Why Ajax Is Catching Fire Now in Font

Printing DataMatrix in Font Why Ajax Is Catching Fire Now

So, if this technology has existed for so long, why is it only becoming so popular now It is hard to say exactly why it caught fire in the first place, or who is to really be credited for igniting the fire under its widespread fame. Many developers will argue over Gmail and its widespread availability, or Jesse James Garrett for coining the term and subsequently giving people something to call the concept; but the true success of Ajax, I believe, lies more in the developers than in those who are using it. Consider industries such as accounting. For years, accountants used paper spreadsheets and old-fashioned mathematics to organize highly complex financials. Then, with the advent of computers, things changed. A new way of deploying their services suddenly existed and the industry ceased to remain the way it once was. Sure, standards from the old way still hold true to this day, but so much more has been added, and new ways of doing business have been created. Ajax has created something like this for Internet software and web site developers. Conventions that were always in place still remain, but now we have a new way to deploy functionality and present information. It is a new tool that we can use to do business with and refine our trade. New methodologies are now in place to deploy that which, up until very recently, seemed quite out of our grasp as developers. I, for one, am rather excited to be building applications using the Ajax concept, and can t wait to see what creative Internet machines are put into place.

Since Ajax is based upon JavaScript technology, it goes without saying that JavaScript must be enabled in the user s browser in order for it to work. That being said, most people do allow their browsers to use JavaScript, and it is not really that much of a security issue to have it in place. It must be noted, however, that the user does have the ability to

effectively disable Ajax, so it is important to make sure, when programming an Ajax application, that other means are available to handle maneuvering through the web site; or alternatively, that the user of the web site is kept properly informed of what is necessary to operate the application. Ajax is a fairly widely supported concept across browsers, and can be invoked on Firefox (all available versions), Internet Explorer (4.0 and higher), Apple Safari (1.2 and higher), Konqueror, Netscape (7.1 and higher), and Opera (7.6 and higher). Therefore, most browsers across the widely used gamut have a means for handling Ajax and its respective technologies. For a more complete listing on handling cross-browser Ajax, have a look at 11. At this point, the only real requirement for making use of Ajax in an efficient and productive manner is the creativity of going against what the standard has been telling us for years, and creating something truly revolutionary and functional.

Summary

You should now have a much better understanding of where this upstart new technology has come from and where it intends to go in the future. Those web developers out there who are reading this and have not experimented yet with Ajax should be salivating to see what can be done. The first time I was introduced to the concept of running server requests without having to refresh the page, I merely stood there in awe for a few minutes running through all of the amazing ideas I could now implement. I stood dumbfounded in the face of all of the conventions this technology broke down. Ready for more yet Let s move on to the next chapter and start getting Ajax and PHP to work for you.