Patterns: Portal Search Custom Design

Chapter 2. Portal composite pattern and custom designs introduction 25

2.3 Portal custom designs

A Custom design, like the Composite patterns, combines Business and

Integration patterns to create advanced, end-to-end e-business applications.

These solutions, however, have not been implemented to the extent of the

Composite patterns.

The Business and Integration patterns that could be combined in any given

Portal Custom design are as follows:

򐂰 Access Integration

򐂰 Self-Service

򐂰 Collaboration

򐂰 Information Aggregation

򐂰 Extended Enterprise

򐂰 Application Integration

Depending on the type of portal solution being deployed, different combinations

are implemented based on the required functionality. Some of these Business

and Integration patterns are more common.

However, our premise here is that

these patterns common to any Portal custom design will contribute to the Portal

composite pattern that is the focus of this endeavor

.

One of the patterns, Access Integration, can be considered the most distinctive

pattern for a portal, given its focus on improving a user’s access to information

and e-business services. Since the Integration patterns are used to extend the

capabilities of Business patterns, we will also be looking for which of the other

patterns contribute to a specific portal scenario. We will see that Self-Service,

Collaboration, Information Aggregation, and Application Integration can also be

important to portal solutions.

2.3.1 Access Integration pattern

The Access Integration pattern is commonly observed in e-business solutions

that provide users a seamless and consistent user experience that combines

access to multiple applications, databases, and services. It is used as a front-end

integration pattern. The Access Integration pattern does not stand alone in a

solution, but is typically used to combine Business patterns to create custom

designs and Composite patterns used to solve complex business problems.

Access Integration contains many of the characteristics that describe a portal

implementation. It fits well into the Portal composite pattern because it includes

aggregation and management of information and access to information by

various user and group types, and the business “rules” have been clearly defined

that determine which user types can access certain types of data.

26 Patterns: Portal Search Custom Design

For more information on the Access Integration pattern and its services, refer to

the Access Integration Pattern Using WebSphere Portal Server, SG24-6267.

2.3.2 Self-Service business pattern

The Self-Service business pattern describes situations where users are

interacting with a business application view or update data.

Often an organization not only wants to disseminate information internally but

also wants to make this information available to external users and partners. The

Self-Service business pattern is focused on allowing the end user access to

information from various data sources using a mechanism that allows the user to

access just the specific information that applies.

For more information on the Self-Service business pattern, refer to the following

redbooks:

򐂰 Patterns: Self-Service Application Solutions using WebSphere V5,

SG24-6591

򐂰 Self-Service Applications Using IBM WebSphere V5.0 and WebSphere MQ

Integrator V2.1 Patterns for e-business Series, SG246875

2.3.3 Collaboration business pattern

The Collaboration business pattern enables interaction and collaboration

between users including e-mail, virtual team meetings, e-learning, instant

messaging, and workflow processes. This pattern can be observed in solutions

that support small or extended teams who need to work together in order to

achieve a joint goal.

Collaboration can often combine with a workflow engine that provides the ability

to set up and support more complex processes that might involve multiple users

from different workgroups, departments, and organizations. An emerging

capability is the concept of

contextual collaboration that incorporates functions

previously found only in knowledge management applications. This includes the

ability to apply context to a piece of content, to discover the experts within the

organization, and to add collaborative functions to transaction-based

applications. Collaboration is a core feature of a portal implementation.