Google Web Toolkit is a monumental project for Java developers. Java is a language that isn’t usually associated with web development. PHP, Ruby, Python and others are typically seen as the languages of choice when building web applications. At least until recently. Google’s steady development and improvement of the GWT is a major step towards bridging the gap between ajax-driven web applications and Java. And it works well.
GWT: Three Years in the Making
Google Web Toolkit was released in 2006 at the Java One conference, and since then has shaken both the Java world and web development worlds. GWT is an open source Java development framework that essentially allows Java developers to quickly build JavaScript apps in Java. Essentially, GWT makes developing Ajax applications much easier. No more stressing over browser differences and other quirks that developers have to deal with. These quirks are compounded when you’re trying to wield AJAX applications. Just like the GWT official description states, developers spend 90% of their time working around these browser-specific issues.
So now that Google Web Toolkit has hit it’s stride with the latest release of 1.5, it might be time for you to check out GWT as a platform for your next rich Internet application. Here’s a roundup of resources that will help you get on your way to quickly developing in the GWT environment.
Official Google Web Toolkit Resources
GWT Blog
The latest news and updates about GWT as provided by the Google team.
Official Google Web Toolkit Discussion Group
If you’re wanting to find answers to specific GWT questions, this should be your first stop. It’s a fairly large community, and the questions are monitored by the GWT team.
GWT Product Overview
Learn how the toolkit works, the development workflow and the features of the toolkit.
GWT Quick Start
Ready to try your hand at a quick GWT application? Here’s a guide from the official documentation on starting the GWT application environment and creating your first demo app.
GWT API Reference
Roll under the Google Web Toolkit hood. Functions and calls galore.
GWT Showcase of Features
Google provides a demo application that allows you to play with GWT functionality and look at the source code so you can implement the features in your own app. Quite handy for learning the basics.
Official GWT Tutorials
Google offers (at the time of this writing) 4 tutorials related to GWT development.
DOM Events, Memory Leaks, and You
How GWT prevents Ajax memory leaks in their applications.
Security for GWT Applications
Different attacks your application might expect, and how to combat them.
Using GWT for JSON Mashups
Different ways to interoperate JSON data to build mashups and other JSON services.
Put Your GWT Application on Facebook
A few easy steps and your GWT app is now interfacing with Facebook.
Google Web Toolkit Books
Google Web Toolkit: Taking the Pain Out of Ajax
Google Web Toolkit Applications
Pro Web 2.0 Application Development with GWT (Expert’s Voice in Web Development)
GWT in Action: Easy Ajax with the Google Web Toolkit
Google Web Toolkit Solutions: More Cool & Useful Stuff
Accelerated GWT: Building Enterprise Google Web Toolkit Applications
Google™ Web Toolkit Solutions (Digital Short Cut): Cool & Useful Stuff
Google Web Toolkit Tools
Google Web Toolkit Hacks
A large collection of Ajax applets, games, plugins and widgets for use in blogs, CMS, and more.
GWT Components
Collection of components that add extra functionality to GWT like drag-n-drop, as well as interfacing with existing Javascript libraries.
GWT Component Library
Autocompletion, rounded corners, Scriptaculous integration, and more.
GWT Widget Library
An entire library of widgets to use with the Google Web Toolkit platform.
IDE Plugins
Already using an IDE for development? Here are a list of plugins for working with GWT.
GWT Designer
Plugin for the IDE Eclipse.
GWT4NB
A Netbeans plugin on web applications.
GWT-Java
Another Eclipse plugin for GWT.
GWT Resources and Reference
Stack Overflow: GWT Tags
Stackoverflow is an amazing resource for developers, and many questions about GWT have already been asked. If not, there’s a huge community to help with you find your answer.
gwt site
A collection of GWT links, libraries and resources.
GWT Blog
The most frequently updated of the GWT blogs.
An Unofficial GWT Blog
Blog written by some of the GWT engineers.
GWT Articles
Odds are there are plenty of people smarter than us writing about GWT. (A quick Google search confirms this.)Learn from other people smarter than us with these articles on GWT.
Ajax for Java developers: Exploring the Google Web Toolkit
An extensive article from the IBM developerWorks showcasing some sample code that can be used with GWT.
http://ajaxworld.com/node/609633
Supercharge your Ajax development with Google Web Toolkit (GWT)
A quick overview on how the toolkit can help with your application development.
Hands-On Google Web Toolkit
An excellent 5-part tutorial on how to create a Flickr photo album mashup.
Working with the Google Web Toolkit
Another 5-part intro intro with many code examples and applications.
Online Sample Applications built with GWT
An extensive list of applications built with the toolkit. Lots of functionality is explored in these applications.
Developing Web 2.0 Apps with the Google Web Toolkit
A nice, comprehensive tutorial on how to build Ajax apps without tearing your hair out. From the article:
Ajax development hurts, and is not recommended without a bottle of analgesics by your side. Luckily for us there are tools that can make developing Web 2.0 apps a breeze.
Chords of Dissension
No resource list should be complete without a few chords of dissonance. Here are a few of the naysayers of the Google Web Toolkit framework.
Why Google Web Toolkit Rots Your Brain
Ryan Doherty goes into extensive detail as to why he thinks GWT isn’t all that fantastic. He believes that the toolkit is too bloated, doesn’t handle browser sniffing correctly, and many other details. His follow up to the post is a tad more forgiving.
Why I Dumped GWT
Pieter goes into details as to why he doesn’t develop with the Google Web Toolkit after one and a half years with the toolkit. He goes over reasons like SEO, Adsense customization, and others.
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I just had to respond to the statement that “Java is not usually thought of as a web development language.” Check out this link that rates all languages based on the number of websites that are written in each language. TIOBE uses several search engines to count the websites. http://www.tiobe.com/index.php/content/paperinfo/tpci/index.html.
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