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Posted to user@struts.apache.org by Vincent Stoessel <vi...@xaymaca.com> on 2002/11/05 20:34:09 UTC
Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
I know I have probably violated MVC by doing this but
while trying to find an elegant solution to passing
field values between my Action classes and my Model Classes
I went ahead and passed the whole darn DyaActionForm (daf)
to my Model class:
Why did I got to the dark side? It was so convenient to
only have to add/remove fields in one class (and in struts-config.xml).
I am working with a massive form that is in flux and editing 2 classes
all the time was slowing me down:
// The Old way: the force
in myAction:
DynaActionForm daf = (DynaActionForm) acForm ;
myModel mym = new myModel();
String firstname = (String) daf.get("fname");
String lastname = (String) daf.get("lname") ;
String street = (String)daf.get("street") ;
String city = (String)daf.get("city") ;
String state = (String)daf.get("state") ;
myModel.doBusiness(firstname, lastname,street,city,state);
then in myModel:
PreparedStatement pstmt = con.prepareStatement(qstr);
pstmt.setString(1,(String)daf.get("firstname"));
pstmt.setString(2,(String)daf.get("lastname"));
pstmt.setString(3,(String)daf.get("street"));
pstmt.setString(4, (String)daf.get("city"));
pstmt.setString(5, (String)daf.get("state"));
// the New Way: the dark side
now I can just do:
myModel mym = new myModel();
myModel.doBusiness(daf);
Yes, in myModel class I still have to break out daf.getXXX but at least
now all thefields can be managed from one place and less prone to
mismached case/spelling (for me anyway) than it was before.
Of course I really do not want to violate the Struts MVC model, is there
a better way than the first method?
Thanks All
--
Vincent Stoessel
Linux Systems Developer
vincent xaymaca.com
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Re: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
Posted by Vincent Stoessel <vi...@xaymaca.com>.
Kris Schneider wrote:
> +1
>
> Although it may seem like splitting hairs because (in your case) the same
> object instance is passed to the doBusiness method, there's a huge
> architectural/design difference between:
>
> public class myModel {
> public void doBusiness(DynaActionForm data) {
> ...
> }
> }
>
> and:
>
> public class myModel {
> public void doBusiness(DynaBean data) {
> ...
> }
> }
>
> I suppose another possibility would be to use BeanUtils.describe or
> PropertyUtils.describe (not sure which is preferred) to generate a Map to pass
> to the doBusiness method. Either describe method can deal with a DynaBean.
This is cool. I will give it a whirl.
Thanks.
--
Vincent Stoessel
Linux Systems Developer
vincent xaymaca.com
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RE: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
Posted by Kris Schneider <kr...@dotech.com>.
Almost forgot about PropertyUtils.copyProperties and BeanUtils.copyProperties
(I think the difference is that BeanUtils handles type conversion). If the
property names of your model match the property names of your form, you should
be able to use one of those methods to populate your model with a single method
call.
Quoting Kris Schneider <kr...@dotech.com>:
> +1
>
> Although it may seem like splitting hairs because (in your case) the same
> object instance is passed to the doBusiness method, there's a huge
> architectural/design difference between:
>
> public class myModel {
> public void doBusiness(DynaActionForm data) {
> ...
> }
> }
>
> and:
>
> public class myModel {
> public void doBusiness(DynaBean data) {
> ...
> }
> }
>
> I suppose another possibility would be to use BeanUtils.describe or
> PropertyUtils.describe (not sure which is preferred) to generate a Map to
> pass
> to the doBusiness method. Either describe method can deal with a DynaBean.
>
> Quoting Robert Taylor <rt...@mulework.com>:
>
> > I would say you wouldn't necessarily violate MVC if you pass the
> > DynaActionForm as a DynaBean into your model. Your model doesn't need
> > an "Form" functionality, it only needs to access the data which is
> > supported
> > by the DynaBean contract. DynaBean is not bound to any presentation layer
> > and
> > therefore does not couple your business tier to your web tier.
> >
> > When passing data from my web tier to the business tier, I tend to
> convert
> > the data contained in the form into data structures native to the
> business
> > tier;
> > Data Transport Objects (DTO) sometimes refered to as ValueObjects. I then
> > pass
> > around these DTOs.
> >
> > There has been plenty of discussion on this list and depending on which
> > engineer
> > you speak with you may get a different answer. For more information on
> > this,
> > search
> > the archives.
