Deletion Confirmation in Web-based application

Question

Good day!

How is the confirmation for deletion usually done in Web-based applications? I often use JOptionPane in doing the confirmation messages in my Java desktop applications so I am also thinking of doing the same in my web-application. Is there something like JOptionPane in J2EE?

So my plan of confirmation message is something like THIS because I find it cool. Is it possible to code this using Java (JSP/Servlets)? Where can i find sample codes (or what term should i search so i'll learn it)?

Also, why haven't I encountered many pop-ups when visiting different websites? Are pop-up messages not a good practice in web-apps? If it's not a good practice, how can i do it to conform to the standards?

Thank you in advance.

Answer 1

Is it possible to code this using Java (JSP/Servlets)?

Both mentioned technologies are server-side, while client interaction such as popups are client-side. So yes, using a client-side popup in e.g., javascript will work fine with jsp.

Are pop-up messages not a good practice in web-apps?

Popups are usually considered evil and annoying. They do make sense however when used to confirm e.g., a delete operation. Perhaps the jQuery UI dialog could be useful for you.

Answer 2

One option that you may consider is using the Google Web Toolkit (GWT), which allows you to program in java, and gives you nice widgets for doing things like popup etc. (note: those widget ultimately use javascript, but you don't have to care about it).

Answer 3

the simplest way the achieve this principle is using the javascript confirm function.

Does what it needs to do but net very cool of course. The easiest way to achieve something cool is using a js framework like jquery: like this.

Jquery and similar frameworks will create a semi-transparent layer on your window with a (dialog) div inside it. The layer itself blocks any actions that are behind it so this can be seen as a 'modal dialog'.

regards, Stijn

Answer 4

That's being done in the browser with JavaScript, specifically techniques called AJAX. You can choose from a number of different AJAX frameworks. I would recommned GWT. You could also use jQuery or Dojo, or try the Wikipedia List of AJAX frameworks.