The original Struts project revolutionized
Java web development and its rapid adoption resulted in the thousands
of Struts-based applications deployed worldwide. Keeping pace with new
ideas and trends, Apache Struts 2 has emerged as the product of a
merger between the Apache Struts and OpenSymphony WebWork projects,
united in their goal to develop an easy-to-use yet feature-rich
framework. Struts 2 represents a revolution in design and ease of use
when compared to classic Struts. It adds exciting and powerful features

More and more Web sites are being rewritten as Ajax applications; even traditional desktop software is rapidly moving to the Web via Ajax. But, all too often, this transition is being made with reckless disregard for security. If Ajax applications aren’t designed and coded properly, they can be susceptible to far more dangerous security vulnerabilities than conventional Web or desktop software. Ajax developers desperately need guidance on securing their applications: knowledge that’s been virtually impossible to find, until now.

The practicing programmer's DEITEL® guide to AJAX, Rich Internet Applications, and web-application development

This book applies the Deitel signature live-code approach to teaching Web 2.0 application development. The book presents concepts in the context of more than 180 fully tested programs (18,000+ lines of code), complete with syntax shading, detailed descriptions, and sample outputs. It features hundreds of tips that will help you build robust applications.

Supercharge Your Sites with Ajax Right Now…No Scripting Expertise Needed!

You’ve heard how great Ajax is–how it can help make your Web sites more usable, more interactive, more responsive, more successful. Ajax Construction Kit lets you put Ajax to work right now, even if you’ve never written a script! Just learn a few essentials, check out a few examples, then run the live CD and discover all the plug-and-play code you need to hit the ground running. Ajax Construction Kit’s built-in applications work right out of the box.

The practicing programmer's DEITEL® guide to AJAX, Rich Internet Applications, and web-application development.

This book applies the Deitel signature live-code approach to teaching Web 2.0 application development. The book presents concepts in the context of more than 180 fully tested programs (18,000+ lines of code), complete with syntax shading, detailed descriptions, and sample outputs. It features hundreds of tips that will help you build robust applications.

Need to learn JavaScript fast? This best-selling reference's visual format and step-by-step, task-based instructions will have you up and running with JavaScript in no time. In this completely updated edition of our best-selling guide to JavaScript, leading Web and computing experts Tom Negrino and Dori Smith use crystal-clear instructions and friendly prose to introduce you to all of today's JavaScript essentials.

Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (Ajax) is a web technique used to transfer data between a browser and server asynchronously without posting the web page to the server. "Asynchronously" implies that the processing of the web page continues while the Ajax request is sent to the server and a response is received from the server. The web page, or section(s) of the web page, is refreshed with the Ajax response without reposting the web page. Ajax has the following advantages over non-Ajax web applications.

Ch 1.  Greg Murray - Servlet Specification/Ajax Lead
Ajax 101 and Java technology alignmentz

Ch 2.  Alex Russell - Dojo Toolkit Project Lead<
Using the open source JavaScript Dojo toolkit

Ch 3. Dion Almaer - Ajaxian.com Founder
Developer adoption and future Ajax trends

Ch 4. Tor Norbye - Senior Staff Engineer, Java Studio Creator
Get started with Sun Java Studio Creator and Ajax

Ajax stands for Asynchronous JavaScript and XML. In a nutshell, it is the use of the nonstandard XMLHttpRequest object to communicate with server-side scripts. It can send as well as receive information in a variety of formats, including XML, HTML, and even text files. Ajax’s most appealing characteristic, however, is its “asynchronous” nature, which means it can do all of this without having to refresh the page. This allows you to update portions of a page based upon user events.

The two features in question are that you can:

Gmail, GoogleSuggest, and GoogleMap opened the eyes for millions of netizens to a "new" Web: a smarter, more responsive, and more interactive Web that does not employ a foolhardy "click, wait, and refresh" approach. For the first time, the vast majority realize the Web can be much better than what they have assumed.