JavaServer Pages (JSP)

JavaServer Pages (JSP) is a server-side technology used for creating dynamic, platform-independent web content. It's part of the Java technology family and provides a simplified, fast way to develop web applications. JSP allows you to write [[HTML]], [[Extensible Markup Language|XML]], or other types of documents, interspersed with [[Java]] code, for generating dynamic web content.

JSP enables the creation of web pages that can dynamically generate content based on user requests, database queries, or other dynamic sources.

Under the hood, JSP files are compiled into Java servlets by the server. While servlets embed HTML inside Java code, JSPs embed Java code in HTML. This makes JSPs more convenient to write and maintain, especially for those familiar with HTML.

JSP uses Java-like tags and scriptlets that are embedded in HTML. A JSP tag is a special instruction that is interpreted on the server to generate dynamic content. For example, <%= expression %> is a JSP expression tag that outputs the result of the expression.

JSP allows for a clear separation of presentation from business logic. Java code can be kept separate from the HTML, making the code cleaner and more maintainable. A JSP lifecycle includes several stages, from translation (converting JSP to a servlet), compilation (compiling the servlet into a class), initialization, request processing, and destruction.

JSP is often used in conjunction with the Java Enterprise Edition (Java EE) platform and can be integrated with Java-based frameworks like Spring and Hibernate. JSP simplifies web development by allowing developers to embed Java code directly into HTML pages. It supports tag libraries, which are custom tags that encapsulate complex functionalities.

JSP supports custom tag libraries, which abstract the Java code into more manageable and reusable components, known as custom tags. JSP supports session tracking, which is used to maintain state about a user as they navigate through a web application.