What choices are there available for reporting with ADF, including pros and cons? This is a summary of a thread raised on the ADF Methodology Group.

Available options:

From Oracle

• BI Publisher (previously XML Publisher)
  
• Popular modern choice
• Integration with Oracle Apps
  
• Integration with MS Office suite
  
• Expensive
• Not as sophisticated as other reporting solutions (ie. can't achieve matrix style reports similar to Oracle Reports)
• No dedicated ADF-API
  
• XSQL Pages
• Examples in the ADF Toy Store demo (a forum example, XSQLAndExcelApp-v0.01.zip, to illustrate multiple worksheets in MS Excel)
  
• Use the Apache FOP serializer for PDF
• No dedicated ADF-API
• tbc: Pricing?
  
• Oracle Reports
• Sophisticated paper based reporting solution
• Antiquated user interface with difficult frame based solution; steep beginner learning curve
  
• Oracle Application Server 10.1.2 only, not supported by WLS 10.3, will be in Fusion Middleware (FMW) Server 11g
• No dedicated ADF-API

Open Source

• Jasper Reports
• Open source tool for report design
• Java implementation and integration
  
• Fairly popular "free solution"
• Link to how-to information in OTN JDeveloper Forum:
  http://forums.oracle.com/forums/thread.jspa?messageID=971776
  
• No dedicated ADF-API
• BIRT
• Open source Eclipse based reporting tool
• No dedicated ADF-API

Thanks to John Flack for creating this summary.