For our next project I would like to get into some AJAX to improve the user interface. Guidelines and advice?

Question

Our team is experienced in web development (tomcat/Oracle) but not with AJAX on our existing projects. This is new technology for us, so I want to introduce this carefully and correctly.

What should I look at in terms of frameworks or best practice or common pitfalls?

Answer 1

read this:

• progressive enhancement

and use a library such as jQuery, mootools, or YUI it'll save you many headaches with cross-browser implementation. this will show you why you want to use a library.

Answer 2

My first recommendation would be to explore the different frameworks available and see what your team prefers in terms of coding style. Most of the frameworks have the same basic features so a lot of it comes down to preference. I prefer jQuery, so that is my first recommendation, but I worked with YUI, MooTools, Prototype and EXT JS before making my decision.

Secondly, I would recommend working AJAX functionality as a progressive enhancement, allowing your apps to work with and without JavaScript. I find that this approach also ensures a solid, working application before worrying about adding the bells and whistles.

Head First Ajax is a good book IMO for getting started with the basic concepts behind working with Ajax. It would probably be a good place to start for your team to gain some knowledge of what is happening behind the scenes in whatever framework you choose.