tag attribute declarations: defaultValue ?

[Garrett Smith]

I wish.

Seems like there should be a way to specify the default value for non-required attributes within the tag attribute declaration.

I know only this way:

<%@ attribute name="useCache" %@>
 
<c:if test="${ empty useCache }">
    <c:set var="useCache" value="false"/>
</c:if>

It is kind of cumbersome.

It would be clearer (easier to read and maintain) to use this hypothetical syntax:

<%@ attribute name="useCache" defaultValue="false" %@>

[Bear Bibeault]

Such a construct could not generally work. It could only be applied to extremely simple cases, such as your example. What would you specify if the attribute is a Map, or a List, or some custom bean (such as Person or SomeOtherComplexClass)?

Even in your simple case, is the attribute a boolean or the string "false"?
[ December 12, 2006: Message edited by: Bear Bibeault ]