Direct Web Remoting (DWR), is an open source Java library that can be used to implement Ajax in Java web applications with minimal Javascript coding. Using DWR, we can invoke server-side Java methods from Javascript in the browser. DWR 2.0 introduces a new feature, dubbed "Reverse Ajax", using which server-side Java can "push" updates to the browser. In this post, I tried to use a simplistic web application that will demonstrate the use of DWR for "Reverse Ajax".... more »

This is an extension of a previous post that described how to secure your method calls using Acegi security. Here, I will go through how to secure your Asynchronous calls, using the same example with some modifications to include Ajax calls using Direct Web Remoting (DWR).... more »

To develop client-centric Ajax applications, such as those that use the Dojo Toolkit, you need a JavaScript editor, a JavaScript debugger, and a message inspector to display the sequence of exchanges between client and server. This article shows how to install and use a free JavaScript editor and debugger from Aptana, Inc., in BEA Workshop. It also shows the use of a message inspector in the Firebug plug-in, an extension for Firefox. ... more »

The co-creator of the Google Web Toolkit (GWT) explains how his team plans to release a GWT version that compiles faster AJAX code than a JavaScript expert could write by hand.... more »

Lost in the hype around Web 2.0 and AJAX is the fact that your visually attractive Web 2.0 application actually needs to do something useful. In this session we'll illustrate an AJAX application generated from XML-based models. Given that standards-based starting point, we'll illustrate how to generate XForms applications that handle data and workflows. Even more important, we'll change the business process definition and the data structures underlying the application, then use XSLT to regenerate the interface. This ensures that the beautiful AJAX interface stays synchronized with the model of the application.... more »

You need to take into account the scalability and maintainability of your Ajax application starting with the design phase. This chapter covers general best practices and the use of simple vs. rich interfaces.... more »

Web 2.0 applications developed using standard Java Platform, Enterprise Edition 5 (Java EE)-based approaches face serious performance and scalability problems. The reason is that many principles that underlie the Java EE platform's design especially, the use of synchronous APIs don't apply to the requirements of Web 2.0 solutions. This article explains the disparity between the Java EE and Web 2.0 approaches, explores the benefits of asynchronous designs, and evaluates some solutions for developing asynchronous Web applications with the Java platform.... more »

Discover the Java Scripting API and use it to develop a dynamic, Swing-based weather application, in this excerpt from Jeff Friesen's 'Beginning Java SE 6 Platform.'... more »

This article highlights some techniques for restricting access to Ajax-based services. It then focuses on using URL-based API keys, which gives you fine-grained protection and allows you to track, meter, and restrict usage of a service.... more »

If you have evaluated AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML) for your next Web application development project, then you probably have read or heard a great deal about AJAX security concerns and the claim that AJAX increases the attack surface for hackers. If you are a skilled security developer, you might wonder whether the AJAX security problem originates in the technologies involved or whether lack of security in AJAX is a misconception. Security threats like SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), message spoofing, and failed input validation existed before in Web applications and have been solved many times since then.... more »