CNET JSP BASIC: Introduction

JavaServer pages (JSP) is a combination of cross-platform and cross-Web server support, Java-oriented technology to generate dynamic Web pages.

JSP is similar to Microsoft's active Server Pages, but it uses HTML-like tags and Java code snippets rather than VBScript. When you are using a Web server that does not provide local ASP support, that is, Apache or Netscape server, you may consider using JSP. While you can get the ASP add-on modules for these servers, the price is quite expensive, and currently sun does not charge you for the JSP components you need (although Sun may charge it in the future). These controls are also easy to obtain for Solaris and Linux and Windows.

Do not confuse your JSP with server-side JavaScript. The Web server automatically converts Java code snippets written in JSP into Java servlets. Many features that previously had to be controlled with Perl handwriting or server-specific APIs, such as ASP, can also be automated through JSPs.

Now let's start by helping you build an executable JSP sample Web site.