Building Scalable and High-Performance Java Web Applications Using J2EE Technology

By Greg Barish

Provides the concise roadmap Java developers and Web engineers need to build high-performance and scalable enterprise Web applications. Packed with general system architecture tips and balanced with... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0201729563
• ISBN13: 9780201729566
• Release Date: January 2001
• Publisher: Addison-Wesley
• Length: 392 Pages
• Weight: 2.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 1.0" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

An interesting and refreshing read for anyone

This is a good architectural primer on performance and scalability issues in general, and their consideration in web application design in particular.Every chapter has introductory material explaining a specific technology, how to use it, and related performance hints. Excellent reasoning on every point and no fluff whatsoever make this book stand out among others.This is one of those rare books in which even the material that I know well was a pleasure to read.

Recommended for all web application designers using Java

Building Scalable And High Performance Java Web Applications Using J2EE Technology by Greg Barish (professional consultant specializing in the design and architecture for scalable and high-performance Web applications) is a definitive, superbly presented, step-by-step programming guide for web designers who already have experience in the basics of Java. From assorted methods for effective HTTP Client/Server Communication to proper request processing with J2EE to using Java Beans to build application servers, the methodology for functional J2EE coding is all mapped out with concise and clear guides. Lines of sample code help to clearly illustrate the principles being presented, and an accompanying CD-ROM (which requires a Windows-based operating system to run) is filled with useful source code from the chapters of this textbook. Building Scalable And High Performance Java Web Applications Using J2EE Technology is strongly recommended for all web application designers using Java and J2EE.

Pragmatic

I agree with the reviewer before me that this book is clear and pragmatic. Where the more traditional methods for scalability and performance are more scientific and will give more confidence in the end results they are usually cast aside because developers do not understand them. With this book they have no excuse. The methods given are easy enough to be understood by code jockeys, and effective enough to be used by software engineers working with tight deadlines.This book is valuable for other reasons too. The author obviously understands the Java development environment and its pros and cons, and also knows databases. Any developer who reads this book will come away with a better understanding of web application design and development, and will also understand the backend systems, such as relational databases, XML and web services.

Depth and architecture clearly presented

There are few authors who can clearly impart the complexities of attaining scalability and performance as design and construction goals. Greg Barish is among the anointed few. He achieves this with conversational prose--as though he were mentoring you--and examples that reinforce each concept as it's presented.If you work in multiple development environments this book is doubly valuable because it's divided almost equally between generic concepts and techniques, and J2EE-specific advice. While the performance and scalability techniques presented in this book don't approach those embodied in books by Daniel A. Menasce and Virgilio A. F. Almeida, or Raj Jain, they are more than sufficient for software engineers and architects. Therein lies the value of this book - it sidesteps the queuing theory, probability and regression analysis and presents scalability in down-to-earth terms, using relatively simple math. This realistic, practical approach ensures that the design and development team will actually use the information in this book. Yes, the more formal approaches are better - they are just ignored, and the lite techniques in this book are far better than nothing, and will inspire developers to dig deeper after they've seen the results.What I like about this book: (1) each chapter builds upon the preceding one, (2) all of the major aspects of web services development are addressed with a focus on scalability and performance in every chapter, (3) special skills, such as database connectivity, and the building blocks, such as XML and SOAP, are covered, and (4) while the book seems simple it delves into nuances of J2EE with respect to scalability and performance. The 'simplicity' is an illusion that comes from the author's ability to write well. The value of this book is that it does make scalability and performance techniques accessible to most developers, even those who are math-challenged (and there are quite a few of them out there). I read it twice - once for the subject matter and the second pass to dissect the way the book was written. I gained much from both passes.

Clear description of important concepts

While this book uses J2EE as the basis for scalability and performance strategies in web application development, it is also useful regardless of the development and technical environment.The author begins this book with the clearest and easiest-to-follow descriptions of performance and scalability and how to measure them that I've ever read. The same treatment was given to web applications architecture, which is the second topic in sequence. I like Mr. Barish's straightforward, conversational writing style and use of simple (but effective) illustrations, graphs and examples that make complex concepts easy-to-grasp.I stated above that this book can be used outside of the J2EE environment, and here are the chapters that are generic enough to accomplish this: 1 (Scalable and High Performance Web Applications), 2 (Web Application Architecture), 4 (Scalability and Performance Techniques), 5 (HTTP Client/Server Communication), 10 (Effective Database Design) and 12 (The Future of Web Applications). While each of these chapters are well written and go into sufficient detail for developers and architects I particularly liked chapter 10 because he explained relational database fundamentals and SQL programming with such clarity that I got more from the 42 pages that comprise this chapter than I did from a 300+ page book on the topic. The follow-on chapter on JDBC and SQL is as well written. Another reason why I liked chapter 10 is many developers understand how to develop servlets and components, but do not have sufficient understanding of relational databases. This book rectifies that, which is particularly important since most real world applications are data intensive and need to connect to databases.Additional strong points about this book include: code examples are only given to reinforce a concept or show an example. Don't expect to find a recipe book based on code - this book is about making it scalable and giving it performance characteristics. The J2EE-specific parts of the book use realistic examples and propose real world approaches. However, the strongest aspect of this book is the author stays focused on scalability and performance throughout the book, always ending each chapter with scalability and performance hints that are related to the chapter's topic.This book is for architects and software engineers who are building applications that support business-critical needs. It's clear, concise and exceptionally well written.