Tapestry: FAQ

	How does Tapestry compare to other frameworks? Tapestry is very much unlike most other frameworks in that it doesn't use code generation; instead it uses a true component object model based on JavaBeans properties and strong specifications. This gives Tapestry a huge amount of flexibility and enables dynamic runtime inspection of the application with the Tapestry Inspector (a mini-application that can be built into any Tapestry application). In addition, Tapestry applications require far less Java coding and are far more robust than equivalent applications developed with other popular frameworks. This is because the Tapestry framework takes responsibility for many important tasks, such as maintaining server-side state and dispatching incoming requests to appropriate objects and methods.

	How is the performance of Tapestry? My own testing, documented in the Sept. 2001 issue of the Java Report, agrees with other testing (documented in the Tapestry discussion forums): Although straight JSPs have a slight edge in demo applications, in real applications with a database or application server backend, the performance curves for equivalent Tapestry and JSP applications are identical. Don't think about the performance of Tapestry; think about the performance of your Java developers.

	What does it cost? Tapestry is open source and free. It is licensed under the LGPL, which allows it to be used even inside proprietary software.

	Is there a WYSIWYG editor for Tapestry, or an IDE plugin? Currently, no WYSIWYG editor is available for Tapestry; however, the design of Tapestry allows existing editors to work reasonably well (Tapestry additions to the HTML markup are virtually invisible to a WYSIWYG editor). Spindle is a Tapestry plugin for the excellent open-source Eclipse IDE. It adds wizards and editors for creating Tapestry applications, pages and components.

.....................................................

The Developer's Guide contains more specific, technical questions and answers.