A week ago I received a new Oracle APEX book from Packt Publishing with the question to review it and tell the world about the book. The Oracle APEX 4.0 Cookbook is just released and written by Marcel van der Plas and Michel van Zoest, both (ex-)colleagues of me. Because of their extended insight knowledge of Oracle Application Express and projects done with the tool I do think they are the right couple of people to write this book.

The book has become a very interesting distillation of APEX best-practices and adds real value to any Oracle Application Express project. Both for beginners as well as experienced developers. I think this isn’t something you can do easily, but the boys did it.

The book gives inside knowledge to the reader broken down in the form of recipes. And it truly are bites on a platter (hapklare brokken, for the Dutch among us). And it works. The recipes are simple, jet effective, pieces of information. It basically works as an off-line wiki: no more extensive and hard to understand theoretical articles, but small and understanding portions. Finger Food.

This approach is very effective. We no longer need to google our answers and browse tons of articles before we find a solution, but it is served to us. It has cost me, and other developers with me, years of trial and error before we got the knowledge that is combined in this book.

But now the book itself.

The Oracle APEX 4.0 Cookbook covers both the basics as the ‘real thing’. It is set up as a ‘how to’ step by step guide that takes us into the world of Application Express. Beginning with the basic build of an application. For the sake of it, I will not go into that further.

The book gets really interesting in the second part. This is where the years of experience of the authors kicks in. Finally a simple book that tells us what to do, the good way. Themes and Templates get dissected so we actually can understand them and tweak them the way we want to. The chapter about Extending APEX works around examples using JavaScript, AJAX and JavaScript Libraries and it’s put up in a way so we can easily understand what the writer is doing and not only copy the example, but actually (for example) extend APEX with our won JavaScript Library.

In my personal opinion, chapter 10, ‘APEX Environment’, is the most interesting part and discusses an aspect of APEX implementation that is too often undermined. The APEX architecture. Both the development architecture (subscriptions, debugging and version control) and the production architecture (three tier infrastructure, Apache proxy and APEX Listener). This chapter tells us how an APEX application is best developed and deployed.

The Oracle APEX 4.0 Cookbook is available at Packt Publishing.

In April I wrote a blog post on what books I highly recommend reading. It was because I just had a great session at Fontys Hogeschool about Software Development and Business Alignment. Last Saturday, I had an awesome talk to some very creative people about what really does thrive Business & IT Alignment. (And if it actually exists, as a profession). During this conversation, we also mentioned books. And now I realized that I’ve never shared them with you.

Enterprise Architecture As Strategy, Ross, Weill, Robertson. During the Oracle Enterprise Architecture Executive Summit, Jeanne W. Ross explained how Enterprise Architecture could create a more sustainable and agile business environment. The MIT scientist explains how the Business and IT parts can move together and actually add value to the complete organization. A few things that I’m really glad about is the fact that the books states that Enterprise Architecture is a journey, not something that gets implemented overnight. As well as the fact that EA isn’t about risk and documentation, it’s about facilitating agility within the organization.

Business Model Generation, Pigneur, Ostenwalder. Co-created with over 470 professionals all over the world Business Model Generation provides us with a simple, yet effective, method on how to design a new business model. A few things in this book apply to everything we do in the IT field. It basically is the complete reference we need to build our Business Architecture. When taking a look at the way the business models are generated in this book, there’s a lot of conjunction with my own method to create a ‘talking picture’ (anyone: is this the correct phrase?) on IT projects. A lot of visualisation to help communication and outlining the needs of the project.

SPIN Selling, Rackham. I like simplicity, and this book offers it to us. Looking at the SPIN selling method, written down by Neil Rackham, it gives us a simple, yet effective method in knowing where the ‘Why’ is in the projects we do. Situation, Problem, Implication and Need Pay-off are the basics in information analysis. I’ve written a post about it.

Business / IT Fusion, Hinssen. The best book written about the concepts of alignment. (Although Peter Hinssen shows us the concept is non-existing). This book gives us completely new insights in the way IT has changed, or should change. Will not go further in the matter here, but it definitely is a must-read.

Enterprise 2.0, McAffee. When we take an in-depth look at one of the most common challenges in IT and Business these days, we look at user collaboration. In this book Andrew McAffee gives us insights in the benefits large enterprises can gain using this technology boost. A fun read and shares what new technologies and principles can actually give us.

And then there is, of course, the brilliant book Oracle Application Express Forms Converter, van den Bos.

Are there any other books that you recently read (or a long time ago) that would give us new insights in Business and IT?

