Hi, I guess I would consider myself a 'real' developer, so i'll give it a go.
Firstly, java servlets aren't always what they're cracked up to be. Make sure your decision is based on what best suits the standards of what is required to be developed. As I don't know what you're doing, i'm affraid I cannot help. I assume you have done this research. Preferred Deplopment/Development platform: unix (for me at the moment, linux) there are pros and cons to using unix. The main cons to using unix is generally if you aren't familiar to unix, learning can take quite a while, and you may need to be running software parallel to the servlet that is only available under a windows based solution. A unix system that is not set up properly may have large security holes. Pros: -easy to restart server when developing: this is more important than you think. When debugging a server, you may need to constantly restart a server. If the server is not running on your development machine, a ssh session is easily adequite to restart the server, rather than having to open up a vnc or similar server program to graphically start and stop servers. With unix, this can all be automated with scripts, resulting in reduced time developing. -speed and reliability: need I say more? It is often hard to find someone that will be able to prove that a non-gui java program runs more quickly and reliably on windows than unix. Unix in general isn't as complicated, and the code used in the core of the operating system is very well thought through and stable (for most unix clones anyway) -quicker development time: Well, this is something I say more as a unix fan than a proven fact. It would vary depending on the person, too. Ask people that have tried my 'bare bones' approach, and i think they would end up backing me up on this. Server Software used: Apache/Tomcat Why? Because everybody uses them, and they are open source. But, again they may not be for you. I recommend you try them, then benchmark against other solutions. If your server is not serving static content, just using tomcat without apache may be a better option. Editors/IDE used: xterm (unix equivalent of dos prompt), vi clone(elvis), makefiles, shell scripts Again, I feel using xterms makes things alot easier and quicker than using wordpad, etc. Script files are used to compile and restart the server. Good placement of xterms about the screen/virtual screen array makes compiling just about the same as using an ide, and clicking the compile button. More control is gained, and quick access to the core of the operating system (to start/stop daemons, etc) can be done by typing a few simple commands, rather than a large series of mouse clicks. I think alot of this is a religious debate, though. Just look for an editor with context highlighting, and line numbers. Compile with command line makefiles simplifies the whole process. be it unix or windows. unix: vi (more specifically elvis clone) win: ultra edit In summary, I use linux, vi editor, xterms (ms dos prompts) to compile via makefiles, apache/tomcat, ssh if you need to use windows (not recommended), you should use win NT workstation 4. (use server editions if you require the additional services). Later versions such as win2k, and XP actually run slower for many tasks, and NT is probably more stable than them due to less complexity. DO NOT use win9x. I hope this helps thanks Rob On Sat, 20 Oct 2001 22:09, you wrote: > Hi all, > > I'm looking a bit of advice from all you 'oul hands out there. > I've only been programming (?tinkering) in java for the last year (or so) > and only with servlets in the last 3 months (on an evaluation/basic > development basis). I have been doing this with a fairly light-weight web > server that has a built-in servlet engine and very easy to set up (vqServer > from www.vqsoft.com). > > Having now decided to run with java servlets I would like to install a more > substantial web server (and anything else required) for running the > finished applications. Having been a member of this mailing list for the > last few months I can see people continually referring to Tomcat / > Apache,etc. > > As I have no experience in this area, and not wanting to dive in and maybe > take the wrong decisions on what to use, I am asking for someone's advice > on what to use and where to find it. > Basically, assume I am starting from scratch with java servlets and want to > know the best route to get started as far as web server/servlet engine,etc. > is concerned. I will most likely be using mainly MS Windows platforms, > currently Win98. > > I'm quite happy, but no expert, with the java programming side of things > though advice on a good graphical java editor would also be appreciated > (one that points out your errors and allows you to correct them on-the-fly > without having to leave the editor). I tried Borland JBuilder (v4) and the > editor from the SUN site (whose name escapes me at the moment) but both > seem overly complex and take quite some time to start up - with the result > that I have been doing all my editing in Microsoft WordPad and compiling > from a DOS prompt. While this approach works OK it can be cumbersome to > debug your program and time-consuming. > > Many thanks for your time in regard to this matter, though I'm sure it will > be helpful to other beginners like myself to hear what the 'real' > developers prefer to use in everyday work. > > Best regards, Billy Graham. ___________________________________________________________________________ To unsubscribe, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and include in the body of the message "signoff SERVLET-INTEREST". Archives: http://archives.java.sun.com/archives/servlet-interest.html Resources: http://java.sun.com/products/servlet/external-resources.html LISTSERV Help: http://www.lsoft.com/manuals/user/user.html
