JBoss Seam is an exciting new application framework based on the Java EE platform that is used to build rich, web-based business applications. Seam is rapidly capturing the interest of Java enterprise developers because of its focus on simplicity, ease of use, transparent integration, and scalability. Seam in Action offers a practical and in-depth look at JBoss Seam. The book puts Seam head-to-head with the complexities in the Java EE architecture. The author presents an unbiased view of Seam from outside the walls of RedHat/JBoss, focusing on such topics as Spring integration and deployment to alternative application servers to steer clear of vendor lock-in. By the end of the book, you should expect to not only gain a deep understanding of Seam, but also come away with the confidence to teach the material to others. To start off, you will see a working Java EE-compliant application come together by the end of the second chapter. As you progress through the book, you will discover how Seam eliminates unnecessary layers and configurations, solves the most common JSF pain points, and establishes the missing link between JSF, EJB 3 and JavaBean components. The author also shows you how Seam opens doors for you to incorporate technologies you previously have not had time to learn, such as business processes and stateful page flows (jBPM), Ajax remoting, PDF generation, asynchronous tasks, and more. All too often, developers spend a majority of their time integrating disparate technologies, manually tracking state, struggling to understand JSF, wrestling with Hibernate exceptions, and constantly redeploying applications, rather than on the logic pertaining to the business at hand. Seam in Action dives deep into thorough explanations of how Seam eliminates these non-core tasks by leveraging configuration by exception, Java 5 annotations, and aspect-oriented programming.