What you need to use this book

To run the samples in this book you will need:

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Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition SDK v 1.3 or above

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A J2EE 1.3-compliant application server. We used JBoss 3.0.0 for the sample application.

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An RDBMS. We used Oracle 8.1.7i for the sample application

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Apache Log4j 1.2

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An implementation of the JSP Standard Tag Library (JSTL) 1.0

Summary of Contents

Introduction1Chapter 1: J2EE Architectures15Chapter 2 J2EE Projects: Choices and Risks43Chapter 3: Testing J2EE Applications73Chapter 4: Design Techniques and Coding Standards for J2EE Projects113Chapter 5: Requirements for the Sample Application179Chapter 6: Applying J2EE Technologies203Chapter 7: Data Access in J2EE Applications251Chapter 8: Data Access Using Entity Beans285Chapter 9: Practical Data Access311Chapter 10: Session Beans363Chapter 11: Infrastructure and Application Implementation393Chapter 12: Web-Tier MVC Design441Chapter 12: Views in the Web Tier515Chapter 14: Packaging and Application Deployment583Chapter 15: Performance Testing and Tuning an Application611Chapter 16: Conclusion: Making J2EE Work for You675Appendix A: Implementing View Technologies683Index711

"Rod Johnson has done a superb job of covering the design and technical aspects of successfullybuilding J2EE applications. Rod's straight forward and no-nonsense approach to J2EE applicationdesign, development and deployment has earned his book a permanent place on my bookshelf."

- John Carnell, Principal Architect, Centare Group

Design Techniques and CodingStandards for J2EE Projects

As J2EE applications tend to be large and complex, it's vital that we follow sound OO design practice, adopt consistent coding conventions, and leverage existing investment – whether our own or that of third parties. Inthis chapter we'll look at each of these important areas in turn.The first two concern code quality, at object-design and code level. What are we trying to achieve? What isgood code? These are a few of its characteristics:

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Good code is extensible without drastic modification. It's easy to add features without tearing it apart.

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Good code is easy to read and maintain.

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Good code is well documented.

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Good code makes it hard to write bad code around it. For example, objects expose clean,easy-to-use interfaces that promote good use. Both good code and bad code breed.

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Good code is easy to test.

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Good code is easy to debug. Remember that even if a piece of code works perfectly, it's still a problem if it doesn't favor debugging. What if a developer is trying to track down an error inimperfect code, and the stack trace disappears into perfect but obscure code?

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Good code contains no code duplication.

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Good code gets reused.