Wicket vs Vaadin

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I am torn between Wicket and Vaadin. I am starting a micro-isv and need to make a choice of web framework. I have narrowed down my choices to Wicket and Vaadin. I have used both frameworks and I love them both. however I need to make a choice.

If If I choose Vaadin:

  1. I wont have to worry much about the look and feel. It comes with nice themes.
  2. I will do all my programming in Java which am very good at and wont have to spend time hacking CSS which am not very good at.
  3. And most of the components that I will need for a business applications are there OUT OF THE BOX including, desktop like layout, tooltips, Keyboard shortcuts, tables with draggable and collapsible columns to name a few.

However, if I go the Vaadin way:

  1. I will loose the ability to create UI declaratively.
  2. I wont have the fallback feature if the browser doesn't support JavaScript - e.g most non Webkit mobile browsers.
  3. Vaadin company is selling some components - e.g the JPAContainer so am not sure the company will be committed to offering full open-source framework. Business interests will always come first.
  4. Vaadin applications will be mostly for the intranet. They are not very suitable for the internet with a web look and feel.

If I go the Wicket way:

  1. I will have to style my applications and I can hardly give them a desktop look and feel.

Any advice? Anyone with experience on either framework kindly tell me the cons and pros and how you made your decision.

vaadin ria wicket java
7 Answers

Thank you for your question. The answer is short and simple

Vaadin is a great tool for java developers who needs to develop web apps, but it is a powerful WAR Machine if you have moderate javascript knowledge, and some basic css skils.

Vaadin is not slow, it is even faster than React and Angular. If your app is slow, it's because you designed it wrong, and that's true to any framework you use. Keep in mind this, Vaadin uses web components, so most of the UI is built on the client, no heavy rendering on the server

In your case you said you don't have css knowledge, two options: Use Vaadin, or hire frontend developer.

I am a web developer for more than 10 years, and I have started as a php developer and a javascript developer. I can tell you that once I've got into Vaadin, I can not develop another way.

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