Preface

Oracle Application Express API Reference describes the Application Programming Interfaces, referred to as APIs, available when programming in the Oracle Application Express environment.

This preface contains these topics:

Topic Overview
Audience
Documentation Accessibility
Related Documents
Conventions

Topic Overview

This document contains the following chapters:

Title	Description
APEX_UTIL	Use the `APEX_UTIL` package to get and set session state, get files, check authorizations for users, reset different states for users, and also to get and set preferences for users.
APEX_MAIL	Use the `APEX_MAIL` package to send an email from an Oracle Application Express application.
APEX_ITEM	Use the `APEX_ITEM` package to create form elements dynamically based on a SQL query instead of creating individual items page by page.
APEX_APPLICATION	Use the `APEX_APPLICATION` package to take advantage of a number of global variables.
APEX_CUSTOM_AUTH	Use the `APEX_CUSTOM_AUTH` package to perform various operations related to authentication and session management.
APEX_LDAP	Use `APEX_LDAP` to perform various operations related to Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) authentication.
APEX_INSTANCE_ADMIN	Use the `APEX_INSTANCE_ADMIN` package to get and set email settings, wallet settings, report printing settings and to manage schema to workspace mappings.
APEX_UI_DEFAULT_UPDATE	You can use the `APEX_UI_DEFAULT_UPDATE` package to set the user interface defaults associated with a table within a schema. The package must be called from within the schema that owns the table you are updating.
JavaScript APIs	Use these JavaScript functions and objects to provide client-side functionality, such as showing and hiding page elements, or making XML HTTP Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) requests.
APEX_PLSQL_JOB	Use `APEX_PLSQL_JOB` package to run PL/SQL code in the background of your application. This is an effective approach for managing long running operations that do not need to complete for a user to continue working with your application.
APEX_LANG	Use `APEX_LANG` API to translate messages.

Note:

In release 2.2, Oracle Application Express APIs were renamed using the prefix APEX_. Note that API's using the previous prefix HTMLDB_ are still supported to provide backward compatibility. As a best practice, however, use the new API names for new applications unless you plan to run them in an earlier version of Oracle Application Express.

Audience

Oracle Application Express API Reference is intended for application developers who are building database-centric Web applications using Oracle Application Express. The guide describes the APIs available when programming in the Oracle Application Express environment.

To use this guide, you need to have a general understanding of relational database concepts as well as an understanding of the operating system environment under which you are running Oracle Application Express.

Documentation Accessibility

Our goal is to make Oracle products, services, and supporting documentation accessible to all users, including users that are disabled. To that end, our documentation includes features that make information available to users of assistive technology. This documentation is available in HTML format, and contains markup to facilitate access by the disabled community. Accessibility standards will continue to evolve over time, and Oracle is actively engaged with other market-leading technology vendors to address technical obstacles so that our documentation can be accessible to all of our customers. For more information, visit the Oracle Accessibility Program Web site at http://www.oracle.com/accessibility/.

Accessibility of Code Examples in Documentation

Screen readers may not always correctly read the code examples in this document. The conventions for writing code require that closing braces should appear on an otherwise empty line; however, some screen readers may not always read a line of text that consists solely of a bracket or brace.

Accessibility of Links to External Web Sites in Documentation

This documentation may contain links to Web sites of other companies or organizations that Oracle does not own or control. Oracle neither evaluates nor makes any representations regarding the accessibility of these Web sites.

Deaf/Hard of Hearing Access to Oracle Support Services

To reach Oracle Support Services, use a telecommunications relay service (TRS) to call Oracle Support at 1.800.223.1711. An Oracle Support Services engineer will handle technical issues and provide customer support according to the Oracle service request process. Information about TRS is available at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/trs.html, and a list of phone numbers is available at http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/dro/trsphonebk.html.

Related Documents

For more information, see these Oracle resources:

For information about Oracle error messages, see Oracle Database Error Messages. Oracle error message documentation is available only in HTML. If you have access to the Oracle Database Documentation Library, you can browse the error messages by range. Once you find the specific range, use your browser's "find in page" feature to locate the specific message. When connected to the Internet, you can search for a specific error message using the error message search feature of the Oracle online documentation.

Many books in the documentation set use the sample schemas of the seed database, which is installed by default when you install Oracle. Refer to Oracle Database Sample Schemas for information on how these schemas were created and how you can use them yourself.

For additional documentation available on Oracle's Technology Network, please visit the Oracle Application Express web site located at

http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/database/application_express/

For additional application examples, please visit the Oracle by Examples (OBEs) Application Express page, located on Oracle's Technology Network. The OBEs provide step-by-step examples with screenshots on how to perform various tasks within Application Express.

http://www.oracle.com/technology/products/database/application_express/html/obes.html

Printed documentation is available for sale in the Oracle Store at

http://oraclestore.oracle.com/

To download free release notes, installation documentation, white papers, or other collateral, please visit the Oracle Technology Network (OTN). You must register online before using OTN; registration is free and can be done at

http://www.oracle.com/technology/membership/

If you already have a user name and password for OTN, then you can go directly to the documentation section of the OTN Web site at

http://www.oracle.com/technology/documentation/

Conventions

For a description of PL/SQL subprogram conventions, refer to the Oracle Database PL/SQL Language Reference. This document contains the following information:

Specifying subprogram parameter modes
Specifying default values for subprogram parameters
Overloading PL/SQL subprogram Names

The following text conventions are used in this document:

Convention	Meaning
boldface	Boldface type indicates graphical user interface elements associated with an action, or terms defined in text or the glossary.
italic	Italic type indicates book titles, emphasis, or placeholder variables for which you supply particular values.
`monospace`	Monospace type indicates commands within a paragraph, URLs, code in examples, text that appears on the screen, or text that you enter.