JSF Project using Eclipse 3.x

Development Tools

Eclipse 3.x

MyEclipse plugin 3.8

(A cheap and quite powerful Extension to Eclipse to develop Web Applications and EJB (J2EE) Applications. I think that there is a test version availalable at MyEclipse.)

Application Server

Jboss 3.2.5

You may use Tomcat here if you like.

Create a JavaServer faces project

Create a new web project. File > New > Project.

Set a nice name and add the JSTL Libraries to the project.

Add the JavaServer faces Capabilities. Right click on the project and choose MyEclipse > Add JSF Capabilities.

Open the class and add the following private properties:

• id

• author

• title

• available

Generate a getter- and setter-method for each property. Right click on the editor window and choose Source > Generate Getter- and Setter Methods.

Furthermore you have to add a constructor, which set the properties if you initialisize the instance variable of the newly object.

The following source code show the class book.

public class Book implements Serializable {

// ------------------ Properties --------------------------------
private long id;
private String author;
private String title;
private boolean available;

// ------------------ Constructors --------------------------------
public Book(){}
public Book(long id, String author, String title, boolean available){
this.id = id;
this.author = author;
this.title = title;
this.available = available;
}

// ------------------ Getter and setter methods ---------------------

public String getAuthor() {
return author;
}
public void setAuthor(String author) {
this.author = author;
}
public boolean isAvailable() {
return available;
}
public void setAvailable(boolean available) {
this.available = available;
}
public long getId() {
return id;
}
public void setId(long id) {
this.id = id;
}
public String getTitle() {
return title;
}
public void setTitle(String title) {
this.title = title;
}
}



Add a getter and setter for the class.

/**
* Set the properties
* @param book
*/
public void setBook(Book book){
this.setId(book.getId());
this.setAuthor(book.getAuthor());
this.setTitle(book.getTitle());
this.setAvailable(book.isAvailable());
}

/**
* @return book object
*/
public Book getBook(){

return new Book(this.getId(),
this.getAuthor(),
this.getTitle(),
this.isAvailable());
}

The database class

We use a class to provide some test data without using a database. Download the sample application of this tutorial and copy the class SimulateDB.java find in the folder src/de/laliluna/tutorial/library/ in the package de.laliluna.tutorial.library.

The class BookList

Create a futher class BookList in the package de.laliluna.library. This class inlcudes the property books, which represent the list of books. Generate a getter- and seter-method for the property books and change the getter-method like the following.

public class BookList {



	// ------------------------- Properties ---------------------------

	Collection books;



	// ------------------------- Getter and Setter --------------------

	

	/**

	 * @return collection of books

	 */

	public Collection getBooks(){

		

		SimulateDB simulateDB = new SimulateDB();

		

		/* Holt sich die Session auf dem Externen Context

		 */

		Map session = FacesContext.getCurrentInstance().getExternalContext().getSessionMap();

		

		/* Lies alle Bücher auf der simulierten Datenbank aus

		 */

		books = simulateDB.getAllBooks(session);

		

		return books;

	}

		

	/**

	 * @param books The books to set.

	 */

	public void setBooks(Collection books) {

		this.books = books;

	}	

}

Your package explorer will look like the picture below.

Action listener methods

To provide that a user can add, edit or delete a book, we have to include the appropriate functionality. This functionality will be implemented in action listener methods / classes. If an event occur (ex.: a user clicks on a link) an action listener method / class will be called and processed.

Open the class Book and add four methods , which process the following functionality.

• Initializise a book

• Edit a book

• Save a book

• Delete a book

Initialize a book

/**
* Initial the properties of the class with null
* @param event
*/
public void initBook(ActionEvent event){

/*
* init the book object
*/
this.setBook(new Book());
}

Edit a book

**
* Get the book to edit and assign it to the bean
*
* @param event
*/
public void selectBook(ActionEvent event){

SimulateDB simulateDB = new SimulateDB();

/*
* Get the session map of the external context
*/
Map session = FacesContext.getCurrentInstance().getExternalContext().getSessionMap();

/*
* Find the UIParameter component by expression
*/
UIParameter component = (UIParameter) event.getComponent().findComponent("editId");

/*
* parse the value of the UIParameter component
*/
long id = Long.parseLong(component.getValue().toString());

/*
* get the book by id and set it in the local property
*/
this.setBook(simulateDB.loadBookById(id, session));
}



