Java Enterprise Edition platform

The Java Enterprise Edition platform is nothing more than a set of API specifications that act as building blocks that you can use to build enterprise applications.

Note

With its most recent release, the name of the Java Enterprise Edition platform has been simplified.

Instead of being called the Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) v1.5, the version up from J2EE v1.4 is now labeled Java Enterprise Edition 5 or Java EE 5. It is incorrect to abbreviate this name as 'JEE'.

The main drivers for this change are a desire to do away with the '2', which really was beginning to lose its meaning anyway; and to provide center stage to the word 'Java', which is the core technology underlying the different platform editions.

While this may seem like just a rebranding decision, there are some real issues associated with it. Firstly, you need to be aware that you might come across JARs named j2ee.jar and javaee.jar and will need to know which one to pick. Secondly, you...