Databases Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 10-6.
The Files section of an application's shared components
Cascading Style Sheets
provide a way to manage and control the look and feel of a web page without having
to change its structure. Used properly, a CSS file separates the definition of a web page's visual attributes such as
color, margins, and fonts from the structure of the HTML document. APEX includes numerous themes that contain
templates that reference their own CSS. If you decide to create your own theme or templates, you may want to
implement your own look and feel using CSS.
The Cascading Style Sheets area of the shared components is where you upload the CSS files you wish to use with
your application. Any file uploaded to the CSS area is available to any application in the workspace.
Application Express
images
are divided into two classifications: workspace images and application images.
Workspace images are available to all applications in the workspace into which they're uploaded. Application images
are available only to the application to which they're assigned when uploaded.
Images that are uploaded as shared components will likely be ones that you reference throughout your
application. They may represent portions of your theme, such as images for tabs or buttons; or they may represent
icons that you use to show status or that, when clicked, allow end users to edit rows of data.
One key differentiation to make is that the images uploaded to this area should not be directly related to
the application's data. Things such as product images, images of employees, and the like should be stored in the
application's “parse as” schema alongside the data to which the image is related.
Static files
are used for pretty much anything else. For instance, you may have a user's guide associated with your
application and want to make it available for users to download. You could upload that to the Static Files area and
reference it via a URL in your application. Another use might be for JavaScript files that you want to bundle with your
application. You can reference uploaded JavaScripts either from the page templates in a theme or directly from the
definition of a page.
Even though the APEX-based files are considered shared components, and the images may even be tied to a
specific application, they aren't included in the application export. You need to export these items separately from
the application. The good news is that the APEX Export Wizard you use to export these files is the same one you use to
export an application. Simply click the Files tab in the Export Wizard (as shown in Figure
10-7
), and you're presented
with a dialog that lets you export each of the three file types.
Figure 10-7.
Selecting the Files tab of the Export Wizard
