112.  Introduction to JavaServer Pages

Rev. 2.0.1

 

This course is now available directly from our partner, Capstone Courseware.

This two-day module introduces JavaServer Pages, or JSP, which is the standard means of authoring dynamic content for Web applications under the Java Enterprise platform.  The module begins with an introduction of Web applications in general, shows how Java servlets and JSPs establish a framework for writing Web applications, and then covers JSP 2.0 features in detail, from scripting elements to use of dedicated JavaBeans to JSP expressions, and quick introductions of JSTL and custom tag development. 

 

By the end of the module students will be able to create their own JSP applications, including interactive applications using HTML forms and pages that perform fairly complex processing using scripts and or actions.  Although scripting is covered, the scriptless authoring style encouraged by the JSP 2.0 specification is emphasized, and students will be well equipped to develop concise and effective JSP applications.

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

 

·         Explain the fundamentals of HTML and HTTP in the World Wide Web.

·         Describe the CGI and its role in implementing interactive Web applications.

·         Describe JavaServer Pages and their relationship to servlets and J2EE generally.

·         Describe how a JSP is translated into a servlet and processed at runtime.

·         Explain the use of directives on JSPs and outline the principal directives.

·         Implement simple JSPs that use Java code in declarations, expressions and scriptlets.

·         Enumerate and use the implicit objects available to scripting elements.

·         Explain the use of HTML forms in Web applications.

·         Implement an interactive Web application using JSP.

·         Use Java exception handling and JSP error pages to handle errors in JSP applications.

·         Implement session management for a JSP application.

·         Manage cookies to store client-specific information at various scopes and durations.

·         Explain the use of JavaBeans in JSP and their role in enhancing the separation of business logic from page design.

·         Use Beans to implement effective interactive JSP applications.

·         Describe the use of the JSP expression language in simplifying dynamic page output.

·         Write JSP expressions and implement JSPs that use them in favor of scripts.

·         Describe the role of the JSP Standard Tag Library in JSP development.

·         Implement JSPs that use basic JSTL actions to simplify presentation logic.

·         Describe custom tags in JSP and explain how they are implemented, both using Java and JSP itself, and how they are used.

·         Discuss threading issues in JSP and describe the use of directives to control how threading is handled.

·         Describe the various uses of XML in JSP applications.

·         Deploy a logical Web application to a Web server in a WAR file.

 

Duration:  2 days.

 

Prerequisites:  No formal prerequisites;  knowledge of HTML and background in Web applications, and/or Java programming experience, are helpful but not necessary.

 

1.      Web Applications

The World Wide Web

HTML

Web Servers

HTTP

Dynamic Web Pages

CGI

Java Web Technologies

Servlets

JSP

 

2.      JSP Architecture

JSP Containers

Servlet Architecture

Page Translation

Types of JSP Content

Directives

Content Type

Buffering

Scripting Elements

JSP Expressions

Standard Actions

Custom Actions and JSTL

Objects and Scopes

Implicit Objects

JSP Lifecycle

 

3.      Scripting Elements

Translation of Template Content

Scriptlets

Expressions

Declarations

Dos and Don’ts

Implicit Objects for Scriptlets

The request Object

The response Object

The out Object

 

4.      Interactive JSP Applications

HTML Forms

Reading CGI Parameters

JSPs and Java Classes

Error Handling

Session Management

The Session API

Cookies and JSP

 

5.      Using JavaBeans

Separating Presentation and Business Logic

JSP Actions

JavaBeans

Working with Properties

<jsp:useBean>

<jsp:getProperty> and <jsp:setProperty>

Using Form Parameters with Beans

Objects and Scopes

Working with Vectors

 

6.      The Expression Language and the JSTL

Going Scriptless

The JSP Expression Language

EL Syntax

Type Coercion

Error Handling

Implicit Objects for EL

The JSP Standard Tag Library

Role of JSTL

The Core Actions

Using Beans with JSTL

The Formatting Actions

Scripts vs. EL/JSTL

 

7.      Advanced JSP Features

Web Components

Forwarding

Inclusion

Passing Parameters

Custom Tag Libraries

Tag Library Architecture

Implementing in Java or JSP

Threads

Strategies for Thread Safety

XML and JSP

JSP for Web Services

 

Learning Resources

 

System Requirements

 

This module can be presented on Windows or Linux systems.  The J2SE SDK and the Tomcat 5 Web server are required – both are free downloadables available for either platform.  Hardware requirements are modest: a good minimal system for this module would have a Pentium 500MHz or equivalent CPU, 256 meg of RAM and at least 500 megabytes of free disk space for tools installation and lab software.