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Good article. It is important to point out that GWT comes with more than just a Java -> Javascript compiler. It is also a set of tools and components to make we

Good article. It is important to point out that GWT comes with more than just a Java -> Javascript compiler. It is also a set of tools and components to make web development feel more native. Over time, emphasis on these has lessened but it's possible to write web apps in GWT in a very similar manner to building Swing apps. I think 10 years ago this was really important for easing the transition for those coming from a desktop app world.

candiodari 9y ago
In my experience it's still a far superior method for producing larger single page apps. Static typing, great components (e.g. data table, including custom-components-data-table, ...), incredible tooling, ridiculous amounts of libraries, incredible RPC, ... Where it comes to "produce exactly this HTML/CSS/..." that's where it sucks. This seems to matter a lot to react/angular guys. Getting very far in functionality I would certainly use GWT over a "modern" stack though.
- rpeden 9y ago
  GWT definitely deserves a better reputation than it has. I use and enjoy tools like React, Webpack, and friends. They make for a pleasant development experience. I do find it mildly amusing when people get excited about things like code splitting and dead code elimination in Webpack, though. Those things were pretty cool to see in GWT....in 2009. :) I remember it being pretty decent for plain HTML and CSS, too. I worked on a fairly big app and we didn't really use any of the build in widgets - mostly just HTML and CSS with UiBinder templates. GWT is definitely showing its age in some ways now, but for those of us who had to make single page apps in 2009/2010, it wasn't a bad way to get things done. I've seen some GWT apps whose codebases were disorganized horror shows. The main GWT app I worked on was quite nice - small, self contained components, all communicating asynchronously via an event bus that was passed in via dependency injection. It actually felt really, really similar to the way an Angular 2/4+ app does now. Overall, though, I try not to grump about the fact that mainstream front end development is rediscovering some of the good things GWT pioneered in this space. The more accessible front end development tools are, the better off we all are.

candiodari 9y ago

In my experience it's still a far superior method for producing larger single page apps. Static typing, great components (e.g. data table, including custom-components-data-table, ...), incredible tooling, ridiculous amounts of libraries, incredible RPC, ... Where it comes to "produce exactly this HTML/CSS/..." that's where it sucks. This seems to matter a lot to react/angular guys. Getting very far in functionality I would certainly use GWT over a "modern" stack though.

rpeden 9y ago
GWT definitely deserves a better reputation than it has. I use and enjoy tools like React, Webpack, and friends. They make for a pleasant development experience. I do find it mildly amusing when people get excited about things like code splitting and dead code elimination in Webpack, though. Those things were pretty cool to see in GWT....in 2009. :) I remember it being pretty decent for plain HTML and CSS, too. I worked on a fairly big app and we didn't really use any of the build in widgets - mostly just HTML and CSS with UiBinder templates. GWT is definitely showing its age in some ways now, but for those of us who had to make single page apps in 2009/2010, it wasn't a bad way to get things done. I've seen some GWT apps whose codebases were disorganized horror shows. The main GWT app I worked on was quite nice - small, self contained components, all communicating asynchronously via an event bus that was passed in via dependency injection. It actually felt really, really similar to the way an Angular 2/4+ app does now. Overall, though, I try not to grump about the fact that mainstream front end development is rediscovering some of the good things GWT pioneered in this space. The more accessible front end development tools are, the better off we all are.