Client-Server Web Apps with JavaScript and Java

Chapter 5. Client-Side Frameworks

You know also that the beginning is the most important part of any work...for that is the time at which the character is being formed and the desired impression is more readily taken.

—Plato

Overview

In the early days of the Web, starting a new web page involved opening a text editor and creating an HTML document from scratch. This approach still works for creating minimal examples for educational purposes or testing isolated bits of JavaScript functionality. However, this starting point is not the place from which most modern web applications originate. Instead, a viable project template includes a well-organized directory structure and some combination of a particular set of JavaScript libraries, CSS files, HTML, and other assets. The selection might vary from project to project, but in general should address concerns such as project consistency, cross-browser compatibility, sound design principles, software development practices (such as unit testing), and superior performance.

Historically, starter projects have been generated (by tools like Maven, utilizing archetypes) or specified during the creation of a new project in an IDE. Such projects were often tied to the tool that generated them. With no standard IDE or build tool for web development, starter projects have no such tie (though are integrated in tools and IDEs). They vary in complexity and purpose, but successful ones have a common characteristic of being simple to understand, set up, ...