Introduction to Oracle Portal-to-Go

Most Web clients are PCs, but according to the Meta Group, "By 2003, over 50% of internet access will be by non-PCs."

Oracle Portal-to-Go (Portal-to-Go) enables the following services:

• It allows virtually any wireless device to access any existing Web or database application or content, including secure e-business applications.

• It enables wireless carriers to become broad-range e-commerce service providers.

Portal-to-Go, a component of the Oracle Internet Platform, is a server product that provides everything you need to deliver Web content to any capable device. It transforms existing content to a device's native format, and provides a portal interface for the end-user.

XML is the Key

XML is the key for content providers to reach an audience of mobile users with data delivered in many different formats. XML isolates the source content format from the target device format, enabling content providers to take data from any source and deliver it to any target. Use these XML-based techniques in applications that convert data from one format to another, such as:

• Enterprise application integration

• Customization of content delivery based on user profile

• Content and services aggregation in the form of a marketplace supplier exchanges

Portal-to-Go Components

A Portal-to-Go portal includes the following components:

• Services that deliver data to mobile devices

• Adapters that convert HTML and RDBMS content to XML

• Transformers that convert XML to the appropriate markup language

This chapter describes how Portal-to-Go uses XML to make Web content available to any device. It describes a stock quote service and the role XML takes as an intermediate format for the data exchange.

Oracle XML Components

The XML Parser for Java, V2 is used in the Portal-to-Go Adapters and Transformers. The XSL-T package of the XML Parser for Java is also used.