Frequently Asked Questions

What is this course about? In this course, you gain the knowledge and skills to develop interactive and dynamic Ajax-powered Web sites. Through an immersive and evolving case study used throughout the course, you learn to design accessible interfaces for cross-browser compatibility, integrate frameworks for data exchange, leverage toolkits to rapidly create user-friendly interfaces, and protect vital information from inception. What background do I need? Course 489, JavaScript for Web Development: Hands-On, or equivalent experience with JavaScript, is required. It is also assumed that you have experience developing Web pages with HTML. Specifically, you should be able to create a basic HTML document that includes the use of anchors, images, tables, frames, and forms. An understanding of basic programming concepts is also helpful. Who will benefit from this course? This course benefits Web developers, designers, programmers, system architects and those involved in developing and managing Web applications. What is Ajax? Ajax, which stands for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML, is a powerful Web development technique that creates interactive Web applications that respond to a user in the same familiar way as desktop applications. Ajax does this by exchanging information with the server "behind the scenes" so that an entire Web page does not have to be reloaded every time a user clicks on a page element. Whether an organisation deploys Ajax for use in their internal or external Web pages, the end result is a more fluid user experience which increases interactivity, speed, usability and customer satisfaction. Will I need experience with a server-side programming language to take this course? No. There is no requirement to have server-side programming experience to take this course, although any programming experience is helpful. Throughout the course, you experience using Ajax with .NET, Java and PHP back-ends. Interactive demonstrations provide you with examples of how these server-side programming languages need to be converted to work with Ajax client-side code. My organisation only runs an internal Web site. Would Ajax be beneficial to us? Absolutely! Ajax-powered Web sites can benefit all users, whether they are potential customers or employees. By injecting Ajax elements into an organisation's intranet site, such as drop-down menus, autosuggest and autocomplete, and intuitive form validation, the user experience is enhanced in ways that can benefit work flow. The dynamic page elements of Ajax translate into less time spent waiting for pages to refresh, better access to information, and seamless and updatable interfaces, thus increasing usability and productivity. What systems and software are used on the course? During this course you use Pentium IV PCs running Windows XP Professional as the operating system. The latest versions of Microsoft, Firefox, and Netscape browsers are loaded into each PC. The in-class server houses both a Windows Server 2003 R2 and a Debian-based Linux server. How much time is spent on each topic? Content Hours Ajax fundamentals 1.5 Creating and dissecting an Ajax application 3.5 Applying an Ajax-enabled client login 2.0 Enhancing the user experience 2.5 Strengthening and optimising performance 2.0 Integrating data sources 3.0 Securing data exchange 3.5 Communicating with other devices 3.0 Emerging technologies 2.0 Times, including the workshops, are estimates; exact times may vary according to the needs of each class. What kinds of hands-on exercises does this course include? Approximately 40 percent of the course consists of hands-on exercises during which you gain practical skills writing and debugging Ajax-enabled programs to add interactivity and a desktop-application feel to a Web site. This course is built around an evolving case study where a fully functional Web site is transformed through Ajax enhancements. Exercises include: Enhancing the security of Ajax data transmissions Organising the user interface with sortable lists and drag-and-drop Integrating popular toolkits and frameworks with server- and client-side technologies Creating intuitive interfaces Generating HTML e-mail notifications with a rich text editor Developing seamless and updatable application content Plotting and mapping using third-party geolocation APIs Expanding your site search with autosuggest How does this course relate to other Learning Tree courses? The following courses provide essential skills in the area of Web development: 470, Developing a Web Site: Hands-On provides the requisite knowledge and skills developing Web pages using HTML needed for Course 986 522, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) for Web Page Development: Hands-On delivers the skills required to design and rapidly develop cross-platform Web pages using CSS and HTML 542, XML: A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction , provides experience developing XML-based solutions and integrating XML with existing applications 471, Java Programming: A Comprehensive Hands-On Introduction offers extensive experience with Java and its object-oriented features to create both console and GUI applications 512, Developing ASP.NET Web Applications: Hands-On provides the skills needed to develop and deploy Web applications with ASP.NET 2.0 519, Introduction to PHP for Web Development: Hands-On , provides a solid foundation in the PHP Web scripting language