Introduction

Face it: you can create the most architecturally pure, elegant, and robust web application, but if the users don't like the looks of the interface, you are doomed to failure. Some Java developers consider themselves above the use of such mundane technologies as HTML and JavaScript. Whether you like it or not, however, knowledge of these technologiesparticularly HTMLcan make all the difference when it comes to presentation and usability. If you don't know how to use them to your advantage, you will find it challenging for your application to be endorsed by the user community.

This chapter will introduce some recipes to help you get the most out of your application's presentation. The recipes here don't eliminate the need for a good graphics/user interface designer. However, they do go a long way in helping you leverage HTML via the dynamic capability of Struts. In addition, this chapter will provide alternative solutions based on complementary technologies, such as JSTL.

Some scenarios when working with HTML forms are always challenging. Checkboxes, for example, cause no end of headaches because of the way that unchecked controls are handled. This chapter includes a recipe that specifically tackles this problem. Another common issue in form processing is how to handle date fields. There are many ways to do them and they all have their pros and cons. A recipe that highlights these different approaches is included in this chapter as well.

You'll find various other recipes that address issues such as setting form tab order, generating URLs for use in JavaScript, and working with frames. All in all, if you've got a user interface problem, there is a good chance that you'll find some help in these pages.