The AJAX Buzz
Go back a year and try to strike up a conversation about AJAX. Better yet, go ask your Grandmother about AJAX. I'm sure you can imagine how that conversation would go. Today, AJAX is the hot buzz word being thrown around like candy - it's not just a cleanser anymore.
In case you haven't been covering the web space, AJAX is an acronym coined by Adaptive Path, which stands for Asynchronous Javascript And XML. The basic idea has been around for years, it is the name that is new. Wikipedia has a pretty good explanation of the concept, the history, etc. It is a pretty good read for anyone who is interested.
As fun and exciting as AJAX is as a technology, it is the name that really intrigues me. This technology has been around for years, and used in some very high profile web applications. (Outlook Web Access for example) So if this has been around for so long, why has it suddenly exploded onto the web scene? I think the answer is actually a combination of events. First, instead of calling it by a technical name like "XMLHttpRequest", this technique now had a new easy to remember name - "AJAX". Combine that with Google's implementation using AJAX in what quickly became the best free online mapping solution in my opinion, and you have the buzz that is AJAX. When you go to your boss to explain what Asynchronous Javascript and XML is and why you should use it in your next project, you can say - "AJAX.. you know, like Google Maps". Now everyone has an easy reference application, and an even easier name to describe the technique used. Since this powerful technique can now be described using a single word, it enables people to share concepts and ideas with out knowing about the full implementation details.
Obviously having an easy term to remember like "AJAX" has made it easy for everyone to talk and write about this technique. That has caused quite a stir in the web community, since everyone is now thinking of new ways to leverage the power of an asynchronous XmlHTTP request. However, there are also some dangers to having such a popular buzz word.
The common misconception is that AJAX is new. As noted, the only new part of AJAX is the actual name itself. Now that the buzz word is out there, everyone wants to use it. They see Google Maps, they see new sites popping up every day, they want to do it themselves. However, many people are ignoring the fact that we have already been introduced to AJAX in many different places. About a year ago Infragistics introduced the LoadOnDemand XML feature for the WebGrid. This used AJAX to load data into the grid, after the initial page load occurred. As another current example, Microsoft created a Callback interface in ASP.NET 2.0 which is a serverside wrapper around AJAX. However, it seems that many people don't recognize these as "AJAX" features, because they were created before the name existed. Microsoft is now working on ATLAS, and is catching flack for being late into the AJAX game eventhough the VS2005 callback feature was released last year, in beta form.
Now back to the dangers of buzz words. It is almost too easy to talk about AJAX now. It seems that everyone knows what it is, and everyone talks about it. However, you'll find that not everyone has the same definition of what AJAX is. Another problem I am starting to see is that everyone wants to use AJAX, even where it doesn't fit. AJAX is not a one size fits all solution, and is not intended to be used everywhere. Be careful where you use asynchronous javascript, and remember that a customer’s connection to the web might occasionally drop out. Because of this, I would recommend only using AJAX when necessary, and provide as much functionality on the client as possible, with out depending on a connection to the server. If you have a Grid with 50 rows, there should be no need to use AJAX. Bump that number up to 500, and now we're entering the AJAX realm.
In short, AJAX is going to have a huge impact on the advancement of Web Applications. It wouldn't have reached the level of adoption it has today without the easy to remember buzz word. But be careful not to be lured into a bad design, just to appease those who want to start using the "Made with AJAX" stamp.