Chapter 8. Working with Spring Web Flow
This chapter covers
One of the strangely wonderful things about the internet is that it’s so easy to get lost. There are so many things to see and read. The hyperlink is at the core of the internet’s power. But at the same time it’s no wonder they call it the web. Just like webs built by spiders, it traps anyone who happens to crawl across it.
I’ll confess: one reason why it took me so long to write this book is because I once got lost in an endless path of Wikipedia links.
There are times when a web application must take control of a web surfer’s voyage, leading the user step by step through the application. The quintessential example of such an application is the checkout process on an e-commerce site. Starting with the shopping cart, the application leads you through a process of entering shipping details, billing information, and ultimately an order confirmation.
Spring Web Flow is a web framework that enables development of elements following a prescribed flow. In this chapter, we’re going to explore Spring Web Flow and see how it fits into the Spring web framework landscape.