Unobtrusive Ajax is about making webapplications that work for everyone allthe time, even if you have JavaScriptturned off, or you're using a mobilephone or a screen reader, or however youhappen to be using the Web. It's aboutthe separation of behavior (JavaScript),content (HTML), and presentation(CSS).
This short cut will focus on the practicalbenefits of using Ajax and JavaScript unobtrusivelyand show you that unobtrusiveweb development and progressiveenhancement benefit both web developersand users of the Web. You'll get to seemany simple examples of building webinterfaces that are unobtrusive. You'llquickly see that it is actually very easy tomake web applications that everyonecan use.
When you're finished reading this short cut,you will be able to convince anyone whydeveloping unobtrusively is the best wayto build a site with JavaScript and Ajax.
Jesse Skinner is a freelancing web developer from Ontario, Canada. He has been playing with HTML since the web started, and working as a web developer his entire career. He occasionally writes articles and speaks at conferences. He blogs regularly about his biggest interests, mainly JavaScript, CSS and Web Standards, at The Future of the Web (http://www.thefutureoftheweb.com/).
This 'Short Cut' preaches about the importance of separating behavior (JS) from styles (CSS) and content (Semantic HTML).
This way, by using Ajax unobtrusively, the website will still work if Javascript is turned off. The website will still be accessible. The website will be easier to maintain.
The 'Short Cut' then delves into some actual Ajax code and some examples. (Tabbed navigation, hiding/showing content dynamically, & dynamic select boxes.) It packs a lot in just 57 pages.
The only negative is that the content is slightly 'stale'. The Ajax code and examples may not work 100% in modern browsers. (It uses some feature detection, for example, in determining whether XMLHttpRequest or window.ActiveXObject is available.) It gives passing coverage on JS frameworks and libraries such as jQuery. Much of its content can be found elsewhere, in books and on the Internet.
