What applications can you create with Java EE?

The Java EE platform makes it easy for you to create web applications and enterprise applications. For example, you can use Java EE to build on-line stores, web services, social networking sites, news portals, transportation information services, business applications, and back end platforms for smartphone and tablet apps. The possibilities are endless.

In all of the previous examples, Java EE helps you the most with the back end or server-side code. If your application is accessed by clients using a web browser, Java EE also provides you with tools to create dynamic web pages that communicate with the rest of your application. If clients access your application using a native mobile app, you can connect the app and the back end using a standard web service or a socket.

A typical Java EE application looks like this:

A typical Java EE application

Your application contains the following main elements: application logic written in Java classes, dynamic web pages, web service definitions, and entity definitions that need to be persisted in a database (such as a customer, a purchase order, and so on). Your application uses the Java EE APIs to access the services provided by the platform and to communicate with the outside world.