"Pure" HTML + Javascript + Ajax dynamic web application programming.

Hi guys,

I'm absolutely not an expert web developer... so you have to forgive me if this question is a totally fool question.

I was wondering if a "pure" HTML + Javascript programming of a dynamic web application is possible, without relying on a particular server-side technology.

I mean, all documents and tutorial I've read on the topic assume that dynamic web pages - with "dynamic", I mean to say a page which content is filled by information achieved via a server - are actually a mix between HTML, javascript and parts written in some appserver specific Language (JSP, ASP.NET, PHP for example).

Would it be possible to write all web GUI pages only with html + javascript and send / retrieve data to a web server via Ajax ? This way one could achieve a "server technology agnostic " web application.

Thank you for your suggestions.

It is possible, although you'd need to be very proficient in JavaScript (and/or use some powerful JS libraries). This model of web app development is part of the reason why REST WS have become so popular.

Well, as previous stated I'm far to be a good javascript programmer... anyway I think that using JavaScript and Html and powerful frameworks (like jquery for example), as you suggested to do, this approach may be successful. It requires to study and understand how proficiently use html, javascript and so on but this knowledge is very valuable, since you can reuse it practically everywhere... no matter what your webserver or web application server may be.

About RESTful webservices,I gave them only a cursory glance.. mainly I was interested how Java EE approached to them. At first sight I was puzzled because as far as I understood, they are focused on addressing entities more than calling services, i.e execute CRUD operations on entities like customers, orders, and so on... they are far simpler than old SOAP web services... but I had the feelings they're not so as general purpose as JAX-WS webservices...

This is, of course, a total layman's opinion... what do you think about it ?

I wouldn't say that, they're just as service-oriented as SOAP WS. Don't get too hung up on the entity concept, it's not core to JAX-RS, and what you need to know about it is pretty easy to pick up. (By the way, HTTP itself is deeply rooted in the same entity concept, and you don't spend much time thinking about entities when writing web apps, do you? Read the HTTP spec if you don't believe it. :-) )

It is true that SOAP and its attendant standards (collectively referred to as WS-*) provide a number of features that REST doesn't, starting with independence of any transport protocol (REST is wedded to HTTP), but for the purposes you're asking about those get more in the way than they help.

Claude Moore wrote:Would it be possible to write all web GUI pages only with html + javascript and send / retrieve data to a web server via Ajax ? This way one could achieve a "server technology agnostic " web application.

Absolutely. That's what frameworks such as AngularJS and Ember.js are all about.

But be aware that a pretty high proficiency with JavaScript, especially as a functional language, is necessary to use these types of frameworks.

And, as Ulf has already stated, RESTful web services are not limited to CRUD-type operations.

Ulf, Bear,

thanks very much for your suggestions... I think I have a lot to study and work about....

Good question. Thanks for asking, Claude. I've wanted to know if this were possible.

Chris Disilva wrote:Good question. Thanks for asking, Claude. I've wanted to know if this were possible.

Glad that this topic has been useful