ThinWire
ThinWire is an open source, Java based web application framework that uses Ajax techniques to give Web Applications the look and feel of traditional GUI applications. The project encourages all users to contribute and enhance the product.
ThinWire attempts to differentiate itself from the plethora of Ajax frameworks by bringing the event-driven programming model of desktop applications to web programming. The source code of a ThinWire based application will more closely resemble that of a traditional desktop GUI application than it will a web application. ThinWire handles all the web rendering and browser/server communication automatically.
Features
Familiar event-driven GUI programming modelReconnects the flow of logic, no request responseMaintains state naturally via variables, not via sessionDevelop exclusively in a server-side languageThinWire downloads once, just over 100KCompletely Dynamic, single page for entire applicationContent is sent incrementally and only when needed
The ThinWire Concept
The first thing ThinWire does is accept that HTML & HTTP were designed to deliver static content pages in the form that we see on news and magazine web sites. They are not intended to be used as is for business process, data centric application development. HTML forms provide basic data capture capability, but typical business process applications often use complex business rules to drive data entry. Further, its necessary to have more expressive user interface elements in order to accurately capture and report information to the user.
ThinWire takes advantage of Ajax techniques to create a more expressive and dynamic interface for the business user. In addition it provides a Java API that allows a developer to be concerned only with application logic, allowing them to easily create a web application that looks and functions like a traditional GUI application.
Server requirements
To host a ThinWire application, you will need a Java Servlet container.
Client requirements
To access a ThinWire application, you will need a modern web browser:
Internet Explorer v5.5 or greaterFirefox v1.0 or greaterOpera v8.0 or greaterSafari 2 or greaterOther Gecko Browsers (Camino, Mozilla, Netscape)
Knowledge Requirements
A basic knowledge of JavaA basic knowledge of GUI Application Development
License
ThinWire is available Free and Open Source under the GNU Lesser General Public License.