During the sessions about CreativITy, I get a lot of questions what books are a good read, what books reflect the theories and approaches I like to work with. The answer to this questions isn’t simple and therefore I mostly just answer that it’s the book I’m currently reading. Because I think literature always teaches us something. But now I stood still for a moment what reading material really did change the way I think about software development, and what books helped me shape the way I look at projects in general and software analysis and design particular. Here’s the list I came up with. All these books have an essential part in the way I look at software analysis, design and development. But none can be considered, as I see it, as the holy grail. This is, for obvious reasons, not possible.

Are there any other essential titles missing? Please let me know in the comments, I might not have read it, or missed to share it with the community.

Lean Software Development: An Agile Toolkit, Poppendieck. This book is the basis of it all. The Poppendiecks have delivered, with this work, a reference of how any Agile Software project is based and where the lean principles are to be found within software development. Using seven lean principles and twenty-two thinking tools they help the reader along into the agile world. I’ve read this book just a few months ago, but I’ve whished that I would have read it earlier, it would have saved me a lot of time to come to my own insights.

User Stories Applied: For Agile Software Development, Cohn. I rarely write User Stories in the praxis, but in design and analysis of software systems, this book is a must read. When we take a look at the tools and think-tips Mike Cohn gives us here, it helps us understand how small or how flexible we can create and develop requirements and designs. This work helps us understand how agile software works in the analysis and design phase (if we can talk about phases in agile software development).

Lean Thinking : Banish Waste and Create Wealth in Your Corporation, Womack & Jones. The absolute must-read in the department of the principles of Lean. Womack and Jones help, very extencively and therefore sometimes a tough read, us see how the principles work. Non-IT or Software Development related, but this is a switch you probably can take on your own. If you find this work interesting, it’s probably lovely to read some six-sigma basic work, but don’t focus on it too much (it’s just the principles you work with…).

The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement, Goldratt. For analysis of complex software systems and business processes, it’s always nice to be reached a tool and principle that can make us understand where the problems (challenges) that we need to address come from, and what we are actually solving. The (life)work of Eliyahu M. Goldratt is the Theory of Constraints. The TOC method is widely adopted and shows us how to identify the elements that really matter within processes and where to solve them. Written in a novel-like style this basic work of Goldratt is a good introduction in the TOC principles. But, like all methods, don’t focus on it too much.

The above where the ‘must reads’ for agile software development. Essentials. Now I will list some books that I found very useful for the analysis and design part of software development.

Inspired: How Creative People Think, Work and Find Inspiration, Hartmann. In this work, a beautiful book with loads of photo’s and graphic attractive and playful things inside, Hartmann tells about the things that real creative people use for their inspiration. It really helped me see how we all can benefit from the world around us in order to work freely and look at problems differently. No more tunnel vision and no more ‘this is how we always do it…’.

Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable, Godin. Seth Godin, marketer. In his book Purple Cow Seth Godin describes how being different works in marketing. How companies that really stand out always have the lead and have a higher chance of being successful. Seth Godin points out that copying successful business therefore doesn’t work (very well). If I can say, this is the one book that really turned my head around and showed me that value and where to look at are not always clear and that it can be found in different things that we assume in the first place.

The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures, Roam. Dan Roam wrote a little, but awesome book on how you can solve problems with pictures, even if you’re crappy at drawing. The basics Dan Roam shows here can be used in every session you can think off, especially design sessions. At least, I use them all the time. The thing is, Roam shows that when you take some basics and repeats them, the model becomes more and more clear for all the actors. Fun and insightful, especially if you regularly have to make stuff clear to people who speak in a different jargon than you.

These where the books I could think of right now. But there’s one more on my agenda: Business/IT Fusion. How to move beyond Alignment and transform IT in your organization, by Peter Hinssen. And, of course, there’s this brilliant book written about Oracle Forms to APEX conversion: check it out.

Tomorrow and the day after there’s an APEX SIG meeting in Quebec and Montreal. David Peake will talk about the benefits of the next release of Oracle Application Express, 4.0, for mission critical systems. Because David is talking, this probably will be a well visited event in both Quebec and in Montreal. Louis-Guillaume Carrier-Bédard and his colleagues will have their own session during this Oracle APEX Special Interest Group meet up.

At their booth, Louis-Guillaume Carrier-Bédard will make a draw from business cards people turn in to win the best price ever to be imagined: my book! Because Louis-Guillaume helped with the book by doing some of the tough reviews I had to wrestle trough, he has a great insight in what the book offers to developers who want to convert from Forms to APEX.

I really do think it’s a great initiative and am curious how the day was and who ended up winning one of these great prices!

Yesterday, at Oracle OpenWorld, David Peake gave the presentation on Oracle Forms to Application Express conversion. For me, as author of a book about the subject, there wasn’t much to learn over there, but it was great to see that a lot of people are interested in the subject. David and Hilary Farrell showed that the most important thing, as I personally have mentioned before, is that you can manage large conversion projects inside of the tool.

