Java Enterprise Best Practices

User Perceptions

In J2SE applications, all that really matters is the user’s perception of performance. Giving the user the perception of faster performance does make the application perform faster. User perceptions are also important for enterprise applications, but overall throughput is equally important. Enterprise applications have to balance optimal response times for individual users against optimal total work done by the system. Some practices can slow down response times to increase the throughput of the server. If some users have higher performance requirements than others, the enterprise system should be built around multiple-priority queues, with higher-priority users or services processed before lower-priority ones.

In addition, enterprise applications need to handle communications failures and client screen display optimally. All client display technology, including browser-based technology, display some screens more effectively than others. For example, some browsers display some types of screens quicker if size tags are included in the markup, if tables are avoided, and so on. Most clients (including browsers) can be built or configured to display information before the full download is completed, which gives the perception of good performance. If your clients connect to the server with varying communications bandwidths, you need to test and design for this variety, bearing in mind that users with larger bandwidths expect to see screens display faster.

Communications ...