Java Servlet technology provides Web developers with a simple, consistent mechanism for extending the functionality of a Web server and for accessing existing business systems. A servlet can almost be thought of as an applet that runs on the server side -- without a face. Java servlets have made many Web applications possible.

Servlets are the Java platform technology of choice for extending and enhancing Web servers. Servlets provide a component-based, platform-independent method for building Web-based applications, without the performance limitations of CGI programs and are server- and platform-independent. This leaves you free to select a "best of breed" strategy for your servers, platforms, and tools.

Thanks to this technology Java applications can be obtained that run on the server and generate the necessary data that is transferred to a Web-page representation level in HMTL format. This allows the DEISTER SOFTWARE B2B server to convert to a work environment for generating and distributing applications and data with support of the lowest common denominator: The internet browsers.

Advantages of Java Servlets

Java servlets use a high-performance single process, multithreaded architecture that minimizes the overhead required to serve each request. You can share system resources, such as database connections, between multiple servlet response threads.

• Built-in Session Management
  The Java Server API provides built-in session management functionality that supports both cookies and URL-rewriting methods. Therefore, you can focus on application-specific programming rather than "plumbing."
• Simple, Extensible API
  The Java Servlet API is general and extensible enough to support a variety of protocols in addition to HTTP, and enables the development of new extended services.
• Industry standard
  Unlike proprietary vendor-specific technologies, Java servlets are supported by multiple vendors on a variety of platforms.
• Pure Java
  Because the Java Servlet API is just an addition to the core Java APIs, Java servlets enjoy all of the benefits of the Java platform. These benefits include, but are not limited to: extensibility, component reusability, ease of development, and cross-platform support.