Free Microsoft extensions will help .net
developers
What is it?
Atlas is the set of free
extensions Microsoft has added to Active Server Pages (ASP.net) to
provide Ajax (Asynchronous Javascript and XML) development
functionality. Ajax is an approach to web development that aims to
minimise response time by enabling small amounts of data to be
exchanged with the server asynchronously, instead of forcing the
user to wait while whole pages are reloaded.
Ajax techniques are also intended, ultimately, to create web
application graphical users interfaces as richly functional as
desktop GUIs.
Atlas includes server-side as well as client-side components. It
integrates client script libraries with the ASP.net 2.0
server-based development framework, and is fully integrated with
server-based services.
Described as “Ajax in Microsoft clothing”, Atlas is not confined to
ASP.net development, and adapts to any browser and any back-end
data provider.
Microsoft claims that Atlas is both simpler and richer than
Ajax, because it provides a consistent set of application program
interfaces for coding in Javascript, and because Javascript does
not offer the range of object-oriented, type-safe features that
.net developers can use.
Essentially, Atlas provides the same type of development platform
for client-based web pages that ASP.net offers for server-based
pages. Significant portions of an application’s processing can be
moved to the client, while retaining the ability to communicate
with the server in the background. Atlas also includes a network
stack to simplify server connectivity and access to web
services.
Where did it originate?
Microsoft
originally developed technologies similar to Ajax with Remote
Scripting in the late 1990s, and Internet Explorer’s developers
have long been able to make background requests to a server from a
client web page using the XML object.
However, being an Active X control, this was not suitable for
applications supporting multiple browsers.
What is it for?
Atlas is an Ajax-type platform fully integrated with the ASP.net
and IIS application models, and with Visual Web Developer and
Visual Studio. Unlike Ajax, application tasks can run either on the
client or server as appropriate. Atlas server controls resemble
ASP.net server controls – buttons, labels, options, text boxes,
check boxes, hyperlinks, and validation controls – but emit Atlas
client script.
What makes it special?
Client code can be created using object-oriented features familiar
from the .net framework. The declarative model for client
development is similar to the declarative syntax for ASP.net server
controls. Additional client side features can be added to existing
applications.
How difficult is it to master?
Atlas should present no challenges to .net developers, and makes
working with Javascript easier for those unfamiliar with it.
What systems does it run on?
According to Scott Guthrie, manager of Microsoft’s web platform and
tools team, “The Atlas Client Script Framework will work on all
modern browsers and with any web server.” It includes a browser
compatibility layer to address scripting behaviour differences
between browsers.
What is coming up?
Microsoft has given a
couple of community technology previews for Atlas, and given it a
Go Live! licence so developers can work with it if they choose
though, without support from Microsoft.