As a Software Developer for four years, I never really cared which technology to use for a project. The architects would usually tell me to use this or that. This story is about how I have come to know about IceFaces.
When I first heard the word IceFaces, it didn't really ring any bell. That's because I haven't even used JSF before. But the day came that I have to, and I was given the chance to have a say on which component library to work it with.
First up was Tomahawk. They have a good component suite. They have an easy to use menu bar as well as an uncomplicated data table and paginator. But something was missing and I can't remember what so we looked further and found Trinidad.
Trinidad for me is somehow similar to Tomahawk. There are components available in Tomahawk but not available in Trinidad and vise versa. The good thing about this is, because both component libraries came from Apache, they are compatible and have less issues when combined together in one application.
And then there was IceFaces. Just looking at their Component Suite at http://component-showcase.icefaces.org/component-showcase/showcase.iface, I was already convinced that this is the technology that I want to use. I have utilized Dojo and DWR for AJAX before but I was still impressed of what the IceFaces framework can do. Immediately I put myself into action and test it out for myself. I can't believe how easy it was to apply to our Prototype so I was convinced even more. After my evaluation, I gave my recommendation to my boss who discussed it with the upper management for their decision.
We have come so far ever since then. We are about to finish the first version of our application using purely IceFaces. We have made our application flexible enough to generate components from the server if the need arises. We have had our ups and downs with IceFaces as we all know that there's no perfect solution, but their Customer Support has been very helpful. Now I understood how companies earn from their Open Source Technologies and it is worth it. So the next time you are creating a web application, give IceFaces a try, and let its magic work on you. It's cool.
