Step 2: Select Patterns

Home

Design Patterns and Guidelines

Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition

Design Process

Design Patterns

Design Guidelines

Design Patterns and Guidelines for Oracle Applications

Process for Using BI Patterns and Guidelines
Step 2: Select Patterns

Once you determine who will use the application, it’s time to select an appropriate design pattern. This page describes how patterns are presented on this Web site and introduces the various tools that are available to help you select the best pattern for your requirements.

This page focuses on using the navigation bar and pattern sets, and also introduces the decision tables, which are available to help you identify the best pattern for your requirements.

Go to Design Patterns Section

When Should You Select a Pattern?

Product Managers

Product Development

Customers and Consultants

When determining requirements for a new product
During the conceptual phase
When redesigning an existing application
Before the functional design and technical design phase of application development

When determining requirements for a new product
During the conceptual phase of application development

Note: This step is not required if product managers are involved in identifying design patterns.

When redesigning an existing application

Using the Navigation Bar

You can access all design patterns directly from the navigation bar in the Design Patterns section of this Web site. These patterns are grouped logically, which will help users focus on specific patterns and identify which patterns are most appropriate.

Figure 1: The navigation menu under the Design Patterns tab.

Using Pattern Sets

Several of the patterns are grouped into what are called “pattern sets.” These pattern sets are listed in the navigation bar (for example, Summary Page Layout and Metric Details Page Layout). Each pattern set contains two or more patterns.

Clicking the name of the pattern set from the navigation bar reveals a high-level description of the pattern set and a tab bar. The tabs represent the individual patterns in the selected pattern set. In addition, the first tab contains a decision table, which helps you identify the most appropriate pattern within the set, and a list of related patterns and guidelines. Clicking a pattern from the tab takes you to more details about the corresponding pattern.

Figure 2: Example of a Link under the Design Patterns Tab

Figure 3: Example of a pattern set page

Using the Decision Table

Each pattern set page contains a decision table that helps you identify the most appropriate pattern within the set based on user roles and profiles.

A decision table usually contains several questions or parameters on user roles, data requirements, and business goals. Your responses to these questions or parameters help you identify the most applicable pattern. You can then link to the patterns from the table.

Figure 4. Example of a Decision Table

Using the Pattern Filter Tool (also called an Information Display Selection Tool)

You may also use the Information Display Selection Tool to quickly find the most appropriate pattern for your requirement. The tool recommends patterns based on criteria that you select. You can then link to the recommended patterns from the tool.

Note: Currently, you can use the Information Display Selection Tool to identify patterns related only to information display, such as graphs, charts, and tables.

Figure 5: Example of the Information Display Selection Tool