Professional Java 2 Enterprise Edition with BEA WebLogic Server (Programmer to Programmer) [Illustriert] [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

The authors adopt a familiar conceit and build their lessons on the story of Pizza2Go, a pizza company taking its business online--listen up, there are other foods. On a more positive note the authors are happy to discuss competing technologies--for example, when introducing Java server pages they also talk about ASP and Cold Fusion. Such discussion is kept under control, though, with the emphasis firmly on Java developer needs. This runs through the selection of an appropriate technology for each feature of the business model, how it fits into the application architecture and then through to coding.

Practical business requirements are well addressed, such as how to implement a WAP interface to the application. But one of the best features of the book is the huge section devoted to building the Grinder, an application designed to stress test the whole portal.

Anyone using transaction-based Web sites is well aware of how poorly so many perform their functions. After working your way through Professional Java 2 Enterprise Edition with BEA WebLogic Server you can be sure you won't be responsible for delivering cold pizzas. --Steve Patient

The focus on hands-on matters begins with installation and configuration of BEA WebLogic Server, one of the more widely used platforms for running EJB applications. Most books cover EJBs more theoretically and leave deployment by the wayside. By focusing on an actual EJB product, the authors can talk about what works and what doesn't work in real applications. For examples, a single case study for a chain of pizza shops gets enhanced in stages, first with a Web front end for ordering pizzas, then with other features--including call-center support, e-mail, and XML. A section on converting an ASP version of a front end for this sample application into a JSP version is a highlight.

The latter half of this text turns into a primer on benchmarking. A benchmark (called the Grinder) measures performance, with a wide range of choices for EJBs that run on WebLogic. Different Java Virtual Machines (JVMs) and choices for implementing the applications (for example, stateful vs. stateless EJBs) are tested, and the numbers of concurrent users (up to 400) are varied. The result is a solid glimpse into the choices that give the best performance on WebLogic.

Besides covering the basics of building e-commerce applications with JSPs and EJBs, this book has a genuinely practical side. The case study is very useful, as is the plentiful performance advice. Smart, friendly, and well organized, this title strikes an excellent balance between presenting information on some of the latest Java technology and APIs, and showing just how to do it on a real EJB platform and with real code. --Richard Dragan

Topics covered:

• Introduction to Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE)
• Getting started with BEA WebLogic Server: features and administration
• "Webifying" existing applications
• Introduction to JavaServer Pages (JSPs)
• Overview of BEA dbKona and htmlKona for simpler JSP/servlet development
• JSP architectures (Model 1 and Model 2)
• Using Enterprise JavaBeans (EJBs)
• Session beans, including stateless session beans
• Entity beans (container-managed and bean-managed persistence)
• Converting ASPs to JSPs
• Sending e-mail and the Java Message Service
• Security issues for Web applications, including authentication, SSL, and authorization
• Introduction to Wireless Markup Language (WML) and wireless applications
• Stress-testing performance for Web applications
• Grinder (custom benchmark for performance testing)
• Comparative benchmark scores (comparing JVMs, stateful and stateless beans, entity beans, and clustering options for up to 400 users)
• Case study for chain of pizza shops with e-commerce features and call centers
• JSP syntax reference