1 Introduction and Roadmap

Document Scope and Audience

The JSP 2.1 specification enables you to create and use custom tags in Java Server Pages (JSPs). Custom tags are an excellent way to abstract the complexity of business logic from the presentation of Web pages in a way that is easy for the Web author to use and control. You can use custom JSP tag extensions in JSP pages to generate dynamic content, and you can use a variety of Web development tools to create the presentation.

WebLogic Server fully supports the tag extension mechanism described in the JSP 2.1 Specification at http://java.sun.com/products/jsp/reference/api/index.html.

This document is a resource for software developers who want to create and use custom tags in JavaServer Pages (JSPs). It is also a resource for Web authors who want to use custom tags in JSPs.

This document does not address production phase administration, monitoring, or performance tuning topics. For links to WebLogic Server documentation and resources for these topics, see Related Documentation.

It is assumed that the reader is familiar with Java EE platform and JSP concepts.

Guide to this Document

• This chapter, Chapter 1, "Introduction and Roadmap," introduces the organization of this guide.

• Chapter 2, "Understanding and Creating Custom JSP Tags," provides an overview of custom JSP tag functionality, format, and components, as well as procedures for creating and configuring a tag library.

• Chapter 3, "Creating a Tag Library Descriptor," describes how to create a tag library descriptor (TLD) file.

• Chapter 4, "Implementing the Tag Handler," describes how to write Java classes that implement the functionality of an extended tag.

• Chapter 5, "Administration and Configuration," provides an overview of administration and configuration tasks for using JSP tag extensions.

Related Documentation

This document contains JSP extension-specific design and development information.

For comprehensive guidelines for developing, deploying, and monitoring WebLogic Server applications, see the following documents:

• Developing Web Applications, Servlets, and JSPs for Oracle WebLogic Server is a guide to developing WebLogic Server applications.

• Developing Applications for Oracle WebLogic Server is a guide to developing WebLogic Server applications.

• Deploying Applications to Oracle WebLogic Server is the primary source of information about deploying WebLogic Server applications.

• "JavaServer Pages Tutorial" from Sun Microsystems at http://java.sun.com/javaee/5/docs/tutorial/doc

• JavaServer Pages (JSP) product overview from Sun Microsystems at http://java.sun.com/products/jsp

• JSP 2.1 Specification from Sun Microsystems at http://java.sun.com/products/jsp/reference/api/index.html

New and Changed JSP Features In This Release

For a comprehensive listing of the new WebLogic Server features introduced in this release, see What's New in Oracle WebLogic Server.