David also pointed out that there wasn’t any chance of conversion in a one-click notion, but it’s good that that’s not there. When we take a look at real conversion, as I did in my own presentation on monday, productivity and project management on a Forms to APEX project, are the largest challenges. It’s not the complexity of the Forms itself, that’s just the cause of the problems that are to be expected.

After David’s session I had some great chats with people that are experimenting with conversion from Oracle Forms to different platforms and technologies. And, you know it, I personally prefer Application Express as the next Forms. If only it was because the technologies are very alike and people can start developing APEX within a few days.

After an exiting day at Oracle OpenWorld yesterday with announcements about a new Oracle Partner program, the new Exadata Database machine, some toying and hassling towards Big Blue (IBM) and numerous drinks and chats during the Connect opening ceremony, we arrived at day two of Oracle OpenWorld 2009. For me, it promises to be a big one. A few months ago, as most of you know, my book on Oracle Forms to Application Express came out.

Today is the day I can finally show off a hard day’s (or: six months) of work to the public. At one ‘o clock I have a special session at the Oracle Unconference in Room 3. This is located at the third floor of Moscone West. During this session I will talk about productivity in a Forms to APEX conversion project. How can we make sure this type of project will be successful? And how can we track our progress and deliver the application without having to worry about unforeseen problems? You’re welcome to join me, all Oracle OpenWorld attendees can go to the Unconference sessions.

At three ‘o clock the next big thing happens, at least for me, at the Oracle Book Store on the second floor of Moscone West I will have a signing session of my book. Really am wondering who is reading (and / or buying) my book. How much interest is there in Oracle Forms to Application Express conversion? Feel a little bit weird about doing this, but we’ll have a blast!

See you at Moscone West this afternoon!

Next week, on tuesday the 29th, I will be hosting a special night for the Oracle Gebruikersclub Holland (Oracle Users Group The Netherlands) about Oracle Application Express Forms Conversion. During this session I will be talking about the bigger question in Forms Conversion: How do we actually do a successful and affordable conversion project?

The tooling is, of course, one large part, but certainly not the biggest. But we can use this tooling Oracle provides for us to create and manage our project, to make sure we don’t overlook anything and to ensure we make the right choices. On this 29th of september I will try to show what a successful project means and when we know we are managing it correctly. This means that it will be an interesting night for both technicians and the people responsible for the project.

A few moments ago I got the news that already 75 people signed up for the session, this means that we only have room for 25 more… So sign up, while you still can!

On tuesday the 29th I will be hosting a special theme meeting for the Oracle Gebruikersclub Holland (OGh) at the headquarters of Oracle The Netherlands in De Meern about Oracle Forms to APEX conversion. The central question we will try to answer during this evening-session is ‘How can I successfully do an Oracle Forms to Application Express Conversion project?’.

This means that I will not only discuss and show how the Forms Converter in APEX 3.2 works, but that we will also discuss and look into ways to do these kinds of projects successfully. What does it take to do a project? What are the problems and challenges we will face during such a project and how can we overcome them. In which ways can we make sure we do the right thing and don’t overlook anything. How can we make these projects small and understandable and how can we create the right balance between conversion and redesign?

As a member of the OGh you can enroll for this session on their website.

The Dutch based computer and software related online bookstore computer collectief just put my book online a few days ago. Comcol.nl offers, since 1979, over 10.000 computer and software books and has a lot of knowledge about combinations of books. For most of the Dutch people in software development comcol.nl is a familiar name. That they put my book in their collection feels like an honor, because they tend to put books in their store only if they are convinced of the value of it. Together with the mention of my book in the Amazon.com list and the extract on themeswiki.org completes the picture that over nine months of hard work really got appreciated. This gives me enough motivation to keep investing time and effort in writing and talking about subjects like this.

On the Themeswiki.org website they have put an extract of one of my chapters in my book ‘Oracle Application Express Forms Conversion’ online. First I was a bit confused; is this an example of book-piracy? Do these guys just take a book out of the shelves and copy and paste a bit onto their website? Until I noticed that the wiki page mentioned me and Packt Publishing as the copyright owners. With a quick email I got the confirmation that it was legit. Although the title is a bit weird, (Customizing APEX using APEX? What’s that about?) it can be a very helpful part of the book. It describes the actions you need to take after conversion of you Oracle Forms applications into Application Express. Some actions are still needed to make you application look good! The wiki describes some of the steps you can take in order to make the pages look nice, like the menu on the home page, the lists of values and the titles of pages. Of course, it’s just a small part of an actual Forms Conversion project. In the book itself there are a lot more steps described and on formsconversion.nl we can discuss a lot more information!