weave the world using Ajax
Ajax Articles
Take Command with AJAX : Build WebConsole Application using Ajax new!
by Stoyan Stefanov - sitepoint.com
Do you want to build more dynamic, responsive, desktop-like Web applications like Gmail and Google Maps? Then this article is for you.
It guides you through the AJAX basics and through the process of building a simple AJAX application. That application is named WebConsole and, in essence, it's a browser interface for executing system commands for which you'd usually need shell access.
In this article, I'll explain the creation of one simple, reusable JavaScript function for making HTTP requests. Then, I'll apply that function in the creation of a simple application.
The article is not a tutorial on JPSpan, Sajax, or any other AJAX libraries. Instead, it aims to give you more hands-on information about making HTTP requests, so that you're in a better position when evaluating such libraries or deciding to go on your own.
Read full article here »
Fixing AJAX: XMLHttpRequest Considered Harmful new!
by Jason Levitt
This article discusses about the security constraints that are there in browsers these days.
The three possible solutions suggested are:
» Application proxies. Write an application in your favorite programming language that sits on your server, responds to XMLHttpRequests from users, makes the web service call, and sends the data back to users.
» Apache proxy. Adjust your Apache web server configuration so that XMLHttpRequests can be invisibly re-routed from your server to the target web service domain.
» Script tag hack with application proxy (doesn't use XMLHttpRequest at all). Use the HTML script tag to make a request to an application proxy (see #1 above) that returns your data wrapped in JavaScript. This approach is also known as On-Demand JavaScript.
The basic idea of all three hacks is the same: fool your user's web browser into thinking that the data is coming from the same domain as the web page.
Read full article here »
Ajax for Java developers: Ajax with Direct Web Remoting new!
by Philip McCarthy
Exciting as it is, adding Ajax functionality to your applications can mean a lot of hard work. In this third article in the Ajax for Java™ developers series, Philip McCarthy shows you how to use Direct Web Remoting (DWR) to expose JavaBeans methods directly to your JavaScript code and automate the heavy-lifting of Ajax.
Understanding the fundamentals of Ajax programming is essential, but if you're building complex Ajax UIs, it's also important to be able to work at a higher level of abstraction. In this third article in the Ajax for Java developers series, I build on last month's introduction to data serialization techniques for Ajax, introducing a technique that will let you avoid the nitty-gritty details of serializing Java objects.
Read full article here »
Read also Introduction to Ajax and DWR
Ajax: Single-page vs. Multi-page Application new!
by Joe Walker
Benefits of Multi-page Ajax Application
i) Multi-page can give a faster initial download
ii) Multi-page is easier
There are 3 reasons why starting with multi-page is easier:
» It's what you're used to
» Bookmarking comes for free with multi-page
» History (Back button support) also comes for free
Benefits of Single-page Ajax Application
i) Provides advanced history
ii) Offers faster rendering
iii) Makes easy for share components
Read his full thoughts on this here »
Yahoo!'s new twist on mapping APIs new!
by Simon Willison
The maps team have produced a set of APIs that should make any geo-hacker very happy indeed. Take a look at these, all launched today: #
Flash-ActionScript API, for embedding maps in your Flash applications. When you think about the number of talented Flash developers out there for whom an Ajax toolkit is of little interest, the potential for innovation here is enormous. Not to mention that custom vector overlays of map information are far better suited to Flash than to JavaScript.
Flash-JavaScript API, for embedding Flash maps within normal pages and driving them from regular JavaScript. You can also drop custom Flash widgets and markers in to the page from this API just by providing the URL of a SWF file, which should allow ActionScript programmers to achieve virtually anything they can imagine.
