Ajax JavaScript libraries enable web development for a number of trendy web design elements you see on your favorite website. Without proper implementation, Ajax can harm performance and frustrate users. This article discusses Ajax and gives you tips before implementing the coding language on your site.

Ajax is a JavaScript library that allows web developers to make asynchronous calls to the web server without refreshing the entire page. The result is that your web viewers are able to read content on your site while Ajax loads dynamic information in the background. Ajax is used in numerous real-world applications and design elements but if it’s implemented incorrectly, it can put a heavy load on your web servers and actually decrease performance. Ajax is used in many trending web design patterns, so developers are integrating the libraries more frequently in internal and external web apps. Here are eight tips for implementing Ajax on your website.

Always Alert the User that Content Is Loading

Ajax loads in the background, so it’s completely invisible to users. Some design elements silently load content without telling the user, but you should always display the “wait” signal when loading a page’s main content. Most third-party Ajax libraries include the animated “wait” icon that most users recognize. You should always show this animated image because loading Ajax does not trigger the browser’s “loading” icon in the browser’s tab. If you don’t display a message that content is loading, the user might think your pages are broken.

Always Load Third-Party Content Using an API

You can’t pull content from a remote server using Ajax. The JavaScript library restricts calls to the current domain. The feature is an issue of security, but some webmasters try to circumvent the restriction and build sites with third-party content from external domains. You should never pull content from a third-party without an API because you leave your user’s information open to snoopers. Instead, pull content from an API. An API encompasses user permissions, security and formatted responses that you can easily parse and display on your site. APIs for companies like Facebook and Twitter are free, but some website companies charge a small fee to make calls on the company server.

Avoid Redirections

Users don’t like redirections without any notice. Google even penalizes sites for “sneaky redirects.” Don’t use Ajax to silently pull content from a server and then redirect to another page with no warning. Always tell the user that he is being redirected to another page first, and then give the user the option to cancel the redirection. Anything that hijacks the browser and forces the user to load pages or content is a bad user experience.

Heavily Test Ajax Pages

Because Ajax loads “a page within a page” using HTML div elements, you can easily miss bugs. Rarely do you get an error code when Ajax fails, so you don’t get a standard server error when your elements don’t load. Since Ajax is JavaScript, the code usually just stops running, and an error is generated if your users use Firebug in Firefox or Chrome’s developer tools. These tools are for debugging JavaScript libraries, so most users aren’t programming savvy enough to check that the error stems from Ajax when your pages don’t load properly. Because Ajax errors are not user friendly, always test Ajax pages heavily to detect any errors before you deploy your pages. Testing includes mobile device functionality, so test your pages across several platforms.

Don’t Forget to Detect Users Blocking JavaScript

JavaScript is a client-side programming language, which means it runs on the user’s browser and local computer rather than the server. JavaScript is used in some malware applications to steal user information and pass it to the hacker’s server. Users unfamiliar with the way JavaScript works sometimes block JavaScript libraries from running on their browsers. This means that your website won’t function in some user browsers. Make sure you use code to detect users who block JavaScript and let them know that your site won’t function properly without the libraries enabled.

Don’t Hijack the Browser’s Back Button

The latest in pushy web marketing is hijacking the browser’s back button using JavaScript. When the user clicks “Back” in the browser, the hijacked functionality sends the user to a local web page with ads or shows the user a popup asking if he really wants to leave the page. The problem was so user unfriendly that search engines such as Google started penalizing site owners for this tactic. Don’t use JavaScript or Ajax to change functionality in a user’s browser. The technique frustrates users, gets your site penalized by search engines and you lose users to competitors.

Add Error Handling to Your Code

Error handling is a coding technique that lets you gracefully handle errors instead of throwing users an ugly server page. For instance, a standard general coding error produces a 500 server error. When the web server detects this error, a general error page is returned that gives users no option except to hit the browser’s back button. Use proper Ajax error handling to display a more customized error for your site and give the user options to send feedback, alert you to the error and continue navigation of your site. Errors are frustrating for users, so it’s important that you give them the ability to navigate through errors without getting trapped on a page with no options.

Use Responsive Techniques Even for Ajax

Web developers know to use responsive web designs when they implement basic content pages, but don’t forget to implement responsive pages when using Ajax. Ajax makes an asynchronous call to the web server, which is much slower on mobile devices because of bandwidth limitations. You might need to find a workaround for Ajax-heavy websites that pull large data sets from a database server. When designing your code for public access, make sure you make Ajax calls that return minimal data sets and streamline them for slower bandwidth speeds.

These eight tips help you streamline Ajax and make your site user friendly. Ajax is a great way to improve performance and usability for your site, but it must be used correctly or it can do more harm than good. Whenever you implement new code or interface elements, always design your code with the user in mind to make the best site for users and search engines.