This document discusses AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML). It defines AJAX as standards-based presentation using XHTML, CSS for dynamic display, DOM for interaction, XML/XSLT for data interchange, and asynchronous retrieval of XML data using XMLHttpRequest and JavaScript binding. It describes the components of AJAX including HTML, CSS, DOM, XMLHttpRequest object. It explains asynchronous processing in AJAX and how AJAX works by fetching data from servers in the background without page refreshes. It provides examples of XMLHttpRequest and discusses advantages like faster page loads and new interface types and disadvantages like initial slowness and compatibility issues.