After completing this course, the student should be able to:

• Understand and explain the Jakarta Struts and the MVC framework
• Develop JSPs and servlets
• Debug JSPs and servlets
• Build JSP and servlet-based application architectures
• Explain the uses of EJBs

• Servlets
• JSPs
• EJBs
• Struts 1.1

1. Overview of Web Applications
• Objectives
• An example of Web applications
• Tiered architectures
  • Single-Tier
  • 2-Tier
  • 3-Tier
  • N-Tier
• Multi-tier distributed application framework of Web applications
• Presentation layer
• Middle layer
• Design pattern of Web applications – JSP model
• Design pattern of Web applications – MVC model


2. Servlet Programming – Basic
• Servlet overview
• HTTP Servlet API
• Servlet life cycle
• Example
• Developing servlets


3. Servlet Interaction Interface
• Request
• Response
• Cookies
• Servlet context
• Resource


4. Servlet Interaction and Advanced Servlets
• Programming with the MVC model
• JDBC and database connection pooling
• Session tracking
• Integrating servlet and JSP
• Examples


5. Introduction to JSPs
• Objectives
• JavaServer Pages
• JSP benefits
• Evolution of dynamic content technologies
• JSP and J2EE
• How JSP works
• On 1st invocation
• On subsequent request


6. JSP Techniques
• Predefined variables
• Using JavaBeans with JSP
• Examples


7. Using Java Beans with JSP
• Predefined variables
• Using JavaBeans with JSP
• Examples


8. Overview of EJBs
• What are EJBs ?
• Main characteristics of EJBs
• Foundational technologies of EJBs
• EJB architecture components
  • EJB client
  • EJB JAR file
  • EJB server
  • EJB container
• Enterprise JavaBeans
  • Session beans
  • Entity beans
• EJB classes and interfaces
• Basic components of entity and session beans
  • EJB home interface
  • An EJB home interface example
  • EJB home object
  • EJB remote interfaces
  • A remote interface example
  • EJB objects
  • EJB implementation class
• Deployment descriptors
• How do EJBs work
• EJB container services
• EJB application development
• Deploying enterprise beans
• Major components of deployed EJBs


9. Struts Architecture and Overview
• Introduction to Struts
• Objectives
• Review: MVC model
• What is Struts?
• Struts flow
• Components in Struts?
  • The Model
  • The View
  • The Controller
• struts-config.xml
  • The <data-sources> element
  • The <form-beans> element
  • The <global-forwards> element
  • The <action-mappings> element
  • Sample
• The role of web.xml for the application
• Configuring Struts in web.xml
  • web.xml content
  • Steps to configuring Struts in web.xml
  • Sample
• Summary


10. A Simple Struts Application
• The Goal of the Application
• The input form· The struts-config.xml
• The Form Bean class
• The Action class
• The result page


11. Developing Struts Applications in the Tomcat Environment
• Objectives
• Struts binary distribution
• Directory structure of Struts application
  • Example
• Deploying a Struts application in Tomcat


12. Struts Development Cycle
• Objectives
• Struts development cycle
• Gathering requirements
• Defining screen requirements
  • Data vs. FormBean
  • define FormBean
• Determining the screen flow
• Defining the ActionMappings in struts-config.xml
• Developing the FormBean
  • The reset ( ) method
  • Form validation using the validate ( ) method
  • ActionError
  • Define message key
• Developing Action Class
  • Action and Action Class
  • The execute() method
  • ActionForward
  • ActionMapping class
  • execute() example
  • Example execute() method
  • Developing business logic - EJB
• Developing JSPs
• Configuring struts-config.xml and web.xml
• Build, pack and deploy


13. Struts Tag Libraries
• Objectives
• JSP taglib directive
• Components of a tag library
• The JSP File
• The tag library descriptor
• The tag Handler Class
• An example
  • The TLD File - carPrice.tld
  • TDL File - example
  • The Handler Class - CarPriceHandler.java
  • The Handler Class - example
  • The JSP File - Carprice.jsp
• Tag Lib Handler life cycle
• Directory structure: where custom tag libraries fit
• Struts TagLib
• Bean tags
  • bean:message
  • bean:define
  • bean:page
  • bean:include
  • bean:cookie
  • HTML tags
    • html:form
    • html:submit
    • html:text
    • html:link
    • html:password
  • Logic tags
    • Functionality
    • logic:equal
    • logic:iterate
  • Template tags


14. Struts Plugin, Internationalization and Error Handling
• Objectives
• Struts plugins
  • Creating a plugin
  • Configuring a plugin
• Internationalization
  • Struts Internationalization Mechanisms
  • Adding internationalization to the example application
  • Formatting messages
• Error Handling
  • Struts Error Handling Mechanisms
  • ActionError and ActionErrors
  • Error handling from a form bean
  • Error handling from an action
  • Formatting error messages
  • Struts exception handling
  • Adding error handling to the example application


15. Miscellaneous Advanced Features
• Objectives
• HTTP Redirection
• Dealing with check boxes
• Context sensitive form validation
• DispatchAction
• BeanUtils package
• Digester package
• DynaActionForms
• Multi-application support
• Validators


16. Database Programming
• Configuring and using a Struts Data Source
• Using a J2EE Data Source
• Transaction management from an action
• Sharing a connection with the model classes
• Pre-populating a form for editing data
• Paginated listing of large amounts of data


17. Templates, Tiles and JSTL
• Objectives
• Struts Templates
• Template tags - insert, get and put
• Struts 1.1 tiles support
• Inheritance in tiles definitions
• JSTL overview
• JSTL and Struts


18. Unit Testing Struts Applications - StrutsTestCase
• Objectives
• What is JUnit?
• A sample JUnit test case
• A simple StrutsTest test case
• Executing a StrutsTest test
• Testing strategies


19. JSTL
• Objectives
• The future of Struts Tags
• JSTL - What does it provide?
• JSTL actions
  • Core JSTL tags
  • Formatting tags
  • Database tags
  • XML tags
• JSTL Expression Language
• JSTL Implicit Objects