Better Web Apps
12:17 AM EST Tuesday, March 21 2006
There is an interesting movie posted on the NASA Object Oriented Data Technology (OODT) Wiki created by Sean Kelly. It compares Java/J2EE, Ruby on Rails, and a couple of Python frameworks. The basic conclusion is J2EE sucks and any of the other frameworks are much more productive. Even though the video is 370MB and 36 minutes long, I suggest you watch, if not just for the entertainment value.
I did have a couple of questions/criticisms, which I emailed to him. Here they are:
First of all, a two part question. What do you mean by each of these things?
data collection - XML feeds? Querying other systems for data? data conversion - Converting data from what to what? archiving/aging - ? query optimization - SQL queries? metadata mgmt - What metadata?
And, why is J2EE better for these things?
Secondly, when you first start talking about what the metrics are for a good framework, you say it should use convention over configuration. To the best of my knowledge, this is a term that was pretty much invented by and coined by the Ruby on Rails crew. (let me know if you think otherwise). But anyway, you are saying convention over configuration is good. Then, when you discuss the drawbacks of Ruby on Rails, you complain about having to use the special naming convention for database tables and columns. Isn’t that just convention over configuration in practice? Sure you have to write “more code” if you need to support a legacy database schema, but isn't that true of the other frameworks as well?
Also, I’m not sure that comparing Plone to Ruby on Rails is fair. Plone is a CMS, which by nature will give you more features (authentication, authorization, i18n, etc.). A CMS is not a web framework. A CMS is built on top of a web framework. Web frameworks don’t have web interfaces to create pages, that’s what a CMS is for. I think comparing Django or TurboGears to Ruby on Rails is more fair. AFAIK, there is no CMS built in Ruby on Rails, so that makes Plone a clear winner in the Ruby on Rails CMSes vs. Python/Zope CMSes, but doesn’t necessary make Python/Zope better than Ruby on Rails.
And lastly, when I get a free moment, I’m gonna have to build the Java/J2EE version of the time tracker. 223 minutes seems a little bit ridiculous. I don’t know about the lines of code, but my bet is that it can be done is less than two hours, if not faster.
But overall, to some degree, I agree with what you are saying. This is the same thing Bruce Tate is saying in his book “Beyond Java”. Other dynamically typed, more object-oriented languages allow you to build frameworks that are easier to use, and developers who use those frameworks will see an increase in productivity.
