Enhancing user experience with AJAX

Web development, in its earlier years of deployment, was simply the HTML scripts, stored at server and was processed according to the requests made by the client. Each time any information was needed to be updated on the page, it was supposed to be reloaded, conventionally. This process of start-stop-start-stop was inefficient according to the responses of various users. Even for a small amount of change, the processing of whole page needs to be performed, which imparts un-necessary load on server and was wastage of bandwidth.

To overcome this problem and optimize the network and server resource, AJAX was introduced. AJAX was easily supported and compatible with major web-browsers and provided virtually a complete solution related to network and server resources. The concept of Rich internet Application (RIA) flourished because of the introduction of this concept. AJAX is the combination of various technologies related to web development which participate in every way, to enhance user experience.

AJAX includes:

• HTML and CSS, to deal with the style and display of the page and related information,
• JavaScript along with DOM, to create a dynamic environment for the users to access and interact with the information.
• The XMLHttpRequest object, which asynchronously exchange the data with the server without interfering the behavior and display of the exiting page.

AJAX, expanded as Asynchronous JavaScript and XML, is basically deployed in client-server based applications to minimize the processing and network resources so as to accommodate large amount of traffic on existing architecture. The key feature of this technology combo is that it keeps on updating and simultaneously processes the data on the page being accessed. However, in contrast with the traditional HTML web-page situation, it removes the necessity to reload the whole page to update the page instead; it processes and updates only the required part on the page.

• Moreover, AJAX doesn’t need to be installed as an application at client’s side like flash. 
• It also provides with the feedback, conformation and error messages on the same screen on which user operates.
• Since all the technical processes are executed in the background, the user interaction with the page is not disturbed, user keeps on working on his task.

It technically improves the efficiency of the resources and improves the user’s experience as well. Small part of page update means little amount of data processing, high responsiveness and less bandwidth consumption. Since data will be processed and transferred in low time, in user’s reference the page responds in no time, virtually. This is the extent to how technology advancement has improved the quality of the internet. Custom software development companies providing web applications are instrumental in this change.