> >
> > HTH,
> >
> > robert
> >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Vincent Stoessel [mailto:vincent@xaymaca.com]
> > > Sent: Tuesday, November 05, 2002 2:34 PM
> > > To: Struts Users
> > > Subject: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
> > >
> > >
> > > I know I have probably violated MVC by doing this but
> > > while trying to find an elegant solution to passing
> > > field values between my Action classes and my Model Classes
> > > I went ahead and passed the whole darn DyaActionForm (daf)
> > > to my Model class:
> > >
> > > Why did I got to the dark side? It was so convenient to
> > > only have to add/remove fields in one class (and in struts-config.xml).
> > > I am working with a massive form that is in flux and editing 2 classes
> > > all the time was slowing me down:
> > >
> > > // The Old way: the force
> > > in myAction:
> > >
> > > DynaActionForm daf = (DynaActionForm) acForm ;
> > > myModel mym = new myModel();
> > > String firstname = (String) daf.get("fname");
> > > String lastname = (String) daf.get("lname") ;
> > > String street = (String)daf.get("street") ;
> > > String city = (String)daf.get("city") ;
> > > String state = (String)daf.get("state") ;
> > >
> > > myModel.doBusiness(firstname, lastname,street,city,state);
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > then in myModel:
> > >
> > > PreparedStatement pstmt = con.prepareStatement(qstr);
> > > pstmt.setString(1,(String)daf.get("firstname"));
> > > pstmt.setString(2,(String)daf.get("lastname"));
> > > pstmt.setString(3,(String)daf.get("street"));
> > > pstmt.setString(4, (String)daf.get("city"));
> > > pstmt.setString(5, (String)daf.get("state"));
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > // the New Way: the dark side
> > >
> > > now I can just do:
> > >
> > > myModel mym = new myModel();
> > > myModel.doBusiness(daf);
> > >
> > >
> > > Yes, in myModel class I still have to break out daf.getXXX but at
> least
> > > now all thefields can be managed from one place and less prone to
> > > mismached case/spelling (for me anyway) than it was before.
> > >
> > > Of course I really do not want to violate the Struts MVC model, is
> there
> > > a better way than the first method?
> > >
> > > Thanks All
> > >
> > >
> > > --
> > > Vincent Stoessel
> > > Linux Systems Developer
> > > vincent xaymaca.com
> > >
> > >
> > > --
> > > To unsubscribe, e-mail:
> > <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> > For additional commands, e-mail:
> > <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> >
> >
> > --
> > To unsubscribe, e-mail:
> > <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> > For additional commands, e-mail:
> > <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> >
>
>
> --
> Kris Schneider <ma...@dotech.com>
> D.O.Tech <http://www.dotech.com/>
>
> --
> To unsubscribe, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> For additional commands, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
>
--
Kris Schneider <ma...@dotech.com>
D.O.Tech <http://www.dotech.com/>
--
To unsubscribe, e-mail: <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
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RE: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
Posted by Kris Schneider <kr...@dotech.com>.
+1
Although it may seem like splitting hairs because (in your case) the same
object instance is passed to the doBusiness method, there's a huge
architectural/design difference between:
public class myModel {
public void doBusiness(DynaActionForm data) {
...
}
}
and:
public class myModel {
public void doBusiness(DynaBean data) {
...
}
}
I suppose another possibility would be to use BeanUtils.describe or
PropertyUtils.describe (not sure which is preferred) to generate a Map to pass
to the doBusiness method. Either describe method can deal with a DynaBean.
Quoting Robert Taylor <rt...@mulework.com>:
> I would say you wouldn't necessarily violate MVC if you pass the
> DynaActionForm as a DynaBean into your model. Your model doesn't need
> an "Form" functionality, it only needs to access the data which is
> supported
> by the DynaBean contract. DynaBean is not bound to any presentation layer
> and
> therefore does not couple your business tier to your web tier.
>
> When passing data from my web tier to the business tier, I tend to convert
> the data contained in the form into data structures native to the business
> tier;
> Data Transport Objects (DTO) sometimes refered to as ValueObjects. I then
> pass
> around these DTOs.
>
> There has been plenty of discussion on this list and depending on which
> engineer
> you speak with you may get a different answer. For more information on
> this,
> search
> the archives.
>
> HTH,
>
> robert
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Vincent Stoessel [mailto:vincent@xaymaca.com]
> > Sent: Tuesday, November 05, 2002 2:34 PM
> > To: Struts Users
> > Subject: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
> >
> >
> > I know I have probably violated MVC by doing this but
> > while trying to find an elegant solution to passing
> > field values between my Action classes and my Model Classes
> > I went ahead and passed the whole darn DyaActionForm (daf)
> > to my Model class:
> >
> > Why did I got to the dark side? It was so convenient to
> > only have to add/remove fields in one class (and in struts-config.xml).
