1.3.1 Why do we need frameworks?

"Forms are just one example of tasks that servlets and JSP don't completely solve. Web applications have to manage a lot of pages and images, and referencing all of those elements within larger applications can become a nightmare if you don't have a central way of managing it."

"Although JSP provides a simple mechanism for creating a dynamic page, it doesn't provide extensive support for composing a page out of smaller, reusable parts. Other fun things that servlets don't handle include internationalization, type conversion, and error handling."

1.3.2 She's a Model 2

The MVC analogy: "When you watch a story on the news, you view a version of reality. ...The news channel is controlling the interaction between the TV program---the view---and the actual event---the model."

"...most frameworks, including JSF, support some variation of the MVC design pattern."

1.3.3 JSF, Struts, and other frameworks

Java frameworks have a lot of overlap. A lot of this has to do with the "open" nature of Java culture, which could easily be mistaken for a state of affairs just short of total chaos.

There is the idea that JSF and Struts "compete" or that JSF replaces Struts. The lead developer of Struts, Craig McClanahan, also played a large role in the development of JSF. For more details see "Struts Or JSF? Struts And JSF?" here:

http://blogs.sun.com/craigmcc/entry/struts_or_jsf_struts_and