styling a jsp page

[syn3rgyz]

I need some help with deciding on how to style a jsp page, I went with the 960 css framework and it is not working out too well as I have asked for help in this thread http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1596170 basically things are not where they are supposed to be depending on how large the dynamic tables are and the bottom is getting cut off. I'm suspecting that with the tables and graphs its pushing the width past 960pixels. so I've decided to basically start the styling from scratch again.

Some background info: My team for my school project basically decided to create some sort of stock tracking and buying application(the buying and selling is fake) that uses java servlets to pull stock data/prices etc. There is also a login system with a database storing user account information and current stocks that the user is tracking and has bought. That is my basic understanding since I am not too familiar with java servlets. I was put into the team kind of late so I didn't have much say in the planning process, and from asking around it seems like jsp pages are kind of out dated and not used anymore, and that they don't work well with any of the CMS out there.

They basically gave me a jsp page "index.jsp" that uses javascript and css to hide/swap between a splash image and a login form, once it has validated the login information with the database it will jump to "client.jsp" which shows tables and graphs arranged in a certain way.(currently I have 2 rows of 3 column divs, each div holding a section that does an javascript include statement which includes a different html file). And when I click a link that goes to the preference page for example it will have to change from 2 rows of 3 column divs into 1 column 1 row, or link to another page while preserving the login somehow.

Since the framework doesn't seem to work out well I was wondering if it would solve issues if I didn't use it, or is it simply the way the dynamic content works with CSS. I tried looking for some example or site that uses jsp pages that are styled properly but I can only find very plain and simple looking sites that don't utilize any CSS.

tldr; School project, team gives me an unstyled jsp page to make it look pretty. JSP doesnt seem to work well with CSS frameworks or CMS. Need opinion on how to style it to make it look professional looking.

 

[PTNL]

I need some help with deciding on how to style a jsp page, I went with the 960 css framework and it is not working out too well as I have asked for help in this thread http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1596170 basically things are not where they are supposed to be depending on how large the dynamic tables are and the bottom is getting cut off. I'm suspecting that with the tables and graphs its pushing the width past 960pixels. so I've decided to basically start the styling from scratch again.

Some background info: My team for my school project basically decided to create some sort of stock tracking and buying application(the buying and selling is fake) that uses java servlets to pull stock data/prices etc. There is also a login system with a database storing user account information and current stocks that the user is tracking and has bought. That is my basic understanding since I am not too familiar with java servlets. I was put into the team kind of late so I didn't have much say in the planning process, and from asking around it seems like jsp pages are kind of out dated and not used anymore, and that they don't work well with any of the CMS out there.

They basically gave me a jsp page "index.jsp" that uses javascript and css to hide/swap between a splash image and a login form, once it has validated the login information with the database it will jump to "client.jsp" which shows tables and graphs arranged in a certain way.(currently I have 2 rows of 3 column divs, each div holding a section that does an javascript include statement which includes a different html file). And when I click a link that goes to the preference page for example it will have to change from 2 rows of 3 column divs into 1 column 1 row, or link to another page while preserving the login somehow.

It sounds like there really isn't much *real* work going on; mostly static mockups loosely tied with div show/hide blocks, and a couple database calls.

What you've described is an ultra stripped-down E-trade webpage, or any other online trading website. You could look at a couple of those sites, and quickly come up with a few, fake pages that simulate functionality.

Since the framework doesn't seem to work out well I was wondering if it would solve issues if I didn't use it, or is it simply the way the dynamic content works with CSS. I tried looking for some example or site that uses jsp pages that are styled properly but I can only find very plain and simple looking sites that don't utilize any CSS.

tldr; School project, team gives me an unstyled jsp page to make it look pretty. JSP doesnt seem to work well with CSS frameworks or CMS. Need opinion on how to style it to make it look professional looking.

The problem isn't the requirements or the technology; it's an uncertainty of what to draw.

 

[syn3rgyz]

yea you basically got it right, but I was assigned to the team so theres nothing I can do about it but shut up and just do my part.

I also don't like how I have to run tomcat server through eclipse to test what the site looks like. Is there another way I can do it just by changing files in notepad for example then refreshing the browser

 

[PrincessFrosty]

Ugh dynamic tables, with all my work with tables being populated I explicitly set the size of the table so it's predictable each time, and then you can write CSS around that which works each time. Without a static sized tables then even CSS will have a hard time producing nice looking pages each time, especially if you have width requirements.

My site www.pcgamingstandards.com forces the table to a set width and then styles around that, sometimes the data in the table ends up wrapping inside the table cell increasing the height but it's a much better trade off to keep a fixed width.

 

[PTNL]

I also don't like how I have to run tomcat server through eclipse to test what the site looks like. Is there another way I can do it just by changing files in notepad for example then refreshing the browser

That depends on what's really going on with the pages in question. But the better approach is to have your dev environment match production as closely as possible.

 

[syn3rgyz]

our "production" environment is a web hosted tomcat server. It's just sometimes after i make changes to files in eclipse, it doesn't change in my browser right away, it takes like 5-6 refreshes. Also when I have multiple branches going on, conflicts happen and its also a pain to stop the server then run it again for a different branch.

I got around the table width issues by switching to a fluid grid layout.

 

[PTNL]

our "production" environment is a web hosted tomcat server. It's just sometimes after i make changes to files in eclipse, it doesn't change in my browser right away, it takes like 5-6 refreshes. Also when I have multiple branches going on, conflicts happen and its also a pain to stop the server then run it again for a different branch.

Sounds like an opportunity for better team collaboration and/or a unit test scenario.

Source control branches should really be used sparingly, and, from what has been shared, I would argue that branching is grossly unnecessary for this project scope. But the topic of trunk/branch/merge is better suited for another thread of its own.

I got around the table width issues by switching to a fluid grid layout.

Good to hear you got past the implementation issue.