the trigger, and will need ALTER SESSION privilege.  If done as alter system it will apply globally, but must be run by a DBA user.  It can also be put into the database initialization file, either by adding "scope=spfile" to the alter system command, or if a pfile is in use by adding it explicitly there.

Happy 2014! The new year finds us in a unique position as our industry shapes and molds the rest of the world with innovation around mobile. Newly defined spaces such Application Programming Interface (API) Management are being created and solidified to match this innovation. API Management is shaping the multi-channel strategy of enterprises across organizational boundaries.

Service Technology Magazine featured Oracle's perspective on a comprehensive API management solution that helps organizations develop well-designed infrastructure that securely exposes APIs all the way to managing the front-end for adoption. The byline also touches on how organizations can outsource application enhancement by empowering developers through API adoption, as well as add a mobile front to applications to capture new revenue opportunities. Finally, the piece will examine how organizations can streamline business and IT objectives by managing the life-cycle of their APIs. To read the article: Unlock your IT with API Management.

To find an overview of Oracle's API Management offering, visit us: Oracle API Management Solutions

By Steve Viarengo - Originally posted on Oracle for Midsize Companies

In business software today, Cloud based solutions are all the rage. While Cloud based business applications, or Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), have been around for more than a decade, there have never been more options for customers. There are solutions in the Cloud for almost any area of business need, from CRM to HCM to Supply Chain. The number of vendors with SaaS offerings has grown dramatically, with thousands of small as well as large software companies selling cloud-based solutions. 

As a small to midsized business, the promise of the Cloud can be very enticing.  Letting someone else host and manage the solution spares you the expense and burden of having to staff your own internal IT resources. According CedarCrestone’s 2012-2013 HR Systems Survey, deploying a SaaS solution requires 75% less staff to support than an on premise solution. Additionally, with many solutions you can subscribe and pay “by the drink,” only paying for the amount of the service you need and increasing or decreasing your subscription as your business changes. Moreover, you are also always on the latest version of the software, never having to worry about upgrades, backward compatibility or upgrading your hardware to support the latest version. Everything is managed and supported for you, just like your telecommunications or utilities.

However, the move to the Cloud understandably generates a number of questions and concerns. Common questions tend to be:

• How do I know my data is secure with the vendor I choose?
• Will Cloud solutions integrate and work with my existing applications and IT infrastructure?
• How can I make sure I am getting the maximum ROI?
• Is it better to go with a single vendor or piece together best of breed solutions?

Many, if not all, of these concerns can be addressed by selecting the right solution from the right provider. Selecting a SaaS solution from a vendor with robust and complete Cloud capabilities is crucial when moving to the Cloud. Critical things to look for when evaluating solutions and their providers are:

• A clear picture of the vendor’s security model and hosting capabilities which includes:
• The physical security of the data center
• The network security that will block hackers and malicious parties
• The application security that ensures your data and information is separate from other users

• The integration capability of the solution. Well developed solutions have very well defined interfaces that allow you to:
• Easily and quickly pull information out and push information into other solutions 
• Use web services such as REST and SOAP to allow information to be easily callable via well know web standards

• Quick, fast and easy implementation. 
• Flexible and configurable to accommodate the special needs of your business without expensive customizations or waiting for a future release.
• A vendor who can provide a broad but deep solution. Just like you are not likely to hire one gardener to mow the lawn, another to edge and another to cleanup after, you want one vendor who can provide you a complete service
• Not required to manage many different logins, store data across different solutions, and navigate different support models

So while the leap into the Cloud can be daunting, the benefits are compelling and selecting the right partner with the right solution can make the difference between achieving your business goals and a painful crash landing!

Go here for more information on your move into the Cloud.

Steve is the Vice President of Product Management for Oracle Taleo Business edition Cloud Service where he is responsible for product functionality, roadmap, strategy and product marketing activities. He has close to 20 years of software experience focusing in product management, strategy and business operations working for large organizations, various startups as well as successfully starting his own company.  Prior to coming to Oracle he was the VP and General manager of the Sports market at the Active Network where he managed a division with over 30,000 SMB customers.

We are pleased to announce that MySQL Enterprise Monitor 3.0.5 is now available for download on the My Oracle Support (MOS) web site. It will also be available via the Oracle Software Delivery Cloud with the January update in about 1 week. This is a maintenance release that fixes a number of bugs. You can find more information on the contents of this release in thechange log.

