XML Publisher & The E-Business Suite

This is a pointer to one of the hottest new technologies for the E-Business Suite: XML Publisher (XMLP), which has been instrumental in changing the way we think about how Apps data can be used by end-users for reports and other business documents.

Into the Hands of End-Users

XML Publisher is interesting in that it allows end-users -- using tools such as Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat -- to create richly-formatted templates for reports and business documents containing Apps data.

XML data extracts from E-Business Suite concurrent programs are merged with those templates at runtime, generating output in PDF, HTML, RTF, EXCEL (HTML), or even text for use with EFT and EDI transmissions.

Advanced Tools for the Data Center

In addition to the potential of this tool to allow your end-users to create simple reports for themselves, there are advanced options for integration with email systems, faxes, WebDAV, FTP, HTTP, barcodes, and more.

Those topics are discussed in the excellent XML Publisher Blog, which features technical articles directly from the XML Development team. Note also that there will be several XMLP-related sessions at OpenWorld this year, which are linked to in this article.