More bookshelf fodder coming our way…

When I was at Web Directions South last year, I had the privilege to introduce Jeremy Keith’s session on Hijax. The presentation was one of the highlights of the conference for me, in spite of – or in case because of – the love/hate struggle I’ve had with JavaScript over the years.

The Hijax approach builds on the idea of progressive enhancement. It involves creating accessible web application functionality without JavaScript, and then adding a JavaScript layer that “hijacks” particular clicks and replaces the standards HTTP requests with XMLHttpRequest calls and generally Ajaxy stuff. That way, if JavaScript is not available to the user agent, the application works as intended anyway. But more capable user agents get an enhanced user experience. And everyone is happy.
After Jeremy’s presentation I innocently asked the question “Where can I find more resources? Are you writing a book on this?”. After protesting that the question wasn’t staged, Jeremy revealed that he was – and that book, Bulletproof Ajax, is now finished.

It’s not actually out yet, but you can pre-order, and if you’re keen like me, check out the companion web site with downloadable code samples. The name “Bulletproof” puts the title in the same New Riders series as Dan Cedarholm’s Bulletproof Web Design, another title I own and love.

So congratulations on getting it finished, Jeremy – can’t wait to get my hands on a copy.