Now that WebCenter Sites 11gR1 is released and available on OTN, you might be to the now-what step.
Those familiar with Sites (and FatWire) are probably familiar with the Jump Start Kit (JSK) concept, which is a preconfigured installation of the Content Server, bundled with Apace and Tomcat running on an in-memory db called HyperSQL or HSQLDB, including a demo site. It’s a push-button installation that allows for portability that runs nicely on a laptop and can be carried on a thumb drive.
If you download Sites from OTN, you won’t find a JSK, but never fear, you can get one from Support.
That’s all well and good, but if you work with Sites for a bit, you’ll probably need some help. There is very good documentation online, also available as a standalone download, but if you’re not an RTFM kinda person, I have a resource for you.
Fatcoders, love the name, is a blog run by Michele Sciabarra and Mirella Di Girolamo that discussed detailed information about Sites (and FatWire) development topics. Based on the content and looking at their LinkedIn profiles, these are two very seasoned veterans, who’ve been using Sites, ahem FatWire, for many years.
I found this resource thanks to Bex Huff (@bex) and his session “A Crash Course In WebCenter Sites (FatWire) for Site Studio Customers” at Collaborate. During the session, he mentioned a hack that will allow Sites development within JDeveloper, the Oracle development IDE.
I haven’t tried yet, but apparently, the techniques Michele describes in this post, The Simplest Way to Use Eclipse for FatWire Development, should work for JDev as well, at least that’s how I understand it.
Bex listed a number of other resources for Sites/FatWire information in his talk, which ideally, he’ll find some time to share in a post.
Anyway, if you’re interested in working with Sites, download it and then bookmark Fatcoders and put it in your reader. Great resource.
Find the comments if you know of other Sites/FatWire resources.
