I want to make a site that auto updates, live, by pulling numbers from a mysql database. How do I do this?
Well, just create a backend with php/asp and use the set time out function to crap the newest information on a time basis.
that's pretty much what ajax is for..You have a javascript that uses xmlhttprequest (or similar for older browsers) that loads a server-side file (whatever server-side language you use) which returns an XML response or similar, the javascript then parses this response and displays the data appropriately. This process can be repeated at intervals using setTimeOUt (as mentioned above) to load new data without any user interaction and without the page refreshing.
Yes you can. Using the xmlhttprequest like camjohnson95 wrote is the best way to do that. Another way you could do it is with a hidden IFrame.
Another thing. if you use ASP.NET, it has built in ajax controls such as UpdatePanel and Timers which make the process much easier.