RIA News Desk

"A release of the AJAX for IBM WebSphere Platform is available for download. The files are packaged as Eclipse plugins, so I was able to install them into Eclipse 3.2 to just view the documentation. (it works with WebSphere Application Server Toolkit also) There are included samples and tutorials, although according to the forum, some samples may require WebSphere Application Server 6.0 or higher in order to properly deploy the EAR (enterprise application archive)." writes Jim Hsu in IBM's official blog.

The Ajax for IBM WebSphere Platform Early Program is an optionally installable product extension for IBM WebSphere Application Server Version 6.1 and WebSphere Application Server Community Edition that offers targeted, incremental new features that can make your Web applications running on WebSphere Application Server easier to use.

Speifically, this Early Program provides application developers with a powerful way of constructing Asynchronous JavaScripted XML (AJAX) applications. AJAX is a Web development technique for creating interactive Web applications. The intent is to make Web pages more responsive by seamlessly exchanging small amounts of data with the server, so that the entire Web page does not have to be reloaded each time you make a change. This technique helps increase the Web page interactivity, speed, and usability. The IBM AJAX features are packaged for ease-of-use in Eclipse 3.2 development environments such as WebSphere Application Server Toolkit (AST).

With AJAX, the interaction model for Web applications is becoming more robust, like desktop applications with continuous interaction and improved usability. Unlike previous rich Web user interface approaches, AJAX applications leverage standard browser features and do not require you to install browser plug-ins.

Specific capabilities include:
* Event-Driven Architecture for AJAX applications through Bayeux (Cometd) Publish/Subscribe mechanism
* Richer, more interactive Web pages (through Dojo Toolkit)
* Limited offline support (through Dojo Toolkit)
* Samples and tutorials for building pure AJAX applications, using WebSphere Application Server products

Functionality delivered in this Early Program release includes:
* Dojo Toolkit
* JSON4J Libraries
* Web Pub Sub Bridge for AJAX
* Sample Simple Storefront
* Sample Plants By WebSphere (AJAX Edition)
* Sample MBean Explore for WebSphere Application Server
* Sample Quote Streamer for WebSphere Application Server