Arun Gupta, Miles to go ...

GlassFish @ Delhi University

I presented on GlassFish and related technologies (Metro, JRuby-on-GlassFish and jMaki) at the Department of Computer Science, Delhi University last week. The slides are available here. The talk was very well attended with approximately 120 students and 4 faculty members. The students were pretty excited and had great a interactive session.

Being an alumni of the school (many years ago ;), it was great seeing the new building of the department, meeting the faculty and interacting with the students. I reached there an hour earlier so that I can mingle with the staff and students and it was a lot of fun.

The department faculty proposed to use GlassFish instead of Tomcat for their next semester assignment. I believe this is a great move as it will allow the students to understand the simplicity and power of a great open-source and Java EE 5 compliant Application server.

I initiated the process of recruiting a Campus Ambassador from Delhi University and this will help establish a better relationship between this University and Sun Microsystems.

Here are the questions and answers that were asked during the session:

1. Amongst the different Java training courses, how do I decide which one to pick ?
   
   Sun Learning defines several Learning Paths for different Java technologies (EE, SE, ME, Web Services and Web 2.0). Pick an appropriate learning path depending upon your interest. In addition, Sun Training Catalogue (click on your country) shows different events conducted by Sun Learning in the local geogrpahy.
2. How does Sun make money with GlassFish being open sourced ?
   
   That's true, GlassFish is 100% open-source and totally free to use. The business model for Sun is that of selling support and services:
   • Support subscription starting from $4500 for 4 sockets.
   • Consulting & Training
3. What are the dis-advantages of GlassFish ?
   
   GlassFish provides an open source, production-quality and Java EE 5 compatible application server. It has world class performance ([1], [2]), .NET interoperable Web services stack, out-of-the-box clustering, load balancing and high availability support. However instead of identifying dis-advantages, here are some areas for improvement:
    
   • Feature-wise: The footprint for GlassFish v2 is higher than some non-full JavaEE containers (like Tomcat). This problem will disappear with GlassFish v3 which is small (< 100 kb), fast (starts up < 1 sec) and modular (load only required containers).
   • Ecosystem-wise
     • Community is not as well developed as Tomcat or JBoss because we have not been around as long. However the adoption is continuously increasing.
     • We are not yet as transparent as Tomcat, but we are more transparent than anybody else (including JBoss). Transparency will continue to improve in the future.
     • Our governance is still in transition.
4. Any comparison between NetBeans and Eclipse ?
   
   Why NetBeans ? explains the top reasons to use the NetBeans IDE. Some specific points are:
   • Consistent UI across all platforms where as Eclipse runs best on Windows
   • A friendlier environment for people who are new with links to sample apps and docs accessible from within the IDE.
   • An easy to use website with tons of quality docs and screencasts.

   Here are couple of more links that provide a comparison between the IDEs:

   • Move over Eclipse: NetBeans 6 rocks!
   • NetBeans vs Eclipse: this time with a attitude
5. What are the main features of Ruby as compared to Java ?
   
   A comparison of Ruby and Java is explained in this blog.
6. Why Ruby when there are many other languages ?
   • Ruby is getting popular due to Rails.
   • Ruby-on-Rails very popular among web developers.
   • JRuby is a pretty mature implementation of Ruby in Java, running on JVM and able to use existing Java libraries.
   • Complete deployment story on Solaris -- customer can chose native RoR or JRuby on Rails on GlassFish.
7. What is the difference between Tomcat and GlassFish ?
   
   Tomcat is a Servlet container that can host JSP and Servlets. GlassFish is a Java EE 5 compliant application server that includes implementation for a Web services stack (Metro), EJBs, Java Persistence and many others incuded in the Java EE 5 specification. In addition to this, GlassFish also provides out-of-the-box clustering, high availability and load balancing capabilities that are required for enterprise applications. Read more about Why use GlassFish ?
8. What does Sun offer to students ?
   
   The offerings are described in detail here.
9. What is java.net ?
   
   java.net is a premier web-based, open community created to facilitate Java™ technology collaboration in applied areas of technology and industry solutions. java.net is a central gathering place for Java technology enthusiasts and existing communities across industries, platforms, and interest groups. Read more about java.net in the FAQ.
10. How do I create a brand new jMaki widget ?
    
    This is explained in TOTD #20.
11. What are the main differences between GPL and CDDL ?
    
    A detailed difference between EULA, GPL, CDDL and BSD in terms of copyright and patent rights is explained here.
12. What are the different options of doing a collaborative research in association with Sun Microsystems ?
    
    The Collaborative Research program is explained here.
13. What is the difference between GlassFish v2 and Sun Java System Application Server 9.1 ?
    
    There are three key differences:
    • Commercial Support (more here)
    • Indemnification
    • Sun brand

    The detailed differences are highlighted here.

14. What are the different ways GlassFish can be configured in NetBeans ?
    
    Two ways:
    • If you download a full version of NetBeans IDE then GlassFish comes pre-bundled and is installed for you.
    • You can configure an existing GlassFish installation on your machine in the Services tab. If the Services tab is not visible, then select "Windows" menu item and then "Services". Right-click on "Servers", select "Add Server...", select "GlassFish V2" in the "Choose Server" dialog box. Click on "Next" and follow the instructions.

The complete album is here:

Technorati: conf glassfish webservices metro ruby jruby jmaki web2.0 delhiuniversity delhi netbeans q&a

Posted by Arun Gupta in webservices  |  Comments[3]