Ajax’s Future Lies in the Browser

Since Ajax was introduced to the public, there was little to no doubt among developers that this would be the future of our online experience. Even with the daunting task of learning JavaScript up to an advanced stage and all the security risk, developers are more than willing to dip themselves into this web development technique.

The early forms of Ajax based websites were proven to be too challenging for regular users to maintain when they were launched in 2006. But two years later, an Ajax based application is a welcome addition to regular users. With stronger connection as well as powerful computers, users can easily access Ajax based websites.

What is even remarkable is the assistance that was given to the developers by large internet companies. Frameworks were made so that developers are able to build an Ajax based website even without prior knowledge of JavaScript. Whether Java, PHP and even C++, developers can use their present knowledge and use it with a framework and end up with an Ajax based website.

Further push from Ajax however has revealed the number one problem for developers: how to get over the browser limitation. Even though Ajax is a revolutionary web development technique, it cannot topple the idea of a web browser. This simple application that is used for more than 25 years now has been the stage for different type of web development.

Ajax can be easily loaded in the browser however when you further push the application, you are leaving the basic functions of a browser namely, the back and the bookmark features of a browser. In the future, we may be able to have a browser that does not have these functions but we cannot imagine going online without these functions. That is why the future of Ajax is not on the desktop or on the applications.

More than a year ago, Ajax has already conquered this scene through desktop simple desktop applications and widgets. When Vista and iPhone were launched, the power of native Ajax has become clearer as more and more users chose to use this interface…or at least with iPhone only since Vista were unfortunately forced to us by Microsoft. But still, the ability to handle widgets from Yahoo and Google has proven that Ajax when run as an application without the browser is a very powerful.

Since Ajax has already conquered that scene, the future of Ajax now lies on the developers’ ability to launch better and stronger applications online through the browsers. When developers were first pushed to the wall because of the limitation of browser, they used to blame the browser itself but today they acknowledge that browser is still a stage that could accommodate anything that Ajax requires it to do.

Changes on the browser, however, were already initialized. Apple’s browser Opera have gone through great lengths in showing the power of their browser. Developer friendly Mozilla has also released a couple of codes such as Iron Monkey and Screaming Monkey so that the third major release of the browser will be better than ever. IE on the other hand is also reportedly leaning towards compatibility so that developers will no longer have to think of browsers when they build an Ajax based website.