It's kind of nice to see this discussion on this board, because it can
serve as a way for Tomcat developers to think about what features really
help and what features don't. I'm going to avoid M$ bashing cause it's
not productive, but I think it's wise to look at the effect "creature
features" have on product popularity and take note.
My goal in continuing this thread under a new topic is to foster
discussion about valuable Tomcat features. Hopefully it will spark some
ideas about how to improve the popularity and appeal of Tomcat. I'll
start with a short list of one relevant item. I encourage anyone to add
to this, but please use the following format:
TOMCAT FEATURE NAME/TYPE
SUMMARY: description of the feature/issue
RELEVANT INFORMATION: additional information
IMPARCTED TOMCAT FEATURES: how Tomcat might be affected.
SUGGESTIONS FOR ADDRESSING THE FEATURE: what can be done
EASE OF USE
SUMMARY: Some believe that the Microsoft web development experience is
"truely more pleasant" than that of Java, and the often cite the number
of people who have switched from Java to .NET platforms becuase of the
percieved differences in ease of use.
RELAVENT INFORMATION: On one hand, some people maintain that Tomcat is
quite easy to use because starting and stopping the server requires the
typing of a single command line. The counter argument to this claim is
that a measure of "ease of use" should include all aspects of
application development, deployment, and maintenance. For the purposes
of discussion, "ease of use" for the Java platform and related Tomcat
applications need to be clarified. Since Tomcat is built for the Java
platform, we can view Tomcat "ease of use" as an extension of the
concept of Java Platform "ease of use." This will allow us to compare
the overall Tomcat development experience with that of the "Microsoft
development experience."
Unlike Microsoft development tools, which require the use of an IDE for
efficient developemnt, the Java platform and related products (e.g.
Tomcat server) make the use of IDE strictly optional. Consequently, a
comparison between "Java development" and ".NET development" experiences
cannot effectively be made by focusing on the steps required to build
and compile a program. On the Java platform, the use of IDEs are
strictly optional. Comparisons made between Microsoft IDEs and othe
IDEs would more appropriately be restricted to the IDEs themselves, and
not the platform. The fact that Microsoft has required the use of it's
Visual Studio application to build and deploy application on the .NET
platform complicates comparisons.
The Microsoft development platform typically integrates the development
tool with the server so that the developer "clicks to deploy". This
feature is not unique to Microsoft products, however. For example,
Netbeans IDE integrates with Tomcat and provides many similar features
to the Microsoft product set. This indicates the percieved differences
in "ease of use" for may be an issue of user awareness about the
available IDEs.
While some prefer interacting with a development tool that requires
less technical knowledge, others argue that such tools allow more room
for less competent developers which can drastically reduce the overall
quality of the end product. Furthermore, with the Java Development
platform, the clear dilenation between the Java Runtime Environment, the
Java Software Development Kit, and the optional IDEs give developers
greater flexibility in building code, and the option to only install the
development tools necessary. This capability is especially popular
among those who are skilled in the development of applications using
simple text editors, such as vi. Such developers argue that requiring
the use of an IDE simply means more desktop software maintenance and
upgrade issues.
IMPACTED TOMCAT FEATURES: Maintainers of the tomcat platform so far
appear to be finding a balance betwen developers with higher technical
competencies and those who lean toward "creature features." By
providing a well published deployment interface and open source
implementation, the Tomcat team leaves open the opportunity for
integrated IDE development by others. Continuing to pursue this
strategy will most likely ensure that a) the Tomcat development team
retains flexibility down the road; and, b) gives competitors the
opportunity to expend resources on features in their own products that
don't ultimately increase sales for their product; and, c) caters to the
development community with a higher degree of technical skill, which can
produce web based application of higher quality.
SUGGESTIONS FOR ADDRESSING THE FEATURE: Percieved differences in "ease
of use" may be addressed through traditional advertising and a
comprehensive marketing plan.
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