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Feature Request FR-3205
Product Area Sample Apps and Plug-ins
Status CLOSED

2 Voters

A single demo app to showcase all Starter and Sample apps

appex Public · Jun 16 2023

Idea Summary
Currently, there are only 4 individual Sample apps and the Universal Theme that are ready to run -

https://apex.oracle.com/shortcuts

If we want to explore techniques and features of APEX in the starter/sample apps, the only way is to install these apps into our workspace which take up storage space and also clutter the workspace.

Use Case
Quickly run a sample/starter app to explore features without having to install them in our workspace and we don't have to keep upgrading them manually.

This single demo app with all the sample/starter apps can be hosted somewhere like -

https://apex.oracle.com/demos

Another idea is to separate them into 2 apps (or have all these 3 options) -

https://apex.oracle.com/starter-apps

https://apex.oracle.com/sample-apps

However, sample/starter apps installation option in the workspace can still continue to exist so that if we need to look into the code, we can install them inside our workspace.

Preferred Solution (Optional)
Having a single app (or 2 apps as suggested above as an alternate idea) with a menu system to quickly launch various sample and starter apps would be  nice and convenient. A single app can serve all the developers and also save Oracle from having to maintain thousands of apps installed by developers and save on storage. Also, this app would get upgraded automatically with each release of APEX.

We reviewed this idea carefully, and while it was interesting, we concluded that due to all the internal implications we need to take into account, it is unlikely to make its way into APEX.

Comments

Comments

  • appex OP 2.6 years ago

    You can refresh the data in these apps every day or every few hours automatically to keep them fresh

  • stew stryker OP 2.6 years ago

    For me, the power of installing the sample and starter apps in your own workspace is that you can peek under the hood to see exactly how they were done. Maybe you could create a separate workspace, either on your local machine or at apex.oracle.com to host these for you, so they don't clutter your space? 

    That said, I voted this idea up because it'd be cool to skim the sample apps that I wouldn't normally bother to install. If one looks really interesting, I'd install it locally.

  • appex OP 2.6 years ago

    @stew stryker  We should still have the feature to install any sample/starter apps in our workspaces so we can look at their code.

    I was suggesting a single app (with a menu system and no auth) to launch any sample/starter for a quick way to look at these apps - similar to the 4 sample apps and the UT app already provided as separate apps. The single app can also have the UT app included inside it. These will solve another 2 issues - workspaces expire in 90 days if not accessed and these apps need to be manually upgraded with each release.

    These will also serve as demos showcasing the powerful features of APEX for non-developer visitors to the APEX site. The single app will facilitate access to all apps in one place, ability to add more apps to it in future and no need to scramble to locate URLs for individual apps.

  • jayson hanes Admin OP 2.6 years ago

    @appex This is actually something we have been wanting to do for a while.

  • jayson hanes Admin OP 2.6 years ago

    In the meantime, we have a few in this APEX app :)

    https://apex.oracle.com/pls/apex/f?p=411:18

  • appex OP 2.6 years ago

    Thanks!

    I updated my previous comment.

  • stew stryker OP 2.6 years ago

    @appex I definitely agree with your suggestion of a single Demo/showcase app.

  • stew stryker OP 2.1 years ago

    One of the things I really liked about the FOEX add-on was that it included a demonstration application that showed all the product's features. And on each demo page, you could click a button that took you directly to that page in the APEX Development environment, so you could look under the hood.

    It didn't show all variations and settings, but it gave you a way to see exactly how a feature might be used. 

    The Universal Theme sample application shows a lot of settings. I wish it could be enhanced to:

    1. Show examples of technical settings, like creating a report of type "PL/SQL Function Body returning SQL Query".
    2. Included a button that would jump to that page in the Developer environment.
  • vincent morneau Admin OP 16 hours ago

    The issue is that most of these sample apps have data entry, and that complicates how and where we serve those apps for public consumption. In a way, that's exactly what the Gallery section of builder allows. It's a hub where you can easily and quickly install the most up to date sample apps. Because of this, it's unlikely that we can action this idea as is.