- XML, plain text, JavaScript or HTML - it is necessary to use what type of returned value?
Understandably, that the symbol 'X' in a word "AJAX" means "XML", but admirers AJAX have quickly paid attention, that, in essence, anything in AJAX does not prevent to use other types of target data sets: JavaScript, HTML or plain text.
* XML - web-services and AJAX, apparently, are created the friend for the friend. You can use client API c for loading and the analysis of the XML-given from the web-service supporting architecture REST (Representational State Transfer). (However have in view of, that for some web-services basing architecture SOAP, the returned data can be big enough and complex{difficult} and, thus, not suit technology AJAX).
* Plain Text - the text generated by the server can be inserted into the document or is analysed by the application - client.
* JavaScript - this variant is expansion of the previous variant plain text with that only exception, that the server returns a fragment of script JavaScript, including the announcement of objects JavaScript. Using JavaScript-function eval (), you can then create this object on the party{side} of the client. JSON which represents the specification on data exchange on the basis of JavaScript-objects, it is necessary on such technics{technical equipment}.
* HTML - inclusion of the HTML-fragment generated by the server directly in the web-document usually is rather effective AJAX-technics. However, it happens to save inconveniently conformity between a HTML-code, created on the server, and that, that will be shown in a browser of the client.
Mashup is the popular term designating creation of completely new web-application by association of the data from various web-services and anothers online ON. A good example mashup - housingmaps.com which evidently unites announcements on habitation about craiglist.org and geographical maps with maps.google.com.

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