Mini-review And Competition Of Bulletproof Ajax

Ajax, or the technology that lets you create Web pages in which information can be updated without refreshing the entire page, is the latest rage in Web site design. But for those who aren't hard-core programmers, enhancing pages using Ajax can be a challenge. Even more of a challenge is making sure those pages work for all users.

Overview

In Bulletproof Ajax, Jeremey Keith demonstrates how developers comfortable with CSS and (x)HTML can build Ajax functionality without frameworks, using the principle of progressive enhancement to ensure that the pages work for all users. Throughout this step-by-step guide, his emphasis is on best practices using an approach to building Ajax pages that he calls Hijax, which provides rich interactivity without sacrificing access to content.

Inside, learn to:

Use Web standards to create a solid foundation for your Ajax applications
Apply progressive enhancement to add AJAX unobtrusively
Get to know the ins and outs of the XMLHttpRequest object
Recognize when to employ Ajax... and when to avoid it
Confront the unique design challenges of Ajax interaction
Ensure that your applications still work with or without JavaScript

Who is this book for?

This book is for everyone who wants to get started with AJAX. More advanced AJAX developers might be interested in Hijax, an innovative way of applying the idea of progressive enhancement to Ajax applications.

Conclusion

Jeremey starts with an introduction to AJAX and its origins. After that he moves on to an introduction to the Document Object Model and how you can use it. Then it's time for the chapter that cannot be left out of an AJAX book, the XMLHttpRequest object. Jeremey shows you how to create such an object and how it handles requests, receive responses. Jeremey also show you how to position the object in the DOM and how different browser handles the object. In Chapter four Jeremey covers the Data Formats that are returned by an XMLHttpRequest request. The data types that are involved are XML, JSON, and HTML. Jeremey creates a wrapper for retrieving each of the different data formats. The next chapter introduces the unique strongpoint of the book, HIJAX. Jeremey uses it for progressive enhancement, unobtrusive JavaScript, and rich clients. In chapter six and seven the author discusses the accessibility challenges that AJAX faces. Chapter nine wraps things up by using the learned material to create a shopping cart application. The final chapter looks at the future of Ajax.

This one of those books that you can read without putting it down for a break as it is very easy to read. The book is great for beginners as it explains the do's and don'ts of AJAX so it will get you started in the right direction. Advanced developers might learn a thing or two from the book as well, especially when it comes to Hijax.

Competition

We've got a brand new mini-review and competition of Bulletproof Ajax. The friendly people of New Riders are giving away 5 books!

All you need to do, to enter the competition is, download the sample PDF and finish the following sentence:

"JavaScript is usually written procedurally. That means you specify...."

Send your answer to this e-mail address, before Thursday the 3rd of May 2007. Don't forget to include your post address and phone number (required for international shipping) in the e-mail.