Save a book

/**
* Add or update the book in the simulated database.
* If the book id is not set the book will be added
* otherwise the book will be updated
*
* @param event
*/
public void saveBook(ActionEvent event){

SimulateDB simulateDB = new SimulateDB();

/*
* Get the session map of the external context
*/
Map session = FacesContext.getCurrentInstance().getExternalContext().getSessionMap();

/*
* Add or update the book in the simulated database
*/
simulateDB.saveToDB(this.getBook(), session);
}

Delete a book

/**
* Delete a book in the simulated database
*
* @param event
*/
public void deleteBook(ActionEvent event){

SimulateDB simulateDB = new SimulateDB();

/*
* Get the session map of the external context
*/
Map session = FacesContext.getCurrentInstance().getExternalContext().getSessionMap();

/*
* Find the UIParameter component by expression
*/
UIParameter component = (UIParameter) event.getComponent().findComponent("deleteId");

/*
* parse the value of the UIParameter component
*/
long id = Long.parseLong(component.getValue().toString());

/*
* delete the book by id
*/
simulateDB.deleteBookById(id, session);
}

The file faces-config.xml

The faces-config.xml is the central configuration file of JavaServer faces. In this file you define the workflow of the application (on which action which site will be processed) , the managed bean classes by JSF and something more.

The workflow of the library application looks like the following.

We define a navigation rule for this workflow.

Open the file faces-config.xml and add the following configuration.

List of books
/listBooks.jsp

editBook
/editBook.jsp




Add or edit a book
/editBook.jsp

listBooks
/listBooks.jsp









Define a navigation rule

/listBooks.jsp

Define the jsp file for which the containing navigation rule is relevant.



Define a navigation case

editBook

Define a name for this navigation case

/listBooks.jsp

Refers to the setted JSP File



All parameters saved in the request will be losed when you set this tag.



If you want to access the bean classes in your JSP files, you have to register the bean classes in faces-config.xml

Add the following source code.




Book bean

bookBean
de.laliluna.tutorial.library.Book
request




BookList Bean

bookListBean
de.laliluna.tutorial.library.BookList
session






Define a managed bean

bookBean

Define a name for the managed bean. This name is used in the JSP file.

de.laliluna.tutorial.library.Book

Define the class which represent the bean.

request

Define in which scope the bean is saved.

Create the JSP files

In the first step we create a JSP file named index.jsp, which forwards the user to the list of books.

index.jsp

n the second step we create the book overview.

ListBooks.jsp

<%@ page language="java" %>
<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/html" prefix="h" %>
<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/core" prefix="f" %>

<% String path = request.getContextPath(); String basePath = request.getScheme()+"://"+request.getServerName()+":"+request.getServerPort()+path+"/"; %>

<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/html" prefix="h" %>
<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/core" prefix="f" %>

With directive taglib we include the JSF tag libraries



Renders a view component. All others tags must be included within this tag.



Renders a HTML form.



Renders a HTML table. The tag is used to loop over a list of data like a for loop. The parameter value assign a list of data, in our case the list of books of the library. With the parameter var you define the variable used to access a element (a book) of the list within the tag (loop).








Renders a column with a column header.

display the header.
print out a header label.
refers to the property author of the current element of the list.



Renders a HTML link, which submits the form. The parameter action define the navigation case, which is processed, after the form submits In our case the navigation case editBook, we have added befor in the faces-config.xml, will be processed. We assign the action listener method to the link with the parameter actionListener. After the user submit the form the method will be processed.



The last JSP file includes a form to add and edit a book.

editBook.jsp

<%@ page language="java" %>

<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/html" prefix="h" %>

<%@ taglib uri="http://java.sun.com/jsf/core" prefix="f" %>



<% String path = request.getContextPath(); String basePath = request.getScheme()+"://"+request.getServerName()+":"+request.getServerPort()+path+"/"; %>

Renders a HTML hidden element. Value refers to the managed bean bookBean and its property id, which indicated in the faces-config.xml.

Renders a HTML table with two columns.

Renders a HTML text field. Value refers to the property author of our class Book.

Renders a HTML submit button with the value save and the action listBooks. The action listener method saveBook will be processed if the user submit the form.

Test the application

Start the jboss and deploy the project as Packaged Archive.

Call the project now http://localhost:8080/LibraryWeb/