Ajax ; The Simplicity behind the web.
AJAX, the buzzword opens a new way in the user interface development. The traditional web
interfaces fails at certain occasions to deliver the response in a faster way. Asynchronous
Javascript and XML, AJAX by name, slashes down the complexity in the user interfaces over
the web.
) Hurdles of page reloading.
Generally, user must have to wait till the server processes get finished. When the server
finishes the process at its part according to the user request, sends a new page back to the
client which has to be loaded again in the browser. The time taken to get the response may
tease the user who is in a hurry to navigate across the pages. Obviously, if he gets the
response for the query in a quicker way, it would please him to stay long in the site or to
revisit later. Things are not different, when it turns to the web applications. User must have
served as quick as possible.
User interface is where the users and applications collaborate. This collaboration requires
developers to make a critical decision over the interface development. The User friendliness,
will guide the users through different stages towards the accomplishment of the tasks. It
lessens the difference distance and difficulty between user and the system such that, users
can interact more with the tasks and less with the system.
) Server-side Scripts; the normal practice.
<Forms> are the usual way to \"call\" server side scripts in HTML, they force the page reload,
and this is often not very user friendly. When a normal web applications wok, user's
submission of a form with required inputs will be taken across to the server along with the
http request. The server does the processing of the corresponding page. Server side scripts
returns an entirely new page to the user. As the server returns a new page each time when
the user requests, the applications often work slowly and user will have to wait for the
response. Damn sure, this is controversy to the user friendliness.
) Why Ajax ?
What Ajax does is not a miracle, it sends and retrieves data with out reloading the whole
page. With XMLHTTP Request, Ajax modifies the parts of the web page using Javascript. It
could b e further called a client-server communication. Ajax allows web pages to request
small bit of information from the server instead of whole pages. It makes the web
applications simpler, faster, and friendlier. Server finishes the processes for the request and
sends the data to the client instead of reloading the page. This data could be served to the
user with out any hassles. Using the XMLHTTP Request, it is possible to call the script without

refreshing the page, and can re focus to the form where we begun.
) More, in-depth.
At occasions, like user login, when a user attempts an invalid login, the page must be
reloaded to let the user know the status. The javascript alerts wait for the user-click to
proceed and complete the page loading to deliver the previous page with the status. The user
login request will be checked with the database kept in the server and the response,
whatever it is, will be send back to the client. The browser will get refreshed and display a
new page. Lets have a look here..
http://os24/TIS/
When an invalid try takes place, user gets an alert box to remind him of, is not the right
person to get in. In sooth, the alertbox leads the user to the page reloading scenario.
) The Ajaxian approach:
The same could be resolved in the new light, Ajax. The user's input will be send to the server
as the XML HTTP request, and the data will be compared with the database values, just as
the normal practice to function the user logins. The response of the server will be sent back
to the same page as Response Text. This Response Text (which contains the status of the
request) will be getting displayed in an attractive way with CSS. The status could be printed
at a suitable position in the same page.

Google and Yahoo are now competing each other with their mail interfaces and other
applications by simplifying it with the help of Ajax. Gmail has been simplified so as to stay
ahead in the service with simplicity. Another attraction is Google Suggest. When the user
come up with a query for the renowned Google Search, he will be served the cached results
which are matching their cache server. Astonishingly, there is no page refresh in delivering
the results from such a database myriad. The suggest mechanism could be experienced here.
http://os24/npi/tst/one_ht.asp
Everybody is jumping towards the trend including Google, Yahoo, Amazon, and Microsoft (to
name a few). It was really Google Maps that captured the attention of Web developers at the
very beginning itself. When people began to investigate how Google could deliver such an
incredible user experience in the browser without any plug-ins, they found AJAX as the
reason for Google's smile. Microsoft is still in the workshop of http://www.start.com/ ( You
must have a look, if you didn't, so far. ) to give an incredible user experience that you have
never had.

) Browser Compatibility:
It is perfectly compatible with any standard Web server and server-side language. PHP, ASP.
ASP.Net, Perl, JSP, Cold Fusion, and so forth. IE and Mozilla-based FireFox have the lion's
share of the market and are arguably the easiest browsers on which to build AJAX Web
applications, but now it's possible to build AJAX-based rich Internet applications that work on
most modern Web browsers. This is an important reason why AJAX has become so popular.
( This is just an analysis made in a limited period of time. Damn sure i am that, you could experience stunning
things when you go web for the same. )
> AJAX <