Google Web Tool Kit

I have been involved more in project management than development lately, but had the opportunity to look into GWT (Google web tool kit), and seriously considering using this framework much more systematically when we develop web applications, or simply administration panels.

1) Ability to program in Java
The beauty of this "framework" is that you use Java to generate your Javascript. You don't have to worry about the browser, or the actual HTML, the framework will generate everything for you.

This allows you to develop UIs very fast, and include this into a SCRUM process easily - and you don't need to invlove "front-end" designers at this stage, unless you define "front-end designers" as "programmers" responsible for the front-end.


2) Compatible with other Javascript frameworks
Javascript frameworks such as JQuery are great to achieve nice rendering effects, or get access to the DOM quickly, to achieve things that sometimes you wish CSS would allow you to do (such as selectors, which is unfortunately not supported by lazy browsers).

These libraries are typically used by front-end designers.

Conclusion
GWT makes the prototyping process much easier to manage.
- build your prototype using GWT, which will generate the general JS scripts responsible for the rendering / ajax interaction

- refine then your design / UI with JQuery