Flex API, for adding maps to Flex applications. I'm don't know too much about Flex (which is billed by Macromedia as an "enterprise" development tool), but the syntax example is pretty compelling:<yahoo:YahooMap id="myMap" width="550" height="400" zoomLevel="3" latitude="37.77159" longitude="-122.401714" />
Don't like Flash? There's an Ajax JavaScript API as well, no Flash required. Create pannable, zoomable maps, drive them from JavaScript and add custom markers to them.
more »
Sprinkle Some AJAX Magic in Your Struts Web Application new!
by Paul Browne
AJAX is the latest revolution in web development circles, allowing rich dynamic interfaces deployed within a normal web browser. Struts has been one of the de facto standards for Java-Web development for a number of years, with a large number of applications already deployed. This article will show you how to combine the richness of an AJAX user interface with your existing Struts applications.
This article shows a simple and elegant way to do this by including a couple of lines of JavaScript on your JavaServer Pages (JSPs). While we show how to reuse existing Struts actions, the techniques are equally applicable to the Java-Web framework of your choice. The method proposed will also allow a move to the next version of Struts (Shale) or JavaServer Faces (JSF) in the future.
Designing AJAX into Your Application
The JavaScript outlined above can cope with the way Struts is used in most applications, including those that are much more complex than our simple example. However, you may find that following the points below makes it easier to write and use your code:
» To avoid duplicated code, it can often be better to use the same Struts Action and JSP for the initial request (i.e., show full page) and the AJAX (update part of page) requests.
» Within the common Action (controller) class, decide which sections of the JSP page (all of the JSP or only part of it) need to be sent to the browser. By setting flags in either the web server session or ActionForm, the JSP page knows which sections need to be rendered.
» Within the JSP, use Struts
An updated version of this project, with AJAX enabled, can be downloaded here: struts-Ajax.zip
Ajax Tutorial: Ajax What Is It Good For? TUTORIAL
by dhtmlnirvana.com
Check out the Ajax tutorial by DHTML Nirvana. more »
Also explore the image gallery example
A Backbase Ajax Front-end for J2EE Applications
by Mark Schiefelbein
Alternatively stated, Ajax solutions contain a client-side engine that renders the user interface and communicates with the server in XML format. This engine consists of JavaScript functions, resides in the Web browser, and does not require a plug-in or user install.
Backbase provides Ajax software that is standards-based, comprehensive, and easy-to-use. The Backbase Presentation Client (BPC) is based on Ajax technology, extending DHTML with additional tags called Backbase XML (BXML). The Backbase XML Server Edition for J2EE (BXS) contains the server-side components required by J2EE developers to quickly develop Ajax front ends for J2EE applications. more »
An Introduction To Ajax
by David Teare
This article introduces a methodology, Ajax, you can use to build more dynamic and responsive Web applications. The key lies in the combination of browser-side JavaScript, DHTML, and asynchronous communication with the server. This article also demonstrates just how easy it is to start using this approach, by leveraging an Ajax framework (DWR) to construct an application that communicates with backend services directly from the browser. If used properly, this tremendous power allows your application to be more natural and responsive to your users, thereby providing an improved browsing experience. more »
Bookmarks and the back button in AJAX applications
by Laurens Holst
It has many advantages to use AJAX technology in your web application. The ability to dynamically load new content into an existing page results in reduced server bandwidth and faster response times for your users. more »
AJAX Interfaces For QDF
by Joshua Gitlin
This article will be much less formal than Article 1 or Article 2. I'll be discussing how I use AJAX to create highly-interactive web interfaces. I'll mainly be focusing on implementing these interfaces in straight (X)HTML but it should be fairly analagous for use in portlets and JSP pages. more »
Create Your Own Web-based Screensaver
by J Wynia
Ever wanted to make your own quick screensaver? Wanted to turn a cool Flash animation or RSS-based page into a screensaver? Turns out it’s not that difficult. Anything you can put into a web page can be used. This includes Flash, DHTML animations, Iframes loading remote data, AJAX calls, etc.more »
Integrating Flash with HTML, JavaScript and Ajax
by Christian Cantrell, Mike Chambers
Why integrate Flash / HTML / JavaScript. Programming : Flash / JavaScript Integration Kit. more »
AJAX and PHP Form Processing
by Jeff Pipas
Step by Step tutorial for PHP form processing with Ajax with code example. more »