Getting started with Servlets

fp_unit · 07-06-2005, 12:56 PM

I am in the process of researching technologies for a web application - our main codebase is written in Perl, but for this application I decided it might be better to look at other technologies. I originally thought PHP5, but after spending much of the day looking at it, I think Java Servlets might be better suited seeing as how I'm used to a more type-oriented language. I don't claim to know Java well, but I know the basics of writing applications, and have spent a fair amount of time on the Swing tutorial as well as the API docs. I also have a pretty good handle on Object Oriented concepts from programming C++, but Java is slightly different and it might take a bit for me to get used to that.

What I dont know much about is where to get started with Servlet programming. We have a web server set up running our Apache server on port 80 - this runs our core website, and I would need to write this tool to fit somewhere into that system. Currently the server runs PHP and mod_perl, I have heard about things like Apache Tomcat and Catalina, but I'm not sure what I'd need for my project. I'm going to start researching now but I figured I would post this question so I can check back on it and compare my results to the answer(s) here.

technobard · 07-06-2005, 01:38 PM

Tomcat will allow you to get started with servlets. There are obviously tons of books, articles, etc. on the subject. Good luck!

Belisarius · 07-06-2005, 02:00 PM

You'll want to install mod_jk (mod_jk2 is an abandoned project, don't use it) in Apache. That will connect any processing of jsp's with Tomcat (which you'll also have to install). Tomcat is the defacto open source server for servlets and JSPs. If you want a J2EE server, I'd suggest looking into JBoss, which is based around Tomcat for the Servlet/JSP aspect, but serves up EJB's itself.

Catalina is synonymous with Tomcat - Catalina is the engine name.

The absolute best book on this stuff that I've come across is actually an exam study kit entitled "SCWCD Exam Study Kit" my Hanumant Deshmukh, Jignesh Malavia and Matthew Scarpino. I've read a number of JSP/Servlet books, and this is the one that presents all the information you need to know in the easiest to understand manner. Be sure to get the Second Edition, which was just released a couple months ago.

Note that this isn't a Tomcat book, but rather a book on J2EE technology in general. It'll tell you what to do with an already-setup Tomcat, but not how to set it up in the first place - that requires a different book. I would advise against an all-in-one book to the subject, as it would end up being a jack-of-all-trades, master-of-none deal.

The easiest thing in the world, though, is to run Tomcat without Apache. Tomcat will work as a webserver just fine - it just isn't as versitile as Apache. I'd prototype on a stand-alone Tomcat server.

fp_unit · 07-06-2005, 04:00 PM

Thanks for the help guys.

I think I'll play with a local Tomcat environment, see what I can come up with. I probably wouldnt need to talk the boss into buying a new server - seeing as how this is just an internal application, speed isn't a concern. I think I'll look alot deeper into mod_jk, and if that doesn't suit well for whatever reason on the production server, I can always run a full out Tomcat installation on another port, which isn't really the end of the world. And if the boss doesn't like those solutions he can shell out some cash for a new dual-core opteron server!

Thanks again