Scripting and Applications - Web Standards: Mastering HTML5, CSS3, and XML - page 223

Ruby
Ruby is a general-purpose, dynamic, and reflective object-oriented programming language. One of the most common
Ruby implementations is the open source web application framework called Ruby on Rails . The major documentation
of Ruby includes the Ruby Core Reference [57], the Ruby Standard Library Reference [58], the Ruby C API Reference [59],
and the document on Rails Searchable APIs [60].
SSJS
Although JavaScript is used primarily on the client side, it has server-side implementations as well. Server-side
JavaScript (SSJS) was first implemented in 1996 in the Netscape Enterprise Server 2.0 and Netscape LiveWire. The
common specifications for SSJS development are provided by the CommonJS community [61]. The Server-Side
JavaScript Google Group makes efforts to create cross-platform SSJS standard APIs [62].
Combinations of Client-Side and Server-Side Technologies
Not all programming environments are purely client-side or server-side technologies. For example, the Google Web
Toolkit has tools for programming JavaScript front-end applications in Java. Ajax applications and rich Internet
applications can be developed in Python using the development tool and framework Pyjamas . An open source
platform for developing rich Internet applications with client-side functionality and server-side processing is Te r s u s .
Database Technologies
A large share of server-side applications and services rely on data stored in databases. One of the most commonly
used databases on the Web is the cross-platform relational database management system MySQL [63]. It is considered
as a de facto standard and also used by the highest-traffic web sites in the world. Although it is very popular, languages
such Ruby and Python often apply database servers other than MySQL. Some other frequently used database
technologies on the Web are Apache Derby [64], IBM DB2 [65], Firebird [66], Microsoft SQL Server [67], Oracle [68],
PostgreSQL [69], SQLite [70], and Sybase [71].
Alternate Content and Fallback Mechanism for Scripts
In web site standardization, it is vital to provide alternate content for scripts and also design web documents for user
agents that do not support scripting. You can provide the alternate content by using the noscript element. A script is
not executed, and user agents render the content of noscript elements only if the browser configuration eliminates
scripting or in rare cases when the scripting language used in the script element is not supported. Browsers without
client-side scripting support must render the contents of noscript elements.
For example, if dynamically created data is provided by the script element, a direct link to the resource can be
used if scripting is not supported (Listing 6-52).
Listing 6-52. Useful Alternate Content
<noscript>
<p><a href="http://example.com/news/">Latest News</a></p>
</noscript>