Product Description

What is this book about?

The Extreme Programming (XP) methodology enables you to build and test enterprise systems quickly without sacrificing quality. In the last few years, open source developers have created or significantly improved a host of Java XP tools, from XDoclet, Maven, AntHill, and Eclipse to Ant, JUnit, and Cactus. This practical, code–intensive guide shows you how to put these tools to work — and capitalize on the benefits of Extreme Programming.

Using an example pet store application, our expert Java developers demonstrate how to harness the latest versions of Ant and XDoclet for automated building and continuous integration. They then explain how to automate the testing process using JUnit, Cactus, and other tools, and to enhance project management and continuous integration through Maven and AntHill. Finally, they show you how to work with XP tools in the new Eclipse IDE.

Complete with real–world advice on how to implement the principles and practices of effective developers, this book delivers everything you need to harness the power of Extreme Programming in your own projects.

What does this book cover?

Here are some of the things you′ll find out about in this book:

• How to automate the building of J2EE apps and components with Ant and XDoclet
• Techniques for automating Java testing using JUnit
• Procedures for automating servlet, JSP, and other J2EE testing using Cactus
• Ways to automate Swing testing with Jemmy, JFCUnit, and Abbot
• How to manage projects using Maven
• Techniques for automating continuous integration with AntHill and Cruise Control
• How to harness plugins for JUnit, Cactus, and Ant in the Eclipse IDE
• Ways to implement Extreme Programming best practices

Who is this book for?

This book is for enterprise Java developers who have a general familiarity with the XP methodology and want to put leading Java XP tools to work in the development process.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #305232 in Books
• Published on: 2004-04-23
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 768 pages

Review
“...Practical account of using standard tools…”  (Visual Systems Journal, March 2005)

Review
“...Practical account of using standard tools…”  (Visual Systems Journal, March 2005)

Computer Bulletin, March 2003
"..a much needed book.."

Customer Reviews

A good book
This book is usefull to understand a set of java tool for XP, but it can be only a starting point to learn and to use them.
Ant and Xdoclet are the most interesting parts.

Beware - essential downloads not available
Page xxvii of the book, reads:
'All the configuration scripts, build scripts, applications, and other source code in this book are available online at http://www.wiley.com/legacy/compbooks/hightower.'
This is only partially true, as the download available at the website relates to an early chapter 3, while the sample code for chapters 4-11 is not available. I've been chasing Wiley tech support for 3 months to obtain the missing resources, but so far have got nowhere.
But if you only plan to read the first 3 chapters, this is a great book.

Great Content, Bad Editing
I bought this book to gain an overview of the tools available in open source community, but whose documentation was lacking.

This book takes you step by step through the tools to build and automate all the processes that you don't want to have to deal with on a daily basis. It has a trivial and a more complex example that it builds on through out the book.

It emphasized the use of Ant to automate everything, from unit tests (Junit, Cactus) to building and deploying J2EE applications. I have found it extremely usefull. I didn't know much about using Ant to start with and was confused by the documentation available on the Cactus website. This book cleared it up for me.

The only complaint is that the book is fraught with errors. Especially the code. I haven't downloaded the code off the website yet, but I don't believe any code in the book would compile. On page 154, I found 9 errors in the code.

Good book if you are setting up an automated development environment. You will probably want more than a little experience with Java and be willing to go to the online documentation for Ant to clear up some issues.