Using the unique and highly effective visual format that has turned Head First titles into runaway bestsellers, this book offers a big picture overview to introduce Ajax, and then explores the use of individual Ajax components -- including the javascript event model, DOM, XML, JSON, and more -- as it progresses. You'll find plenty of sample applications that illustrate the concepts, along with exercises, quizzes, and other interactive features to help you retain what you've learned.
Head First Ajax covers:
* The javascript event model
* Making Ajax requests with XMLHTTPREQUEST objects
* The asynchronous application model
* The Document Object Model (DOM)
* Manipulating the DOM in javascript
* Controlling the browser with the Browser Object Model
* XHTML Forms
* POST Requests
* XML Syntax and the XML DOM tree
* XML Requests&Responses
* JSON -- an alternative to XML
* Ajax architecture & patterns
* The Prototype Library
The book also discusses the server-side implications of building Ajax applications, and uses a "black box" approach to server-side components.
Head First Ajax is the ideal guide for experienced web developers comfortable with scripting -- particularly those who have completed the exercises in Head First javascript -- and for experienced programmers in Java, PHP, and C# who want to learn client-side programming.