Here's the Who, What, When, Where, and Why of Struts 2.

Who should use the framework?

Struts 2 is designed to help Java web developers create enterprise-class applications using accepted industry standards and design patterns.

What does the framework do?

The framework provides a flexible front controller and a set of custom tags. The controller's job is to map requests to actions. This helps developers organize their business logic. The Struts 2 tags help page authors create interactive pages.

How long have people been using the framework?

The original Struts framework shipped in June 2001. WebWork came out in March 2002 with the goal of improving Struts 1 and adopting the best ideas from other frameworks. In December 2005, the WebWork and Struts communities joined forces to create the Struts 2 framework. The initial release of Struts 2 is expected in the first quarter of 2007.

Where is the framework hosted?

Struts is a project of the Apache Software Foundation. The framework is made available to the public at no charge under the open source Apache License. The official Struts website is located at http://struts.apache.org.

Visit the Struts download page to obtain a distribution.

Why is the framework a good choice for my application?

Reliability. Flexibility. Performance.

Reliability. The Struts project has been serving the Java web development community since May 2000. We have earned a reputation for shipping software that is long on features and short on defects.

Flexibility. The Struts 2 framework is designed to be pluggable from the ground up. The controller's lifecycle can be customized for each application, and even for each action within an application. The tag library is stylesheet-driven and easy to customize, either all at once or tag by tag. Struts 2 does what you want it to do, but only what you want it to do.

Performance. From field experience, we know that Struts-like, action-oriented frameworks perform well and are maintainable.