> > I am working with a massive form that is in flux and editing 2 classes
> > all the time was slowing me down:
> >
> > // The Old way: the force
> > in myAction:
> >
> > DynaActionForm daf = (DynaActionForm) acForm ;
> > myModel mym = new myModel();
> > String firstname = (String) daf.get("fname");
> > String lastname = (String) daf.get("lname") ;
> > String street = (String)daf.get("street") ;
> > String city = (String)daf.get("city") ;
> > String state = (String)daf.get("state") ;
> >
> > myModel.doBusiness(firstname, lastname,street,city,state);
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > then in myModel:
> >
> > PreparedStatement pstmt = con.prepareStatement(qstr);
> > pstmt.setString(1,(String)daf.get("firstname"));
> > pstmt.setString(2,(String)daf.get("lastname"));
> > pstmt.setString(3,(String)daf.get("street"));
> > pstmt.setString(4, (String)daf.get("city"));
> > pstmt.setString(5, (String)daf.get("state"));
> >
> >
> >
> > // the New Way: the dark side
> >
> > now I can just do:
> >
> > myModel mym = new myModel();
> > myModel.doBusiness(daf);
> >
> >
> > Yes, in myModel class I still have to break out daf.getXXX but at least
> > now all thefields can be managed from one place and less prone to
> > mismached case/spelling (for me anyway) than it was before.
> >
> > Of course I really do not want to violate the Struts MVC model, is there
> > a better way than the first method?
> >
> > Thanks All
> >
> >
> > --
> > Vincent Stoessel
> > Linux Systems Developer
> > vincent xaymaca.com
> >
> >
> > --
> > To unsubscribe, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> For additional commands, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
>
>
> --
> To unsubscribe, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
> For additional commands, e-mail:
> <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
>
--
Kris Schneider <ma...@dotech.com>
D.O.Tech <http://www.dotech.com/>
--
To unsubscribe, e-mail: <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
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RE: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
Posted by Robert Taylor <rt...@mulework.com>.
I would say you wouldn't necessarily violate MVC if you pass the
DynaActionForm as a DynaBean into your model. Your model doesn't need
an "Form" functionality, it only needs to access the data which is supported
by the DynaBean contract. DynaBean is not bound to any presentation layer
and
therefore does not couple your business tier to your web tier.
When passing data from my web tier to the business tier, I tend to convert
the data contained in the form into data structures native to the business
tier;
Data Transport Objects (DTO) sometimes refered to as ValueObjects. I then
pass
around these DTOs.
There has been plenty of discussion on this list and depending on which
engineer
you speak with you may get a different answer. For more information on this,
search
the archives.
HTH,
robert
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Vincent Stoessel [mailto:vincent@xaymaca.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, November 05, 2002 2:34 PM
> To: Struts Users
> Subject: Passing an (Dyna)ActionForm to the business object
>
>
> I know I have probably violated MVC by doing this but
> while trying to find an elegant solution to passing
> field values between my Action classes and my Model Classes
> I went ahead and passed the whole darn DyaActionForm (daf)
> to my Model class:
>
> Why did I got to the dark side? It was so convenient to
> only have to add/remove fields in one class (and in struts-config.xml).
> I am working with a massive form that is in flux and editing 2 classes
> all the time was slowing me down:
>
> // The Old way: the force
> in myAction:
>
> DynaActionForm daf = (DynaActionForm) acForm ;
> myModel mym = new myModel();
> String firstname = (String) daf.get("fname");
> String lastname = (String) daf.get("lname") ;
> String street = (String)daf.get("street") ;
> String city = (String)daf.get("city") ;
> String state = (String)daf.get("state") ;
>
> myModel.doBusiness(firstname, lastname,street,city,state);
>
>
>
>
> then in myModel:
>
> PreparedStatement pstmt = con.prepareStatement(qstr);
> pstmt.setString(1,(String)daf.get("firstname"));
> pstmt.setString(2,(String)daf.get("lastname"));
> pstmt.setString(3,(String)daf.get("street"));
> pstmt.setString(4, (String)daf.get("city"));
> pstmt.setString(5, (String)daf.get("state"));
>
>
>
> // the New Way: the dark side
>
> now I can just do:
>
> myModel mym = new myModel();
> myModel.doBusiness(daf);
>
>
> Yes, in myModel class I still have to break out daf.getXXX but at least
> now all thefields can be managed from one place and less prone to
> mismached case/spelling (for me anyway) than it was before.
>
> Of course I really do not want to violate the Struts MVC model, is there
> a better way than the first method?
>
> Thanks All
>
>
> --
> Vincent Stoessel
> Linux Systems Developer
> vincent xaymaca.com
>
>
> --
> To unsubscribe, e-mail:
<ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
For additional commands, e-mail:
<ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
--
To unsubscribe, e-mail: <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>
For additional commands, e-mail: <ma...@jakarta.apache.org>