I want to make discussion form kind of website using java, should i just make it using JSP- Servlet - Java code or should i use some framework like struts ...
I am new to Java, but i have sufficient exposure of programming
+5
A:
Depends what you're trying to achieve.
As far as frameworks go I would recommend checking out Spring over Struts (Although they can be used together, Spring has an equivalent Spring-MVC).
But Spring might be a bit involved for a Java newbie, even if you do have other language experience. Maybe experiment with JSPs/servlet first and check out Spring once you're comfortable with them (I recommend Spring in Action for reading material)
... Also, if we're talking a bit more outside the box (I see someone else mentioned Scala/Lift), another alternative would be Groovy on Grails. This is based on Spring, and owned by SpringSource, but is much more fun/quick to develop with. Plus if your previous experience happens to be with dynamic langs such as Python/Ruby, Groovy would be worth checking out.
lucas1000001
2010-07-18 13:36:30
+1 But I would add, even if you start with just a JSP/servlet approach then first read about the Model, View, Controller (MVC) design pattern, and don't just put all your application logic within the JSP files themselves.
Todd Owen
2010-07-19 23:59:54
A:
You should have a basic understanding of servlet API, but you will most probably prefer to use some web framework built upon it. Struts is just one of them, popular and simple though a little old; there are many others
To name some: Struts, Spring-MVC, Stripes, Struts2, Wicket, JSF, Tapestry, GWT... an many others. (Struts2 is not a new version of Struts, it's rather a new version of Webworks).
Unfortunately none of them is a clear winner.
leonbloy
2010-07-18 13:42:43
A:
You might consider Scala with Lift. I am building my next site in this and it is a very promising, light weight, less verbose, Java language.
northpole
2010-07-18 13:43:20
+1
A:
You can try Play framework too. I have watched their demo and it's programming model looks promising to me.
Milinda Pathirage
2010-07-18 13:55:24
+1
A:
You WILL need to understand servlets and what you can do with them regardless what, as all modern Java-based web platforms build on top of that.
The Sun tutorial for servlets is at http://java.sun.com/j2ee/tutorial/1_3-fcs/doc/Servlets.html
Thorbjørn Ravn Andersen
2010-07-18 14:47:58
A:
If you're asking whether to use a framework at all or just use plain JSP-Servlet-Java I'd say that as long as you have a grasp of the language and Servlet API as other have said, the extra effort to learn a framework on top of that is well worth it in the long run. If you don't use a framework you eventually find that either a lot of your code becomes tedious, repetitive 'plumbing' or that you've essentially created your own framework anyway. Creating frameworks can be fun but if you have a job to do with a deadline, using an existing one saves a huge amount of time and effort.
John Patrick
2010-07-18 18:20:11
A:
If you're going to use Struts then make sure to use Struts 2. I would not recommend anyone write a new app in Struts 1 as it is very verbose and requires lots of configuration. However, Struts 2 is pretty awesome. I wrote a tutorial on it if that's the route you'd like to go.
Ben McCann
2010-08-03 05:50:28