You have seen in Getting started with JViews JSF applications
section that you can create a JViews JSF application rapidly. Rapid Application Development
(RAD) is the main benefit of JViews JSF components. You can consider JSF components to be a high level JViews Web application development approach.
JViews JSF components are based on low level JViews JavaScript libraries.
These JavaScript libraries were designed
for building JViews Web applications
without JSF. These JViews JavaScript libraries
were implemented years before JSF had
been published.
The JViews JavaScript libraries consist of a set of JavaScript classes that are able to communicate with JViews servlets and display JViews graphic views, such as charts, diagrams, and
Gantt charts in Web browsers. To distinguish them from JViews JSF applications, JViews Web applications developed directly based on JViews JavaScript libraries
are called JViews JavaScript applications.
As mentioned above, JSF is
a high level RAD approach to develop JViews Web applications, because, JViews JSF renderers
generate the correct JavaScript code for
developers. On the other hand, JViews JavaScript application developers must manually code large amounts
of JavaScript before obtaining a JViews graphic view displayed in a Web browser.
JViews JSF applications and JViews JavaScript applications
have different usage scopes:
JViews JSF technology is a RAD approach. It is quicker to develop
a JSF application than to develop
a JavaScript one. If you are familiar with JSF technologies and JSF is
the main technology used in your Web applications, you can continue
to use JSF.
JViews JSF applications and JViews JavaScript applications
have roughly the same performance as JSF ones. JSF applications might start a bit slower. It is also
true that well-coded JavaScript code allows
you to obtain better performance. But this should not be a decision
factor.
JViews JavaScript technology has wider usage scope than JSF, because a JViews JSF application is also a JViews JavaScript application. JViews JavaScript technology
can be used where JSF is not recommended
for technical or political reasons.
As JViews JavaScript applications do not need JSF related jars, they are more flexible to deploy. JViews JavaScript libraries
interoperate better with third party JavaScript libraries
such as Dojo.