Lesson 1

This course teaches you how to deliver server-side interactivity on almost any server platform, using the Java programming language and just a few extra classes from a readily available library. Servlets are little snippets of code that run on the computer that is serving out your Web pages.
You can use them to

1. generate dynamic pages,
2. read from and write to databases,
3. maintain a consistent user state as your user moves from page to page.

This course builds on your knowledge of the Java language and the Java 2 Platform.
You will start building servlets right away; beginning with generating a simple page, then learning how to get your servlet to interact with

1. HTML forms,
2. client-side Java applets, and
3. databases.

Furthermore, you will see how servlet chaining can add tremendous power to your site very simply.
Many developers are considering servlets as an alternative to SSI, CGI, ASP, and other server-side technologies. Servlets are a stand alone technology and you do not need to know any other server-side technology to benefit from this material.

After completing the course, you will be able to:

1. Understand the Servlet API
2. Set up and configure servers with servlet functionality
3. Understand the Java servlet program structure, packages, and syntax
4. Build servlets that generate dynamic Web pages
5. Build servlets that process data from an HTML form and from a Java applet
6. Build servlets that enable users to manipulate records in a database via an HTML form
7. Generate email messages from a servlet based on information submitted from an HTML form
8. Understand and address servlet security issues such as HTTP authentication and digital certificates
9. Chain servlets
10. Write servlets that communicate with other Java servers

In the next lesson, the course prerequisites will be discussed.