The project we're working on requires us to generate a java web application from a some ancient language. The code being converted, we have transformed into java classes (thanks to jxom), the presentation is converted into JSF (facelets) pages.

By the way, long before java (.net) platform has been conceived, there were languages and environments, worked out so good that contemporary client - server paradigms (like JSF, ASP.NET, and so on) are just their isomorphisms.

The problem we were dealing with recently is JSF databinding for a bean properties of types java.sql.Date, java.sql.Time, java.sql.Timestamp.

At some point of design we have decided that these types are most natural representation of data in the original language, as the program's activity is tightly connected to the database. Later on it's became clear that JSF databinding does not like these types at all. We were to decide either to fall back and use java.util.Date as bean property types, or do something with databinding.

It was not clear what's the best way until we have found an elegant solution, namely: to create ELResolver to handle bean properties of these types. The solution works because custom el resolvers are applied before standard resolvers (except implicit one).

The class DateELResolver is rather simple extension of the BeanELResolver. To use it you only need to register it the faces-config.xml:

<faces-config version="1.2"
  xmlns="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee"
  xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
  xsi:schemaLocation="http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee
    http://java.sun.com/xml/ns/javaee/web-facesconfig_1_2.xsd">
  <application>
    <el-resolver>com.nesterovskyBros.jsf.DateELResolver</el-resolver>
  </application>
</faces-config>