With the release of RichFaces 3.1, JBoss.org has delivered more Web 2.0 development capabilities on Java Platform, Enterprise Edition (EE). This latest update has built-in support for AJAX via Ajax4jsf, an AJAX framework on JavaServer Faces (JSF). Now, developers have a framework combined with a rich set of open source AJAX-enabled components out-of-the-box, eliminating the need to write any JavaScript for AJAX functionality.

This release is the first major update of RichFaces since it was released into open source earlier this year in March. Both RichFaces and Ajax4jsf were contributed to the JBoss.org community by Exadel. Though initially released as two separate projects on JBoss.org, RichFaces and Ajax4jsf projects and technologies have now been merged.

Another important new feature in RichFaces 3.1 is integration with JBoss Seam. This integration enhances the RichFaces user experience by simplifying setup and “plumbing code,” as well as providing powerful state and concurrency management for AJAX. Version 3.1 includes nine new components, including the highly requested rich calendar component, which enables a dynamic AJAX calendar component in Web applications.