PHP On-The-Fly!
By Dennis Pallett2005-05-26
How does it work?
If you want to execute a PHP script, you need to reload a page, submit a form, or something similar. Basically, a new connection to the server needs to be opened, and this means that the browser goes to a new page, losing the previous page. For a long while now, web developers have been using tricks to get around this, like using a 1x1 iframe, where a new PHP page is loaded, but this is far from ideal.
Now, there is a new way of executing a PHP script without having to reload the page. The basis behind this new way is a JavaScript component called the XML HTTP Request Object. See http://jibbering.com/2002/4/httprequest.html for more information about the component. It is supported in all major browsers (Internet Explorer 5.5+, Safari, Mozilla/Firefox and Opera 7.6+).
With this object and some custom JavaScript functions, you can create some rather impressive PHP applications. Let's look at a first example, which dynamically updates the date/time.
Tutorial Pages:
» Introduction
» How does it work?
» Example 1
» Example 2
» Any Disadvantages...?
» Conclusion
