Are JSR specifications good learning resources from the developer's point of view?

Question

Today, reading Servlet 3.0 specification, I've come across a sentence:

We emphasize that this specification is not a user’s guide for servlet developers and is not intended to be used as such.

I've started reading it because I felt like most of the books, websites about servlets and JSP are very old. I wanted to be up-to-date after several troubles with Tomcat 7.0 configuration.

Are JSRs specs good learning resources from the developer's point of view? I'm mean the intermediate Java web developer. If so, what is the good strategy for dealing with them?

Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

No, they aren't. They are too detailed and are targeted at companies that implement the standard, rather than at developers trying to learn it.

They are a good reference for after you have become familiar with the technology.

Some JSRs have one version for developers and another for implementors. They are more suitable, but are still better used as references rather than as learning material. Note that most JSR-specified technologies have official tutorials, so go there first.

Answer 2

The Servlet specification is a technical document that address the servlet technology details that are mostly usefull to a web container vendor. It tells you which are the rules to follow if you want to develop a compatible implementation of servlets.

However, from the servlet developer standpoint, it is better to learn from a book or samples on the Internet. You will not find sample applications, or how to build a web app tutorials on the spec.

I find myself reading the spec whenever I want to know particular details about the standard behavior, so I dare to say that you may learn from it too.