One of the problems when using AJAX in an application is that we cannot bookmark pages and we cannot use browser’s back button. I have developed lot of application based on Ajax and faced this problem myself.
This problem exists even in Gmail , Google Maps etc.
I came across a solution which can solve bookmarking and back button problem. The article listed on ONJava.com demonstrates the way in which this problem can be solved.
They have used RSH (Really Simple History framework) to solve this problem.
The crux of the solution is
- Hidden HTML form is used to allow for a large transient session cache of client-side information; this cache is robust against navigation to and away from the page.
- A combination of hyperlink anchors and hidden iframes is used to intercept and record browser history events, tying into the back and forward buttons. Both techniques are wrapped with a simple JavaScript library to ease development.
What is RSH ?
The Really Simple History (RSH) framework makes it easy for AJAX applications to incorporate bookmarking and back and button support. By default, AJAX systems are not bookmarkable, nor can they recover from the user pressing the browser’s back and forward buttons. The RSH library makes it possible to handle both cases.
In addition, RSH provides a framework to cache transient session information that persists after a user leaves the web page. This cache is used by the RSH framework to help with history issues, but can also be used by your own applications to improve application performance. The cache is linked to a single instance of the web page, and will disappear when the user closes their browser or clear their browser’s cache.
RSH works on Internet Explorer 6+ and Gecko-based browsers, like Firefox. Safari is not supported.
