41–48 of 48 posts
Yes GWT 2.0 is impressive but haven;t we had 3 submissions on that in the last week. Surely nothing new is being said here.
Yeah, what we really need is more of those late-breaking Erlang articles!
The problem with GWT is java, which makes it meh.
I've been working on a .NET clone of GWT as a side-project for awhile. It doesn't have a widget library yet, but it does have web-mode and development-mode. It works by decompiling MSIL which means you can use any .NET language you want. http://github.com/flaub/DotWeb Not much in terms of demos, but the core technology is all pretty much done. Plugins for FireFox (NPAPI-based) and IE work so that you can set breakpoi…
While, GWT is a very impressive feat of technical accomplishment. It really misses the mark, the problem with it as well as most of the old desktop development (languages, toolkits, frameworks) is that it favored the developer over the designer. This is one of the reasons for the popularity of the web, it allowed the designer (and the want-to-be designer) the ability to design and build interfaces without having to k…
I believe there's very limited role of "design" when it comes to application development: people want consistent look and feel in all apps, they want to reuse their skills and not having to re-learn how to add an item to a list for every little piece of software. It doesn't mean that everything needs to look like crap for the sake of consistency: just look at Cocoa-based software: you don't need a designer to build a…
You mentioned Cocoa and it is funny that you do, because I think that Apple is one of the ones that got it right (I have only done IPhone development, so forgive me if this does not apply to OSX proper). But with the nib file abstracted away from code it allows a designer to build screens, lay them out and then move them on in a work flow to a developer. Allot of the more modern desktop development languages / frameworks now have this separation but it is relatively new and the web seems doomed to follow every incarnation until it too finds that separation of different technologies is the cleanest way to build a system.
The web is a different beast, while there are pure application many of them are hybrids I think Linked-In or Facebook are a really good example of these hybrid application/documents. They are very interactive but at the end of the day they are a document that sums up either my personal or professional life. With them usability and design is just as important as the code that sits behind them.
While, GWT is a very impressive feat of technical accomplishment. It really misses the mark, the problem with it as well as most of the old desktop development (languages, toolkits, frameworks) is that it favored the developer over the designer. This is one of the reasons for the popularity of the web, it allowed the designer (and the want-to-be designer) the ability to design and build interfaces without having to k…
You should look at UiBinder (part of GWT 2.0). You write HTML and CSS, stick it into a UIBinder template. And in 5 minutes you can take a designed mock and have it bound to a Java class in a very efficient way. You get things like CSS namespacing and obfuscation for free with this approach too.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I suggest looking at the EXT-GWT library for what is possible. I'm using it in a project where its GPLness doesn't matter.
It depends on your needs. If you don't want to modify the widget appearances or behaviors, Ext-GWT is nice. If you aren't building a large web-app, Ext-GWT is the way to go. But if you're one of them people who prefer to do TDD, or unit-test etc, avoid Ext-GWT at all cost. If you want to personalize your app, avoid Ext-GWT at all cost. If you want a solid (library) Java code, avoid Ext-GWT at all cost. I've been usin…
Those who like statc-typing will always find it ridiculously great. Those used to dynamic-typing will find the idea of writing JavaScript in Java ridiculous, but not great. There is wisdom in the middle.
"Those who like static-typing will always find it ridiculously great." People who actually like static-typing probably don't like Java, but something more like Haskell.
GWT always sounds interesting, but I am underwhelmed by the application gallery. Every app looks like a draft version of gmail, google maps or google wave. Any links to impressive interfaces (non google-built)?
GWT always sounds interesting, but I am underwhelmed by the application gallery. Every app looks like a draft version of gmail, google maps or google wave. Any links to impressive interfaces (non google-built)?
We build TeamPostgreSQL with GWT. It is a PostgreSQL web administration package. Feel free to to take a look: http://www.teampostgresql.com The download package comes with a bundled sample database, so you can take it for a spin too. Feedback welcome.
The product is still a few features away from being ready for the public launch, the value proposition should be more apparent when we get there.