Enterprise PeopleTools 8.50 PeopleBook: Feed Publishing Framework

Getting Started With PeopleSoft Feed Publishing Framework

This chapter provides an overview of PeopleSoft Enterprise Feed Publishing Framework and discusses its implementation.

PeopleSoft Enterprise Feed Publishing Framework Overview

The Feed Publishing Framework provides user interfaces and APIs for feed definition creation and maintenance, feed searching and subscription, as well as feed document generation and delivery.

Feeds

A web feed, news feed, or feed is a data format that makes rapidly changing content available to users. A feed contains entries, which might be headlines, full-text articles, excerpts, summaries, digital media, and links to content on a web site, along with various metadata. PeopleSoft applications, like news agencies, external web sites, and other content distributors publish or syndicate web feeds, to which users can subscribe. In PeopleSoft applications some examples of feeds include worklists, queries, discussions, and so on.

Web feeds work by using the pull technology model. Typically, when using web feeds, a content provider publishes a feed link on their site which you register in an aggregator program (also called a feed reader or a news reader) that runs on your own machines. Feed readers can be independent programs or browser extensions that provide configurable integrated feed reader functionality. Web-based feed readers seldom require additional software installation and make the user's feeds available on any computer with internet access. Microsoft Outlook and Mozilla Thunderbird are two commonly used secure feed readers.

When directed, the aggregator polls all the servers in its feed list to ascertain if new content exists; if so, the aggregator retrieves the new content. You can configure feed readers to check for new or updated content at regular intervals. When you no longer want to receive updated content, you remove the feed from the reader.

Atom and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) are the two primary syndication formats. Atom also provides a standardized way to export an entire blog, or parts of it, for backup or for importing into other blogging systems. Some web sites let people choose between RSS- or Atom-formatted web feeds; others offer only RSS or only Atom. In particular, many blog and wiki sites offer their web feeds in the Atom format.

Most web pages, including PeopleSoft application pages, use this feed icon to indicate that a feed is available in either the RSS 1.0, RSS 2.0, and Atom 1.0 formats.

Note. PeopleSoft applications offer feeds in Atom 1.0 format only.

Feed Publishing Framework

The Feed Publishing Framework provides:

A set of APIs and code samples to assist application developers in creating new type of feeds and integrating them with existing features.
Unified interfaces for content owners and administrative users to create, configure, and maintain feed definitions of various types.
Interfaces for end users to discover related feeds and search feed definitions.

With the PeopleSoft Feed Publishing Framework, you can develop and publish feeds from any PeopleSoft or non-PeopleSoft data. Then, with the delivered user interfaces, users can find and subscribe to your feeds.

PeopleSoft Feed Publishing Framework Implementation

This section lists the prerequisites for the Feed Publishing Framework implementation and discusses the steps to:

Implement existing feeds.
Develop and implement new feed data types.

Prerequisites

The Feed Publishing Framework uses PeopleSoft Integration Broker Framework. The system must be configured as follows:

Step	Reference
1. Integration Broker must be configured and active.	Configuring Integration Broker to Work With the Feed Publishing Framework Accessing the Integration Broker Quick Configuration Page Setting Service Configuration Properties
2. The default local node must have Authentication set to Password or Certificate, the Content URI text and Portal URI text of the default local node and any portal hosting nodes must be defined, and the default user of the ANONYMOUS mode must be a valid user.	See Setting Portal Nodes.
3. For Oracle WebLogic servers, you must configure the server for basic authentication.	See Configuring Oracle WebLogic Servers for Basic Authentication.
4. Assign users the roles and permission necessary to use feeds.	Granting Access to Components and Pages Assigning Permissions to Roles Setting Roles
5. Activate Pub/Sub servers in application server.	See Accessing the Application Server Options.
6. Configure Process Scheduler.	Creating a Process Scheduler Server Configuration Starting a Process Scheduler Server

Using PeopleTools-Delivered Feed Data Types

PeopleTools delivers predefined feed data types for generic IB message feeds, worklist feeds, and query feeds. Follow these steps to use an existing feed data type:

Step	Reference
1. Publish list of feeds for a data type.	See Publishing a List of Feeds Feed.
2. Create Generic IB Message feeds.	You can create generic IB message feeds from the Define IB Generic Message Feeds page. See Publishing Integration Broker Generic Message Feeds.
3. Create Worklist feeds.	You can create worklist feeds from the Worklist and Worklist Details pages. See Creating and Using Worklist Feeds.
4. Create Query feeds.	You can create Query feeds from Query Manager pages. See Creating and Using Query Feeds.

Developing New Feed Types

Use these steps to develop new feed data types:

Step	Reference
1. Analyze requirements for new feed data type.	See Analyzing Requirements for New Feed Data Types.
2. Implement feed data source application class.	See Creating the Feed Data Source Application Class.
3. Define feed data type.	See Defining the Feed Data Type.
4. Update the property maintenance page to include the Publish as Feed link.	See Adding the Publish as Feed Link to a Page.
5. Add standard Publish as Feed pages to a component as hidden pages.	See Adding the Four Standard Publish as Feed Pages.
6. Update the view content page to include the related feeds hover menu.	See Adding the Related Feeds Hover Menu to Pages.