I still remember the days when people were saying that Java would never become a mainstream general purpose programming language because it was too slow… it was too inefficient… it was just hyped up. Yet somehow Java turned into a dominant force in the enterprise! In fact, nowadays people are finding that Java apps can be faster than natively compiled ones. The skeptics were proven wrong.
But it seems like the history tends to repeat itself. This time around, Ruby on Rails is in the spot-light, and while many people are branding it as the best thing in the world of web development since sliced bread, there are still plenty of skeptics. The arguments are almost the same as they were with Java: RoR is too slow, it's too inefficient, it's just hyped up. The answer from the Ruby community? Silicone is cheaper than carbon. I love it!
Anyway, given that I am still mostly a Java developer, I don't really have the authority to either bash or defend RoR, so I'll point you to this article instead: Rails Yet To Make Dent in the Enterprise.
What do you think?
Yesterday I ran into Jason Brittain (the co-author of Tomcat: The Definitive Guide, Second Edition) and he told me about spigit.com, a smart social network for the enterprises, that he helps build.
Think of it as an intranet-based discussion forum where users (employees) share their ideas, others rate them, and the system keeps track of which ideas are "best" based on the users' feedback. Along the way, users build their online reputation. This is all part of a larger, social-networking-like application.
What makes spigit.com's solution unique is that it combines social networking with a ratings engine that finds the best ideas (idea management) and the "best people" based on peer/social feedback. And unlike other social networks out there, Sprigit is geared towards the enterprises. Once deployed, it makes it easy for businesses to capture ideas in their organization and assess the quality of those ideas based on the social interaction around them. Sprigit enables logical transformation of business ideas into business decisions.
The way I see it, while other social networks just capture connections between people, Spigit also models connections around ideas.
Now that's a great idea!
This is a simple example on how to secure a Java web application (regardless of whether it is based on Servlets, JSPs, Struts, Spring, JSF, or any other combination) using just simple FORM-based container-managed security. True, other, much more sophisticated security frameworks exist, but this is by far the simplest way to wrap a security layer around an application regardless of its underlying implementation.
We also demonstrate how to authenticate users against a relational database (in this case we used MySQL).
The example application shown below was tested on Tomcat, but the principles should work on any modern Java EE servlet container.
Continue reading 'Securing Java web applications using FORM-based container-managed security'
We are looking for per diem instructors to help us deliver our training courses at our clients' locations, as well as at our training center in San Francisco.
We have an immediate need for Ruby/Rails, Ajax, Java, Apache HTTPD, and Tomcat instructors.
Strong presentation skills are absolutely necessary. Our instructors must have ability to work with students of various skill levels, and be able to customize training delivery based on participants' backgrounds and expectations.
If you are passionate about open source and are able to share your thoughts and experience with others, we want you!
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