Introduction to WebSphere Application Server Administration Using Jython
- Why Is This Book Necessary?
- About the WebSphere Application Server Product
- This Book and Its Organization
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Why Is This Book Necessary?
For years we have been enthusiastically pounding the table, so to speak, saying that scripting is “where it’s at!” for WebSphere® administrators. All the while, we (along with our students) have wished for a book that would enable more people to use Jython1 for their scripting needs. We finally got together and set out to write one, and we hope this book addresses not only our own desires and demands but yours as well.
Websphere’s robust and versatile scripting facility differentiates the IBM® WebSphere Application Server product from competitors in the Java™ EE server marketplace. As convenient and friendly as the Integrated Console can be, the true power for administrators is in scripting. This is probably evident to anyone who has had to configure something on multiple machines or perform the same configuration numerous times.
IBM’s support for scripting that is built into the WebSphere platform is staggering. As you delve into it, you discover all sorts of hidden capabilities and ease-of-use features and quickly develop a greater understanding of how WebSphere fits together. Were we to deliver a book containing but a single page on each aspect of the available script objects, you’d need a forklift to take it home. Instead, we’ve hopefully provided you with a book that helps prepare you for a journey of discovery. We have documented and explained the scripting concepts, the core objects, and many of our favorite techniques, while demonstrating some new ones of our own.
If you will, think of WebSphere as a healthy, bio-diverse, coral reef, rich in wildlife. In this book, we teach you to master the core concepts necessary to explore the reef and introduce you to many of our favorite reef denizens. Afterward you will be prepared to explore more of the reef on your own, discovering for yourself more of the richness that IBM has built into WebSphere. Once you’ve mastered the core concepts, self-discovery becomes important; each new product layered on WebSphere (for example, WebSphere Enterprise Service Bus and WebSphere Process Server) and each new version adds more and more scripting capabilities. So in the way of the ancient parable, we will not only give you some fish, but also teach you to fish.
- We hope that you enjoy the book...and the journey.
- —Bob, Kevin, and Noel