Ajax Hacks

by Perry, Bruce

• ISBN13: 9780596101695
• ISBN10: 0596101694
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-03-30
• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc

Summary

Those of you familiar with Ajax (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) know how useful the technology is for creating interactive web applications with XML-based web services and JavaScript in the browser to process the web server response. Responsive web applications with client-like functionality are the new wave of the Internet. Now, Ajax Hacks offers you 100 new tips and techniques for building faster web apps with rich client interfaces. Ajax reduces the amount of data interchanged between the web browser and web server to speed up the web experience. Now Ajax Hacks will help you enrich that experience even further.

Author Biography

Bruce Perry is an independent Java software developer and writer. Since 1996, he has developed web applications and databases for various nonprofits, design and marketing firms, and ad agencies. When not hacking or writing, he loves cycling and climbing mountains in the U.S. and Switzerland. He lives in Massachusetts with his wife Stacy LeBaron, daughter Rachel, and son Scott.

Table of Contents

Foreword	ix
Credits	xi
Preface	xv
Ajax Basics	1	(57)
Detect Browser Compatibility with the Request Object	5	(3)
Use the Request Object to POST Data to the Server	8	(6)
Use Your Own Library for XMLHttpRequest	14	(3)
Receive Data as XML	17	(5)
Get Plain Old Strings	22	(3)
Receive Data as a Number	25	(4)
Receive Data in JSON Format	29	(8)
Handle Request Object Errors	37	(5)
Dig into the HTTP Response	42	(5)
Generate a Styled Message with a CSS File	47	(5)
Generate a Styled User Message on the Fly	52	(6)
Web Forms	58	(68)
Submit Text Field or textarea Values to the Server Without a Browser Refresh	58	(8)
Display Text Field or textarea Values Using Server Data	66	(5)
Submit Selection-List Values to the Server Without a Round Trip	71	(8)
Dynamically Generate a New Selection List Using Server Data	79	(6)
Extend an Existing Selection List	85	(7)
Submit Checkbox Values to the Server Without a Round Trip	92	(8)
Dynamically Generate a New Checkbox Group with Server Data	100	(6)
Populate an Existing Checkbox Group from the Server	106	(7)
Change Unordered Lists Using an HTTP Response	113	(8)
Submit Hidden Tag Values to a Server Component	121	(5)
Validation	126	(32)
Validate a Text Field or textarea for Blank Fields	126	(3)
Validate Email Syntax	129	(9)
Validate Unique Usernames	138	(4)
Validate Credit Card Numbers	142	(8)
Validate Credit Card Security Codes	150	(5)
Validate a Postal Code	155	(3)
Power Hacks for Web Developers	158	(76)
Get Access to the Google Maps API	158	(2)
Use the Google Maps API Request Object	160	(6)
Use Ajax with a Google Maps and Yahoo! Maps Mash-up	166	(9)
Display a Weather.com XML Data Feed	175	(8)
Use Ajax with a Yahoo! Maps and GeoURL Mash-up	183	(4)
Debug Ajax-Generated Tags in Firefox	187	(3)
Fetch a Postal Code	190	(7)
Create Large, Maintainable Bookmarklets	197	(1)
Use Permanent Client-Side Storage for Ajax Applications	198	(4)
Control Browser History with iframes	202	(2)
Send Cookie Values to a Server Program	204	(8)
Use XMLHttpRequest to Scrape an Energy Price from a Web Page	212	(5)
Send an Email with XMLHttpRequest	217	(6)
Find the Browser's Locale Information	223	(4)
Create an RSS Feed Reader	227	(7)
Direct Web Remoting (DWR) for Java Jocks	234	(26)
Integrate DWR into Your Java Web Application	234	(3)
Use DWR to Populate a Selection List from a Java Array	237	(5)
Use DWR to Create a Selection List from a Java Map	242	(2)
Display the Keys/Values from a Java HashMap on a Web Page	244	(3)
Use DWR to Populate an Ordered List from a Java Array	247	(4)
Access a Custom Java Object with JavaScript	251	(6)
Call a Built-in Java Object from JavaScript Using DWR	257	(3)
Hack Ajax with the Prototype and Rico Libraries	260	(25)
Use Prototype's Ajax Tools with Your Application	260	(5)
Update an HTML Element's Content from the Server	265	(4)
Create Observers for Web Page Fields	269	(4)
Use Rico to Update Several Elements with One Ajax Response	273	(5)
Create a Drag-and-Drop Bookstore	278	(7)
Work with Ajax and Ruby on Rails	285	(32)
Install Ruby on Rails	286	(6)
Monitor Remote Calls with Rails	292	(6)
Make Your JavaScript Available to Rails Applications	298	(1)
Dynamically Generate a Selection List in a Rails Template	299	(5)
Find Out Whether Ajax Is Calling in the Request	304	(1)
Dynamically Generate a Selection List Using Database Data	305	(4)
Periodically Make a Remote Call	309	(4)
Dynamically View Request Information for XMLHttpRequest	313	(4)
Savor the script.aculo.us JavaScript Library	317	(17)
Integrate script.aculo.us Visual Effects with an Ajax Application	317	(3)
Create a Login Box That Shrugs Off Invalid Logins	320	(4)
Create an Auto-Complete Field with script.aculo.us	324	(4)
Create an In-Place Editor Field	328	(4)
Create a Web Form That Disappears When Submitted	332	(2)
Options and Efficiencies	334	(71)
Fix the Browser Back Button in Ajax Applications	335	(7)
Handle Bookmarks and Back Buttons with RSH	342
Set a Time Limit for the HTTP Request	335	(23)
Improve Maintainability, Performance, and Reliability for Large JavaScript Applications	358	(6)
Obfuscate JavaScript and Ajax Code	364	(4)
Use a Dynamic script Tag to Make Web Services Requests	368	(5)
Configure Apache to Deal with Cross-Domain Issues	373	(2)
Run a Search Engine Inside Your Browser	375	(5)
Use Declarative Markup Instead of Script via XForms	380	(6)
Build a Client-Side Cache	386	(8)
Create an Auto-Complete Field	394	(3)
Dynamically Display More Information About a Topic	397	(3)
Use Strings and Arrays to Dynamically Generate HTML	400	(5)
Index	405