Hello everybody, I need to develop a multi-user web based business-type of game for my master thesis. It´s a kind of game which rarely discussed in forums. I´ve never programmed java web based apps, only the Swing-desktop type. I´ve considered JSF but, after surfing the web I was discouraged, considering the considerable amount of bad reviews about JSF´s steep learning curve. The game will have the following charaCteristics: - iT´S A BUSINESS TYPE OF GAME - SIMULATING THE MANAGEMENT OF A "UNIVERSITY´S DEPARTMENT" - Lots of forms form wich the players submit their answers and statistical graphics. - The players must comunicate in a descentralized - real time - manner - but i need to "catch" their answers, so every communication and playing, must pass must be recorded through a server. - 5-7 Players simulateously. - Must be in Java. - The players will play the game through their browsers. - I will need - data mining and statistical processing abilities. - Heavily database driven. I would greatly apreciate someone´s kind help, since this is a rather unusual application and i´m a total "virgin" on Web development. (i´m a Mathematics major) Many Thanks, Manuel Boucherie.

If you already know Swing and Applets are ok for you to use you might be best off with them. But if Applets aren't an option (e.g. it has to be a "real" like in "has to output HTML" web frontent) the options I know of are:

• JSF or better something that supports AJAX (for your realtime communication feature) like ICEface. But as you already know that isn't exacty easy to learn. Especially if you don't know HTML already. But with good tool support that should be doable. Here is a (a bit outdatet) tutorial on how to get started with ICEfaces and NetBeans.


• Grails. Makes a lot of things alot easier, but you have to do your stuff in Groovy then. While that runs on a Java VM like any Java program it might be against your requirements. And it would take you some time to learn Groovy.

Another plus for Grails is that it handles ORM (e.g. reading/writing Java/Groovy objects from/to a database) a bit nicer than using plain Java plus something like Hibernate or JPA.

Thank you,

I didn´t know about AJAX, because I was initially too focused on using JSF.

After done some investigation on-line, now i see that Ajax is going my way, and that a can even develop hypbrid AJAX - APPLET applications.

After reading many forums, it seems that the "ZK open source Ajax framework." is the best around this days.

Thank you very much, you´ve really enlightened me.

Manuel Boucherie.

Thanks again,

I just want browser based form filling appication with some statistical graphics.

In this stage, the things that bother me (although but I´ve not started yet to study ZK.) are:

1) The server must be heavily Database Driven.

2) I need to store all the form fillings submited by the players.

3) The options of the players must be processed by the simulator engine wich will be on the server.

4) It must be possible to initiate a one-to-one text based private communication between any two players.

4) I´ve to catch and store all those communications.

mmendes

Closed. Don't cross post.