Are you planning on using AJAX to make your Web site more responsive and easier to use? If so, you probably have been looking at all of the frameworks available and wondered which one is best for you.
On previous projects, I have worked with several AJAX frameworks, such as Dojo, Yahoo User Interface (YUI), Google Web Toolkit (GWT), and others. They each have advantages and disadvantages, but here’s the bottom line: HTML, Javascript, and CSS are a challenge to use effectively, especially on large, business critical Web sites. Why? HTML is tedious and Javascript is not easy to write, test, or debug.
So what’s the alternative? In my opinion, Google Web Toolkit (GWT) is a great solution. With GWT, you need only write Java code, just as you would with a desktop applications. There are lots of excellent widgets, such as tables, trees, buttons, panels, menus and so on to simplify development. You can use excellent development tools such as Eclipse to write and even debug your code. Most importantly, you can leverage the Java language to build great apps that work reliably on all major browsers. No HTML, CSS, or Javascript to worry about. You can still work at that level if you like with GWT, but it’s not required.
Here are some links that explain more:
