While I understand what the lesson is trying to demonstrate, I have a hard-time justifying this technique when I could accomplish the same thing using JavaScript and avoid the server round-trip in the process.

This module does an excellent job of explaining tag libraries, which can be confusing to explain to those who don't have much experience with JSPs. Also, the module shows how to leverage the JSTL support built into WebSphere Studio. Including a reference to the Jakarta Taglibs Project was a nice touch as well.

Anyone who is getting started in Java Web application development will appreciate knowing that there's code (or tag libraries) available on the Internet that can be readily used, instead of having to develop everything I need from scratch.

The material on creating a custom tag library is a bit light, but this particular topic probably deserves to be the focus of a more advanced J2EE development course. Note: the String tag library referenced in the demonstrations is not included with the JSTL; you'll have to download this from the Jakarta Web site.

The activities in this module are challenging but not difficult, provided you understand the material covered in the preceding lessons.

Module 4: Integrating JavaBeans and JavaServer Pages
This module does a great job showing how to use the productivity tools available in WebSphere Studio for JavaBeans. For example, you can generate a JavaBean's getters and setters automatically from the context menu, like in Figure G.

FIGURE G


Generating a JavaBean's getters and setters is only a few mouse clicks away. Roll over picture for a larger image.

I also thought this module gave a good explanation of how to get and set JavaBean properties via JSP tags, as well as how to use the "Java Bean Web Pages" wizard.

The activities in this module were all straightforward. If you're using WSAD V5.0, the code generated as part of Activity #4 will contain an error. If you upgrade to V5.1, the code will generate without an error.

Module 5: Using JDBC in Web Applications
This module is one of the largest modules that comprise the course. Only Module 7, Domino WebSphere Integration, may be longer. The reason why this module is so long is mostly due to the complexity of the wizards available in the Data perspective.

For example, to use the wizard to create a simple INSERT statement takes more than 12 steps. This requires an equal number of screen shots. Also, compared to MS Access and Crystal Reports, the SQL Builder view isn't the smoothest query builder interface I've used. Hopefully IBM will revise and simplify this perspective in future releases.

Additionally, one of the skills you'll learn in this module is how to work with a local Cloudscape database. This may prove to be beneficial if you intend to develop applications for the Lotus Workplace Rich Client, as it uses Cloudscape as its local replicating database. The first activity in this module shows you how to launch Cloudview, shown in Figure H, the user interface for managing Cloudscape.