36 Making Applications Available in WebCenter Spaces

36.1 What You Should Know About the Applications Pane

WebCenter Spaces offers users centralized access to frequently-used Web applications from the Sidebar. The WebCenter Spaces administrator manages the range of applications available, the way they are presented, and how they are launched from the Applications pane (Figure 36-1).

Figure 36-1 Sidebar - Applications Pane

WebCenter users need not know nor care about where the information comes from, they simply click a link to launch their day-to-day applications, and if necessary, supply their user name and password information. WebCenter users may hide links that they do not use but they cannot add links of their own.

The Applications pane can launch different types of application:

• External Applications - Web-based, external applications that perform their own user authentication. WebCenter administrators must register external applications through the Oracle Enterprise Manager Fusion Middleware Control Console before exposing them in WebCenter Spaces. For more information, see Section 22.2.1, "Registering External Applications Using Fusion Middleware Control".

• WebCenter Task Flows - Built-in task flows specific to WebCenter Spaces. A range of WebCenter task flows are available out-of-the-box including Document Library Viewer, Discussions Viewer, and more. Any of these can be launched directly from the Applications pane.

For more information, see Section 36.2, "Making an Application Available to WebCenter Users".

36.2 Making an Application Available to WebCenter Users

The Applications pane can display links to external applications registered through Fusion Middleware Control Console and also links to any of the built-in WebCenter task flows. When you expose an application through this pane, the application becomes available to every WebCenter user.

Some WebCenter users may not want to see all the applications offered through the Applications pane. If this is the case, individuals may personalize their view to show only those applications they must access.

To make an application available to WebCenter users:

1. Login to WebCenter Spaces with administrative privileges.

   See Section 32.1, "Logging into WebCenter Spaces as an Administrator".

2. In the Sidebar, click the Edit icon for the Applications pane (Figure 36-2).

   If you do not have administrative privileges you will not see this icon.

   Figure 36-2 Applications Pane - Edit Icon

   
   

   When you edit the Applications pane, every WebCenter user will see your changes.

   Note:

   For information about the Sidebar, see "Working with the WebCenter Spaces Sidebar" in Oracle Fusion Middleware User's Guide for Oracle WebCenter.

3. To add a link to an application, select the folder where you want the link to appear, and then click the green Add icon (Figure 36-3).

   To add a new folder, click the New icon. To create a subfolder, expand the parent folder first. Section 22.2, "Registering External Applications"

   Figure 36-3 Editing the Applications Pane

   
   

4. Navigate to the external application or task flow you require, and click its associated Add link (Figure 36-4).

   • To navigate to a previously registered external application, expand the External Applications node, and then expand the required application.

     Only registered external applications which have a Login URL defined appear in this list. If the application you want is not listed, ask your WebCenter administrator to register the application for you. See also Section 22.2, "Registering External Applications".

   • To navigate to a task flow, expand the WebCenter Task Flows node. If necessary, expand one or more subfolders to access the required task flow.

   If you are not sure of the exact name, enter a full or partial search term in the Search box, and then click Find to search for the application. Application names matching your search criteria are displayed.

   Figure 36-4 Choosing an Application

   
   

   An information message displays indicating whether the application link was successful.

5. Click OK to dismiss the message box.

6. To add another application, repeat steps 4 and 5.

7. Click OK to return to the Edit Applications dialog box.

   The selected application(s) appears within your chosen folder. From here, you can change the display name for the application link and set other display-related properties.

8. To edit link details for an application, highlight the row in the table and then click the Edit icon.

   The Edit Application Link dialog box opens (Figure 36-5).

   Figure 36-5 Editing Application Links

   
   

9. Edit the link display properties, as required.

   For details, see Table 36-1, "Application Link Properties":

   Table 36-1 Application Link Properties

   Property	Description
   Name	Enter the link text that WebCenter users will click to launch the application.
   Location	(Read-only) Displays the internal name for the application or task flow.
   Open Behavior	Choose how the application displays when users click the link: WebCenter Tab - Application displays as a tab in WebCenter Spaces, and the application displays there. The current WebCenter Spaces context is maintained. New Window - Application opens in a new browser window. The current WebCenter Spaces context is maintained. This is the default selection. Current Window - Application opens in the current browser window (in place of WebCenter Spaces).
   Type	(Read-only) Displays the link type: EXTAPP - External application or TASKFLOW - WebCenter task flow
   Icon	Associate an icon with the application. Enter a full qualified URL or a relative URL that specifies the location of a valid icon. The icon displays alongside the link in the Sidebar. For best results, choose an icon that is 16 x 16 pixels.
   Created On	Shows when the link was created.
   Last Visited On	Shows the last time a user clicked the link. If a link is not used very often or at all, you might consider removing it from the Applications pane.
   Locked	Indicate whether WebCenter users are allowed to show/hide the link. Select Locked to prevent users from showing/hiding the link. Deselect Locked to let the user decide whether the link displays in their personal view. Individuals users can show or hide the link depending of whether they need access to the application from the Sidebar.
   Visible	Indicate whether WebCenter users see a link to this application in the Applications pane. Select Visible to show the link. Deselect Visible to hide the link.

   
   

10. Click OK to save.

11. Click Close to dismiss the Edit Application Link dialog box.

New or updated links appear in the Applications pane. Click the link to test that it works correctly.

36.3 Editing Links in the Applications Pane

To edit a link displayed in the Applications pane:

1. Login to WebCenter Spaces with administrative privileges.

   See Section 32.1, "Logging into WebCenter Spaces as an Administrator".

2. In the Sidebar, click the Edit icon for the Applications pane.

   Note:

   When you edit the Applications pane, every WebCenter user sees your changes.

3. Select an application link by highlighting the row in the table.

4. Click the Edit icon (Figure 36-6).

   Figure 36-6 Editing Application Links

   
   

5. Edit the link properties, as required. For details, see Table 36-1, "Application Link Properties".

6. Click OK to save.

7. Click Close to dismiss the Edit Applications dialog box.

36.4 Arranging the Applications List

As WebCenter Spaces administrator, you choose the display order of links in the Applications pane. You can also organize your application links into a hierarchy by creating sub folders. These sub folders, which can represent topic areas, can be nested into other sub folders (Figure 36-7).

Figure 36-7 Arranging the Applications List

1. Login to WebCenter Spaces with administrative privileges.

   See Section 32.1, "Logging into WebCenter Spaces as an Administrator".

2. In the Sidebar, click the Edit icon for the Applications pane.

   Note:

   When you edit the Applications pane, every WebCenter user sees your changes.

3. Reorganize your applications. For example:

   • Rearrange the display order. Select an application or a folder, and then click the Move Up and Move Down icons until it appears in the correct place. When you move a folder, everything under the folder moves with it.

     Alternatively, drag and drop an application to the correct position.

   • Create a new folder or sub folder. Select a parent folder (if required), click the New Folder icon, enter a suitable Name, and then click Create.

   • Rename a folder. Click the Display Name and edit the folder name in place.

4. Click Close to save.

36.5 Locking Applications Displayed in the Applications Pane

WebCenter Spaces administrators can lock links displayed in the Applications pane. When you lock a link, WebCenter users are not allowed to show/hide the link.

Unlock links to let the user decide whether the link displays in their personal view. Individuals users can show or hide the link depending of whether they need access to the application from the Sidebar.

To lock an application link:

1. Login to WebCenter Spaces with administrative privileges.

   See Section 32.1, "Logging into WebCenter Spaces as an Administrator".

2. In the Sidebar, click the Edit icon for the Applications pane.

   Note:

   When you edit the Applications pane, every WebCenter user will see your changes.

3. Select the required application by highlighting the row in the table.

4. Click the Edit icon (Figure 36-8).

   Figure 36-8 Editing Application Links

   
   

5. To lock the application, select Locked.

6. Click OK to save.

7. Click Close to dismiss the Edit Applications dialog box.

36.6 Removing Links from the Applications Pane

When application links are no longer required, WebCenter Spaces administrators can remove them from the Applications pane.

Removing links is permanent. If a link might be useful in the future, consider hiding the link instead (by deselecting the Visible property). For details, see Section 36.3, "Editing Links in the Applications Pane".

To permanently remove an application link:

1. Login to WebCenter Spaces with administrative privileges.

   See Section 32.1, "Logging into WebCenter Spaces as an Administrator".

2. In the Sidebar, click the Edit icon for the Applications pane.

   Note:

   When you edit the Applications pane, every WebCenter user will see your changes.

3. Select the required application (or application folder) by highlighting the row in the table.

4. To remove the application link, click the Delete icon.

   When you delete a folder, you delete the folder and all the applications displayed in the folder.

5. Click Delete to confirm.

6. Click Close to dismiss the Edit Applications dialog box.