You will find binaries for the new release on My Oracle Support. Choose the "Patches & Updates" tab, and then use the "Product or Family (Advanced Search)" feature.

You will also find the binaries on the Oracle Software Delivery Cloud in approximately 1 week. Choose "MySQL Database" as the Product Pack and you will find the Enterprise Monitor along with other MySQL products.

Based on feedback from our customers, MySQL Enterprise Monitor (MEM) 3.0 offers many significant improvements over previous releases. Highlights include:

• Policy-based automatic scheduling of rules and event handling (including email notifications) make administration of scale-out easier and automatic
• Enhancements such as automatic discovery of MySQL instances, centralized agent configuration and multi-instance monitoring further improve ease of configuration and management
• The new cloud and virtualization-friendly, "agent-less" design allows remote monitoring of MySQL databases without the need for any remote agents
• Trends, projections and forecasting - Graphs and Event handlers inform you in advance of impending file system capacity problems
• Zero Configuration Query Analyzer - Works "out of the box" with MySQL 5.6 Performance_Schema (supported by 5.6.14 or later)
• False positives from flapping or spikes are avoided using exponential moving averages and other statistical techniques
• Advisors can analyze data across an entire group; for example, the Replication Configuration Advisor can scan an entire topology to find common configuration errors like duplicate server UUIDs or a slave whose version is less than its master's

More information on the contents of this release is available here:

• What's new in MySQL Enterprise Monitor 3.0?
• MySQL Enterprise Edition: Demos
• MySQL Enterprise Monitor Frequently Asked Questions
• MySQL Enterprise Monitor Change History

More information on MySQL Enterprise and the Enterprise Monitor can be found here:

• http://www.mysql.com/products/enterprise/
• http://www.mysql.com/products/enterprise/monitor.html
• http://www.mysql.com/products/enterprise/query.html
• http://forums.mysql.com/list.php?142

If you are not a MySQL Enterprise customer and want to try the Monitor and Query Analyzer using our 30-day free customer trial, go tohttp://www.mysql.com/trials, or contact Sales athttp://www.mysql.com/about/contact.

If you haven't looked at MEM recently, and especially MEM 3.0, please do so now and let us know what you think.

Thanks and Happy Monitoring!

- The MySQL Enterprise Tools Development Team

You don’t need to have an Oracle Client installed on your machine to use Oracle SQL Developer. Everything you need to connect to Oracle Database is provided by the JDBC driver included with the download. So you can be up and running in usually less than 5 minutes.

But if you DO happen to have a Client on your machine, you’ll be happier.

If you’re too lazy to go read the above post, here it is in a nutshell:

• JDBC doesn’t do everything that OCI can
• OCI does a better job at reliably cancelling queries
• OCI has better support for advanced data types including XML

So, if you’re on-board with the idea of connecting up your Oracle Client with SQL Developer, let’s talk about how to get that going.

Prior to version 4, you would tell SQL Developer to use the ‘OCI/Thick driver’ – by the way, OCI stands for ‘Oracle Client Interface.’

Yes or No, basically

The ‘problem’ here is that many of you have more than one Client on your machine. So not being able to explicitly tell SQL Developer WHICH client to use was problematic.

So in version 4, we’ve enhanced the preferences to allow you to tell us exactly what client to use.

Now you can say what client you want us to use

The Preferences

Use Oracle Client
This tells SQL Developer WHERE your client is. It will then use this location to attempt to load the OCI stuff when doing things like a Password Reset on an expired connection. It won’t cause SQL Developer to use the OCI/Thick driver for connections though.

Use OCI Thick Driver
This DOES tell SQL Developer to make OCI/Thick connections to your Oracle database. It will use the client specified in the previous preference.

SQL Developer will attempt to confirm that your Client is available once you click ‘OK.’ If it’s an Instant Client, it will check the OS Path to make sure it’s there. Note we can only look at the first item in the path, so you may get a false positive, in which case you can ignore by clicking ‘Yes’ here.

