Chapter 8: Web Development Using J2EE

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Introduction

Chapter 7, Building Distributed Java Applications, provided a very good introduction on distributed application development using Java technology and discussed topics such as Java Object Serialization, RMI, and JMS, which form the basis for some of the topics that will be discussed in this chapter. The current chapter will provide an in-depth discussion on advanced J2EE (Java 2 Enterprise Edition) concepts such as Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB), servlets and Java Server Pages (JSP), and the open source product Jakarta Struts. (It is assumed that readers are familiar with Web-based concepts such as the HTTP protocol and Java Script, as they are usually part of any Web application.) Also, although Chapter 7 focused on building Enterprise-class distributed applications, this chapter will direct the readers toward Web-based Enterprise applications. It is worth noting at this point that EJB, servlets, and JSP form only a part of the J2EE architecture, which contains many other interconnected technologies such as Java Database Connectivity (JDBC), Java Naming and Directory Interface (JNDI), Java Mail API, Java Message Service (discussed in Chapter 7), Java XML APIs, Java Connector Architecture, and so on. It should also be noted that the Struts package is an implementation of the MVC (Model View Controller) design pattern and is designed and developed as an open source initiative from the Apache Jakarta project and is not part of the original J2EE specification. However, the Struts package has been so well designed and developed that many J2EE implementations are integrating it instead of building their own MVC implementation.

The discussion is initiated with the Java servlets, followed by the Java Server Pages and Jakarta Struts, and finally concludes with the EJB framework. This is one of the more lengthy chapters presented in the book, and it attempts to promote a comprehensive knowledge of the targeted topics to a great depth. The idea behind this chapter is to provide a one-stop shop to developers interested in all these technologies together.

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