Spring Boot, JTE and TailwindCSS full-stack MVC

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What are Template Enginens?

Template engines are softwares/libraries that allow us to combine templates (pre-written HTML pages) with dynamic data to generate final HTML pages. They provide a way to create dynamic content in web applications by separating the presentation and business logic. (e,g. A typical MVC model)

A template typically consists of static HTML with special placeholders or expressions for dynamic content. The template engine processes this template, replacing the placeholders with actual data, resulting in a final HTML page that can be sent to the client’s browser.

Why do we need them and Spring with Template Engines

In a world of full JavaScript frameworks why the heck do we need ‘pre-written’ HTML pages? Actually not everybody fan of JS framework :D. Besides that it gives us an advantegous such as:

without integartion of any JS framework. Web components will directly serve form the backend/server.

Template engines allow developers to separate the presentation layer (how the data is displayed) from the business logic (how the data is processed). This separation makes the code more maintainable and easier to understand. Common layout elements (headers, footers, navigation) can be defined once and reused across multiple pages. They enable the creation of dynamic web pages by injecting data into predefined templates at runtime. This is crucial for displaying user-specific information or data fetched from databases.

As for Spring ecosystem, Spring framework supports various template engines out of the box, such as

A new popular kid in town - JTE

With Spring’s huge ecosystem template engines are always used in variaty projects. The most popular ones are definelty JSP(infamiuos JavaServer Pages) and Thymeleaf. Thymeleaf still prefered by the majority of the people as a template enginen. JTE is relatively new and modern project compared to the other ones. Its been over 4 years development for the project:

jte (Java Template Engine) is a secure and lightweight template engine for Java and Kotlin. jte is designed to introduce as few new keywords as possible and builds upon existing language features, making it straightforward to reason about what a template does.

JTE gain a recent tracktion with the addition to the Spring Starter. It provides very good integration with Spring, Spring boot (both version 2.x and 3.x), build tools (Maven, Gradle) and IntellIJ with dedicated plugin.

But what is the difference, why not stick to good old Thymeleaf?

While Thymeleaf remains a popular choice for Spring Boot applications, JTE (Java Template Engine) presents several compelling advantages:

  1. Enhanced Performance: JTE’s approach of compiling templates to Java bytecode results in highly efficient runtime execution. This can be particularly beneficial for applications experiencing high traffic volumes.

  2. Robust Compile-time Checking: JTE conducts thorough compile-time checks, identifying issues such as missing parameters or type mismatches before runtime. This feature can significantly boost developer productivity and minimize runtime errors.

  3. Java-like Syntax: JTE employs a syntax that closely resembles Java, easing the learning curve for Java developers. The index.jte file demonstrates this intuitive, Java-esque syntax.

  4. Minimal Footprint: Compared to Thymeleaf, JTE is a more streamlined library with fewer dependencies, resulting in a smaller overall footprint.

  5. Superior IDE Integration: By compiling to Java, JTE can take full advantage of existing Java development tools. This often translates to improved IDE support, including features like code completion and refactoring capabilities.

  6. Efficient Development with Hot Reloading: JTE supports hot reloading of templates during development, eliminating the need for server restarts and potentially accelerating the development process.

  7. Precompilation Capabilities: JTE offers the option to precompile templates, which can be instrumental in early error detection and improving startup times in production environments.

  8. Clarity through Explicit Declarations: JTE favors explicit declarations (such as using @param for parameters) over implicit conventions. This approach makes templates more self-documenting and easier to comprehend.

These features make JTE a strong contender for developers seeking a powerful, efficient, and developer-friendly template engine for the Spring Boot applications.

Demo with fullstack webapp