This just says, we tried to find this in the Path and failed – you can ignore IF you can connect

One Last Thing

SQL Developer 4 ships with an 11.2.0.3 JDBC driver. That means you’ll want at least an 11.2.0.3 Client for this to be compatible with SQL Developer. At some point we’ll ship with a 12c driver, which means you’ll need a 12c client. But we’ll worry about that later

ADVISOR WEBCAST:  Understand & Resolve AutoInvoice Validation Errors With The AutoInvoice Post-Process Validation Report

Date:  January 15, 2014 at 11:00 am ET, 10:00 am CT, 9:00 am MT, 8:00 am PT

AutoInvoice validates interfaced data and rejects any invalid data. The AutoInvoice Post-Process (AIPP) Validation Report can be used to understand and rectify these validation errors. Join us to learn how to get the most from this feature packed tool! This one-hour session is recommended for technical and functional users of Oracle Receivables who use AutoInvoice to interface data from legacy or other Oracle Applications.

Topics will include:

• Installing the AutoInvoice Post-Process Validation Report
• Running the AIPP Validation Report
• Maximizing efficiency using AIPP

For more details and how to register see Doc ID 1603525.1.

The University of Minnesota is one of the most comprehensive public universities in the United States, offering more than 370 fields of study at campuses in the Twin Cities, Duluth, Morris, Crookston, and Rochester. It also has six agricultural experiment stations, two biological stations, one forestry station, and regional extension services throughout the state.

The university’s capital planning and project management department oversees approximately 300 capital projects annually, valued at US$250 million. Typically, 10 to 15 of those projects have budgets exceeding US$2 million.

Challenges:

• Deploy a robust project management solution to support the university’s new capital planning and project management group, which oversees more than US$250 million in projects annually across multiple campuses and school facilities.
• Standardize and automate processes and closely track the cost of capital projects, which range from classroom building construction to campus infrastructure initiatives, to ensure on-time, on-budget completion.

Read complete list of challenges here.

Solutions:

• Gained a consistent project management methodology and process for the university’s construction projects with Oracle’s Primavera Unifier, improving the team’s ability to complete projects on time and within budget and achieving return on investment in three years.
• Integrated contract and financial management and enabled the capital projects group to track and benchmark costs to gain a more accurate picture of expenditures associated with building certain types of campus structures, whether instructional buildings or infrastructure projects.
• Reduced the number of change orders by 15%―saving US$3.7 million in 2009 alone―thanks to more detailed cost and scope information, audit trails, and transparency.

Read complete list of solutions here.

"With Oracle’s Primavera Unifier, we have introduced standardized project management methodologies, resulting in significant savings and enabling us to be better stewards of the projects entrusted to our group.”– Kevin McCourt, Business Manager, Capital Planning and Project Management Department, University of Minnesota

Read complete customer snapshot here.

To compute the availability of a system, you need to examine the availability of the components that make up the system.  To combine the availability of the components, you need to determine if the components failure prevents the system from being usable, or if the system can still be available regardless of the failure. Now that sounds strange until you consider redundancy. In a non-redundant subsystem, if it fails, the system is unavailable. So in a completely non-redundant system, the availability of the system is simply the product of each component’s availability:

A very simplified view of this might be:

     Client => LAN => Server => Disk

If we take the client out of the picture as it really isn't part of the system, we at least have a network, a server, and a disk drive to be available in order for the system to be available. Let’s say each has an availability of 99.9%, then the system availability would be:

or 99.7% available. That’s roughly equivalent to a day’s worth of outage a year. So although each subsystem is only unavailable about 9 hours a year, the 3 combined ends up being unavailable for over a day. As the number of required subsystems or components grows the availability of the overall system decreases. To alleviate this, one can use redundancy to help mask failures. With redundant components, the availability is determined by the formula:

Let’s look at just the server component. If instead of a single server with 99.9% availability , we have two servers each with 99.9% availability, but only one of them is needed to actually have the system be available, then the availability of the server component of the system increases from 99.9% to 99.999% or 5 nines of availability just by adding an additional server. As you can see, redundancy can dramatically increase the availability of a system. If we have redundant LAN and disk subsystems in the example above, instead of 99.7% availability, we get 99.997% availability or about 16 minutes of down time a year instead of over a day of down time.

OK, so what does all of this have to do with creating highly available systems? Everything! What it tells us is that all things being equal, simpler systems have higher availability. In other words, the fewer required components you have the more available your system will be. And it tells us that to improve availability we can either purchase components with higher availability, or we can add some redundancy into the system. Buying more reliable or available components is certainly an option, although generally that is a fairly costly option. Mainframe computers are an example of this option. They generally provide better availability than blade servers, but do so at a very high premium. Using cheaper redundant components is typically much cheaper and can even better overall availability.

More on high availability in my next post.