What's the difference?

[Burk Hufnagel]

The Java Ranch review says Jess is not a Rules Engine but a rule-based system. Could someone provide a clear explanation of the difference?
Thanks,
Burk

[Ernest Friedman-Hill]

Thomas Paul may want to correct me, but what I believe he says in his review is that "Jess in Action" is not about rule engines in general, but about Jess. Jess does indeed contain a rule engine as the major component. A "rule based system" is just a rule-driven software system; a rule engine is a component of such a system, and the rules themselves, plus a GUI and other code would be the other components.