CODEWITHSUNDEEP
javasilverlight
mark
mark

Reputation: 62836

What are the options for developing powerful browser hosted UI in Java?

I am interested to widen my horizons and wish to learn what are the options for developing a powerful browser hosted UI in Java. All I know is .NET based solutions, specifically Silverlight, which I find extremely powerful, although not without some regretful omissions as compared to its elder brother - WPF.

So, to rephrase my question. Are there mature Silverlight alternatives in Java?

Thanks.

P.S.

Upvotes: 1

Views: 174

Answers (6)

dimitrisli
dimitrisli

Reputation: 21401

I've used GWT before and more recently Vaadin which I would recommend. You can give it a go at a demo sampler here. I am currently using it to create custom portlets for the Liferay CMS/Portal and I am pretty happy with it.

Upvotes: 0

Bozho
Bozho

Reputation: 597234

The question is about Java, but front-ends for the web are almost never written in pure Java.

  • GWT - that's where you write pure Java which is then translated to javascript and html automatically

  • JSF - you reuse rich components to create your pages. Still there's html and javascript. This resembles the ASP.NET model

  • Vaadin - heard of it, never used it. Seems promising

  • ZK - Same as above.

  • jQuery - yes, this has nothing to do with Java, but is very powerful tool for creating rich UI

  • Flex - easy integration with Java back-ends. (I personally don't like Flex, but it's a viable option)

(I specifically omitted JavaFX, because in my opinion it is not yet mature)

Upvotes: 4

Paul Whelan
Paul Whelan

Reputation: 16809

Open Laszlo is worth a look they have a nice interactive demo section too.

The OpenLaszlo platform consists of the LZX programming language and the OpenLaszlo Server:

  • LZX is an XML and JavaScript description language similar in spirit to XUL, MXML, and XAML. LZX enables a declarative, text-based development process that supports rapid prototyping and software development best practices. It is designed to be familiar to traditional web application developers who are familiar with HTML and Javascript.

  • The OpenLaszlo Server is a Java servlet that compiles LZX applications into executable binaries for targeted run-time environments.

Upvotes: 1

kasten
kasten

Reputation: 628

I'm not sure if it fits your demand but have you looked at the Google Web Toolkit? It compiles Java to javascript and some colleges have made nice UI's with it.

Upvotes: 0

Jon Skeet
Jon Skeet

Reputation: 1502286

The closest thing to Silverlight in the Java world is JavaFX. I haven't worked with it myself though, and I don't think I've randomly come across any sites using it in the wild... which means your users are less likely to have whatever plugin is required... and you're likely to be cutting out most mobile users too. (I believe there's a mobile flavour of JavaFX, or at least one planned, but you really want to find out whether it exists on iPhone/Android/(whatever your target market is).

Personally I would probably try to stick to HTML 5 and JavaScript, which can still be pretty rich. (That doesn't necessarily mean writing all the UI by hand, of course - projects like GWT and jQuery are your friends.)

Upvotes: 2

Riduidel
Riduidel

Reputation: 22300

You know, having rich applications in the browser using Java has existed since, say, 1999 : applets, that's what they're for. They were long far from beautiful. However, with the recent apparition of JavaFX, they can now have a very nice look.

Upvotes: 2

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