You will learn about the following in this chapter:
What custom tags are
Why you need custom tags
How custom tags work
How to use the tag body
How to pass parameters
The final JSP topic that we will cover in this book is custom tag libraries, hereafter it will be referred to simply as tag libraries. Tag libraries are programmer-defined XML tags that enable the JSP writer to include component functionality inside the JSP file.
In this chapter, you will learn how tag libraries and JavaBeans are similar and how they differ. You will also learn how to create custom tags, program the implementation classes, and tie the tag to the class using a taglib. In addition, you will learn how to write a JSP file that makes use of these new tags.
Following that, you will learn how to pass parameters to a tag, and how to use tags to access data stored in a database.
