On Sat, Jan 3, 2015 at 12:58 PM, Jens <[email protected]> wrote:
> A bit off topic, but: The real value of GWT for me has been the ability >> to write browser apps without HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and Java (you know, >> spaghetti) - being able to use Java only. As you start adding HTML and CSS >> to GWT apps (the UI part), I question the whole value of GWT. >> > > The value of GWT is its tooling support because it can reuse tooling from > the Java world. That is literally the only reason that really counts. > > GWT is a leaky abstraction and will always be. If you refuse to learn more > about the platform you are programming apps for (the web and its > technologies) then you are limiting yourself. Good luck writing a smooth > mobile website/app with custom UI and corporate identity theme without > knowing HTML/CSS and browser reflows. > I have thought about this a lot. I finally reached a point where I can articulate a response. It is possible to write a GWT app using Java only - without CSS, HTML, and JavaScript. That is actually it's appeal for me. Based on your response, which I am sure many others agree, it sounds like what you are saying is to use GWT as a replacement for JavaScript only. So one would write an app in GWT-Java, HTML, and CSS. One of the features of GWT is its abstraction over the browser so that the GWT-Java layout code may act differently depending on the browser brand and version. If we use GWT as a JavaScript replacement only, don't we lose that benefit? Additionally, the argument of using HTML (UIBinder) over GWT layout code is the argument of declarative (HTML) vs. imperative (GWT layout) programming. Surely most would agree that declarative models are faster and easier in simple cases but have limits that can only be solved imperatively. Also, imperative utilities can often be built making the imperative model nearly as fast and simple as declarative models. Do you agree? Dialog about these two issues (especially the first) is very helpful, important, and appreciated by me. Thanks. Blake McBride -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Google Web Toolkit" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/google-web-toolkit. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
