Scott Spendolini's Blog

It's not just a one-hit-wonder from the 80s; its true! Sure, we've all seen where we and others live via Google Maps . But this time, Microsoft has stepped it up a notch with its new "Windows Live Local" site. Now, as this is a Microsoft product, it doesn't always quite do what it says. For insatnce, it's not "Live", as my house is still occupied by the former owner as evidenced by their cars in the driveway, the salmon-colored siding (which was replaced in 2003), and the new construction at the end of the street had not started yet. However, the fact that WE can see this level of detail makes you wonder what "THEY" can see, and how "live" it really is... The level of detail is stunning, even though the pictures are a couple years old. You can even rotate the image to view it from all 4 directions! For example: My old office My Least Favorite Airport (Notice the sign on the Parking Garage) As much of the White House as they

OK, bad pun, but it's almost midnight here, and I'm tired... Project Raptor made its OTN debut tonight, and a preview release is available for download. I, for one, am definitely excited about this, mostly becuase the price is right: FREE!

Taking a cue from Shay Shmeltzer's recent entry , I think it would be interesting to see just where all of the HTML DB users reside. Point your browser here to chime in: http://www.frappr.com/oracleapplicationexpress

Simply pass your religion & nationality to this function to get the politically correct greeting from me. :) create or replace function HappyHolidays (p_religion in varchar2, p_nationality in varchar2) return varchar2 is l_result varchar2(255); begin if p_religion like '%christianity%' then l_result := 'Merry Christmas'; elsif p_religion like '%jewish%' then l_result := 'Happy Hanukkah'; elsif p_religion like '%pagan%' then l_result := 'Happy Winter Solstice'; else l_result := 'Seasons Greetings'; end if; if p_nationality != 'Chinese' then l_result := l_result || ' and Happy New Year'; end if; return l_result; end HappyHolidays; /

As John Scott pointed out , Oracle MetaLink is now running Oracle HTML DB. This is a major step for Oracle HTML DB's credibility, as Oracle itself made the conscious decision to re-write one of its most mission critical customer-facing systems in Oracle HTML DB over any and all other technologies.

A new HTML DB-specific Wiki has been launched at http://wiki.shellprompt.net/bin/view/Apex/WebHome . John Scott from Shellprompt.net was kind enough to lend the server, and John, Colin Sheppard and Carl Backstrom from Oracle have gotten the ball rolling by creating the first pass of content. As soon as I have a spare moment, I'll also be adding & editing content. It's great to see that any and all members of the HTML DB community can easily contribute and share their tips, tricks and insight on Oracle HTML DB. I, for one, am anxious to see what others will add, as I'm sure that there will be some excellent tips that I can learn from.