servlet

A small program that runs on a server. The term usually refers to a Javaapplet that runs within a Web server environment. This is analogous to a Java applet that runs within a Web browser environment. Java servlets are becoming increasingly popular as an alternative to CGI programs. The biggest difference between the two is that a Java applet is persistent. This means that once it is started, it stays in memory and can fulfill multiple requests. In contrast, a CGI program disappears once it has fulfilled a request. The persistence of Java applets makes them faster because there's no wasted time in setting up and tearing down the process.

Web server
Web servers are computers that deliver (serves up) Web pages. Every Web server has an IP address and possibly a domain name. For example, if you enter the URL http://www.pcwebopedia.com/index.html in your browser, this sends a request to the Web server whose domain name ispcwebopedia.com. The server then fetches the page named index.html and sends it to your browser. Any computer can be turned into a Web server by installing server softwareand connecting the machine to the Internet. There are many Web server software applications, including public domain software from NCSA and Apache, and commercial packages from Microsoft, Netscape and others.

browser
Short for Web browser, a software application used to locate, retrieve and also display content on the World Wide Web, including Web pages, images, video and other files. As a client/server model, the browser is the client run on a computer that contacts the Web server and requests information. The Web server sends the information back to the Web browser which displays the results on the computer or other Internet-enabled device that supports a browser.

CGI
Abbreviation of Common Gateway Interface, a specification for transferring information between a World Wide Web server and a CGI program. A CGI program is any program designed to accept and return data that conforms to the CGI specification. The program could be written in any programming language, including C, Perl, Java, or Visual Basic. CGI programs are the most common way for Web servers to interact dynamically with users. Many HTML pages that contain forms, for example, use a CGI program to process the form's data once it's submitted. Another increasingly common way to provide dynamic feedback for Web users is to include scripts or programs that run on the user's machine rather than the Web server. These programs can be Java applets, Java scripts, or ActiveX controls. These technologies are known collectively as clientside solutions, while the use of CGI is a server-side solution because the processing occurs on the Web server. One problem with CGI is that each time a CGI script is executed, a newprocess is started. For busy Web sites, this can slow down the server noticeably. A more efficient solution, but one that it is also more difficult to implement, is to use the server's API, such as ISAPI or NSAPI. Another increasingly popular solution is to use Java servlets.

J2EE
Short for Java 2 Platform Enterprise Edition. J2EE is a platform-independent,Java-centric environment from Sun for developing, building and deploying Web-based enterprise applications online. The J2EE platform consists of a set of services, APIs, and protocols that provide the functionality for developing multitiered, Webbased applications.

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Some of the key features and services of J2EE: At the client tier, J2EE supports pure HTML, as well as Java applets or applications. It relies on Java Server Pages and servlet code to create HTML or other formatted data for the client. Enterprise JavaBeans (EJBs) provide another layer where the platform's logic is stored. An EJB server provides functions such as threading, concurrency, security and memory management. These services are transparent to the author. Java Database Connectivity (JDBC), which is the Java equivalent to ODBC, is the standard interface for Java databases. The Java servlet API enhances consistency for developers without requiring agraphical user interface.

JSP
Short for Java Server Page. A server-side technology, Java Server Pages are an extension to the Java servlet technology that was developed by Sun. JSPs have dynamic scripting capability that works in tandem with HTML code, separating the page logic from the static elements -- the actual design and display of the page -- to help make the HTML more functional(i.e. dynamic database queries). A JSP is translated into Java servlet before being run, and it processes HTTP requests and generates responses like any servlet. However, JSP technology provides a more convenient way to code a servlet. Translation occurs the first time the application is run. A JSP translator is triggered by the .jsp file name extension in a URL. JSPs are fully interoperable with servlets. You can include output from a servlet or forward the output to a servlet, and a servlet can include output from a JSP or forward output to a JSP. JSPs are not restricted to any specific platform or server. It was orignially created as an alternative to Microsoft's ASPs (Active Server Pages). Recently, however, Microsoft has countered JSP technology with its own ASP.NET, part of the .NET initiative.

JDBC
Short for Java Database Connectivity, a Java API that enables Java programsto execute SQL statements. This allows Java programs to interact with any SQL-compliant database. Since nearly all relational database management systems (DBMSs) support SQL, and because Java itself runs on mostplatforms, JDBC makes it possible to write a single database application that can run on different platforms and interact with different DBMSs. JDBC is similar to ODBC, but is designed specifically for Java programs, whereas ODBC is languageindependent. JDBC was developed by JavaSoft, a subsidiary of Sun Microsystems.

Short for Remote Method Invocation, a set of protocols being developed bySun's JavaSoft division that enables Java objects to communicate remotely with other Java objects. RMI is a relatively simple protocol, but unlike more complex protocols such as CORBA and DCOM, it works only with Java objects. CORBA and DCOM are designed to support objects created in any language.

RMI

Java
A high-level programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. Java was originally called OAK, and was designed for handheld devices and set-top boxes. Oak was unsuccessful so in 1995 Sun changed the name to Java and modified the language to take advantage of the burgeoning World Wide Web. Java is an object-oriented language similar to C++, but simplified to eliminate language features that cause common programming errors. Java source code files (files with a .java extension) are compiled into a format calledbytecode (files with a .class extension), which can then be executed by a Javainterpreter. Compiled Java code can run on most computers because Java interpreters and runtime environments, known as Java Virtual

Machines (VMs), exist for most operating systems, including UNIX, the Macintosh OS, and Windows. Bytecode can also be converted directly into machine languageinstructions by a just-in-time compiler (JIT). Java is a general purpose programming language with a number of features that make the language well suited for use on the World Wide Web. Small Java applications are called Java applets and can be downloaded from a Web server and run on your computer by a Java-compatible Web browser, such asNetscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Java applet
An applet is a small Internet-based program written in Java, a programming language for the Web, which can be downloaded by any computer. The applet is also able to run in HTML. The applet is usually embedded in an HTML page on a Web site and can be executed from within a browser.