Archive for June, 2006
Ajax Made Easy with Script.aculo.us
As a web developer, I constantly have to stay current with new design trends. A web design often makes or breaks a website, and definately creates the identity of a page. Web 2.0 has been plagued with design trends such as bright colors, oversized fonts, and rounded shapes (and even TekMonkey.org implements a lot of Web 2.0 design trends).
Beyond web design, Web 2.0 sites enforce new web development techniques and technologies. Most notably, Asychronous JavaScript and XML (Ajax). Ajax is not a technology in itself, but rather an implementation of JavaScript and XML to provide increased interactivity and site enhancement.
I’ve recently been experimenting with Ajax, and I’ve implemented script.aculo.us in TekMonkey.org v3.0.
Script.aculo.us is a JavaScript library, built on the Prototype JavaScript Framework. Script.aculo.us allows web developers to apply dynamic visual effects to their websites. Countless Web 2.0 services already employ script.aculo.us and Prototype in their websites to allow greater user interaction. Beyond visual effects, script.aculo.us allows web developers to create interactive drag-and-drop interfaces and controls, as demonstrated on script.aculo.us’ demo page.
In this, the third major design version of TekMonkey.org, I’ve used one of script.aculo.us’ many visual effects to create the “open/close” buttons that allow users to interact with each of the three divisions of the pages. After importing the required .js file, I simply added an onclick parameter to a link, which points to a function in the .js file. The one line is all that is needed to get script.aculo.us working on a website.
Simply put, script.aculo.us is the easiest method to adding a bit of Ajax to any website. It’s easy to implement, and produces great results.
While it’s not clear how long the Web 2.0 phenomenon will last, it is clear that Ajax is the flavor of the year for web developers. Implementing script.aculo.us on your website, or any type of Ajax functionality for that matter, will surely turn a few heads and perhaps allow you to grab a little bit of the Web 2.0 spotlight for yourself.
Working with WordPress
WordPress is an amazing piece of blogging software. There are almost too many options!
What’s even more difficult is building a WordPress theme, which (if you couldn’t already tell) I’m in the process of doing right now. It’s a pain.
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