PeopleTools – like tools for people

Finally, news from the big boys. (I’m sure you’ve all been waiting.) Oracle representatives have announced the general release of Oracle’s PeopleTools 8.48, the latest version of the PeopleSoft Enterprise development tool. Oracle assured customers, too, that the firm will continue to invest in PeopleSoft products by certifying PeopleTools with the magic Oracle Fusion Middleware in order to facilitate an upgrade to Oracle Fusion Applications. As proof, Oracles point to their firm’s expanded support for SQL Server 2005, Linux on IBM zSeries for PeopleTools Application Engine and PeopleTools Process Scheduler and SuSE Linux Enterprise Server 9. PeopleTools 8.48 promises expanded ability to adopt service-oriented architecture.

Abilities to create and natively support web services and integrate legacy or custom applications with PeopleSoft Enterprise applications are also said to have been made more efficient. New web services functionality is part of the program and includes PeopleTools Service Designer and PeopleTools Integration Broker. Services published from PeopleTools Service Designer and Integration Broker can be consumed by Oracle Fusion Middleware BPEL Process Manager for Enterprise Web Services Orchestration and Business Process Automation.

Further, pagelets and services published from PeopleTools can also be integrated into Oracle Fusion Middleware Enterprise Portal to provide a single point of access to all enterprise applications. Also new in PeopleTools 8.48 is a handy little tool called PeopleSoft Change Impact Analyzer, an analysis workbench that seeks to assist users in interactively exploring and understanding the impact of taking patches or making changes to applications. PeopleSoft Change Impact Analyzer can be leveraged in conjunction with PeopleSoft Change Assistant, the standard set of tools for applying system updates and easing upgrades.