Question

Java Q:
I like CSS for simple web pages but loathe it when it comes to real world sites because you get css explosion and lots of repeating.

I am tempted to use Sass and or Compass but they are Ruby programs which will most likely require some interesting Maven + JRuby love to get working for Java Web app dev. This also makes it difficult if you are using Eclipse or any IDE that supports synchronization with a running web app.

Is there a better alternative for the hell that is CSS in the hell that is Java?

Answer 1

I went down the same road recently using LessCss, a similar technology. At first I tried to embed JRuby in my build lifecycle. But unfortunately Maven + JRuby is a monster, it’s slow, huge and buggy (half the time it wouldn’t even start because it would complain about the file path it was running on).

Fortunately, there is now a JavaScript port of LessCss, which I now embed via Mozilla Rhino. I describe the process in this blog post.

Yesterday though I took it to the next level, making a Maven LessCss Plugin to minimize POM configuration and code duplication. Unfortunately I can’t share it because it’s proprietary code for my current client, but the solution is simple:

Use GMaven to create the Plugin, create an abstract base mojo that calls the LessCss compiler and several concrete implementations that configure the base mojo for different resource sets:

e.g.

• lesscss:compile
  compiles from all
  <resources> to
  ${project.build.outputDirectory}
• lesscss:test-compile
  compiles from
  all <testResources> to
  ${project.build.testOutputDirectory}
• lesscss:war-compile
  (compiles from
  all src/main/webapp to
  ${project.build.directory}/${project.build.finalName}
  , the exploded war directory)

So while I can’t help you with SASS (apart from you asking the auth
or to port it to Groovy, Java or JavaScript), I think I’ve shown you a feasible alternative.

Of course you can also implement a Maven Plugin in java without Groovy (also embedding the JavaScript via Rhino), but I think it’s easier in Groovy.