Part 1. Getting Started

Chances are if you have picked up this book, you are using GWT in your applications now, or maybe you are coming to GWT for the first time. In chapters 1-3 we are going to make a run through the basics, and help you sidestep land mines along the way. By the time you get through part 1, you should be fluent in the GWT core technologies, and the application design we are going to use and reuse throughout this book.

We will begin with a look at the tried-and-true Model View Controller (MVC) pattern. We are going to harp on this a lot, so you would be well served to see where we are coming from. If you, like many other developers, have used MVC in the context of web development and have done minimal desktop application development, this is an important shift in perspective. We will continue looking at the core GWT tools, including the compiler, the debugging shell and the utility scripts that come with the system. Finally we will step through the GWT Remote Procedure Call (RPC) mechanism in some detail to make sure you have a handle on the full suite of GWT tools and technologies. What we aren’t going to do is rehash the GWT documentation. There are a lot of classes for UI construction available to you, as well as a lot of utility classes, but these are best left to the JavaDoc. We are going to take a look at only what you need to know to get up and running smoothly in your development efforts.