Outdated Java Backend Technologies You Can Stop Learning

Recently I received many private messages from readers asking whether certain technologies are worth learning, including some overseas students interested in Java graphics programming.

Because I have been busy, I am sharing a summary of a senior’s answer that I found helpful.

Having worked with Java for nearly 20 years, I have witnessed many changes, such as Java EE frameworks consolidating under Spring, web development moving from SSH to Spring MVC + MyBatis, and IDEs evolving from JBuilder to Eclipse and then IDEA.

This article focuses on Java knowledge that is already outdated and no longer necessary to study, serving as a supplement to a previous post.

The judgment criteria are:

Can it be used in real development?

Does it deepen understanding of the technology?

Is it useful for interviews?

JSP

JSP is mainly used as the View layer in the MVC model, alongside alternatives like FreeMarker and Velocity. In the current trend of front‑end/back‑end separation, most companies have abandoned or are abandoning JSP in favor of pure API services, making JSP learning unnecessary.

Struts

Although Struts is a solid MVC framework, Spring (especially Spring MVC) has become the dominant one‑stop solution, and new projects now start with Spring MVC rather than Struts.

Hibernate

Hibernate is a powerful ORM framework, but its complexity leads to high learning cost, cumbersome configuration, and difficult tuning. For performance‑critical applications, direct SQL access is preferred, and lightweight frameworks like MyBatis provide a better balance.

Servlet (must master)

Even though pure Servlet‑based applications are rare, Servlet remains the foundation of all Java web containers and MVC frameworks. Understanding Servlet deeply helps grasp the internals of frameworks and enables advanced techniques such as request/response interception.

Other technologies

In China, Java is primarily used for web back‑end development, so the following are of limited relevance:

Applet – obsolete browser plug‑in technology.

Swing – desktop UI framework rarely used; C++ or C# dominate.

JDBC – lower‑level database access; most frameworks hide it, so it can be deprioritized.

XML – still used but increasingly replaced by JSON; deep XML APIs are unnecessary unless required.

Conclusion

The above opinions are personal and may be subjective; apologies for any bias. I wish you smooth learning and continuous salary growth.

Benefits

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