JSP Technology -- Friend or Foe?
By Brett McLaughlin2003-03-07
A critical look at JavaServer Pages servlets as a viable presentation technology
|
|
An old Java technology hand and new Enhydra partisan, the author urges developers to consider alternatives to JavaServer Pages (JSP) servlets when choosing an approach to coding Web applications. JSP technology, part of Sun's J2EE platform and programming model, serves as a solution to the common dilemma of how to turn drab content into a visually appealing presentation layer. The fact is, Web developers aren't uniformly happy with JSP technology. Since many variations on the Sun technology are now available, you can choose from a number of presentation technologies. This article takes an in-depth look at JSP coding and explores some attractive alternatives.
Presentation technology was designed to transform plain ol' raw Web content into content wrapped in an attractive presentation layer. JavaServer Pages (JSP) technology, Sun's presentation model and part of the J2EE platform, has received significant attention. There are both advantages and disadvantages to using JSP technology, and Web developers should be aware of the good and the bad -- and know that they don't have to be limited to this single technology. In fact, these days a number of presentation technologies are available. This article begins by defining the problems presentation technologies were designed to solve. It then examines the specific strengths and weaknesses of the JSP model. Finally, it introduces some viable alternatives to Sun's presentation technology.
Tutorial Pages:
» A critical look at JavaServer Pages servlets as a viable presentation technology
» A bit of history
» The premise
» Segregation vs. integration
» Work vs. rework
» The promise of JSP technology
» Content vs. presentation
» Code vs. markup
» Designer vs. developer
» The problems
» Portability vs. language lock-in
» Mingling vs. independence
» Blurring the line between content and presentation
» Single-processing vs. multi-tasking
» HTML vs. XML
» Summary
» Resources
First published by IBM developerWorks
