Please tell me what do you think about that combination of OsCommerce and Ajax? I wonder about combination of functionality, design and SEO on this site. OsCommerce feat. Ajax Website
The referenced page exhibits all that is bad in the use of javascript. The html is neither well structured nor semantic. There are more than 500 syntax errors on that page. Granted, most are the same error repeated time and again, but there is no excuse for syntax errors. The author obviously does not understand the concept of progressive enhancement. The javascript is entwined with the html, even replacing the functionality of the html, so that the page is unusable without it. For an E-commerce site, that is an unforgivable sin. A further negative is that search bots don't do javascript and won't index any of the interior pages of the site. The table layout does not do well in portable, small screen devices, though it isn't as bad as many sites. Given the small font size, a reasonable two step increase causes clipped overflow; not a good thing for a site trying to sell something. All in all, a poor example of the use of javascript and AJAX. It's too easy to do it right to get it this wrong. cheers, gary
Thanks for such a professional critics. Now we see all our errors and we reconstruct our website for now. So your advices and critics is very useful for us. In our new project we use Ajax and Java script very few, so you'll have an opportunity to review it after we finish. I'd be very pleased to here your review again, and i hope it'll be more pozitive. We willl work! Thanks for your professional view!
AJAX and SEO don't usually go hand in hand. I try to use AJAX only in situations where I want to provide some service/functionality that can be done in the background while the user continues to do something else... like email a page... or add a page as a favorite... those are basic tasks that can be done in the background (ie - no need to leave the current page).
We realyy understood that. In our new project we want to use Ajax only in adding to cart option and maybe some mere few items.. Yes Ajax is only functionallity, like Gmail for example. gmail shouldn't think about page rank or SEO..it should think about usability and functionality..
Using javascript and the AJAX mashup doesn't have to negatively affect usability, accessibility nor seo. The trouble lies where developers use the javascript instead of html functionality. A properly designed page works just fine without the script. Those users who choose to enable javascript can enjoy an enhanced experience. From the developers' view, this separation of structure and behavior provides the advantage of orthogonality. The point of interaction between script and structure is minimal. The script guys can play with their scripts without breaking the structure, and the html/css guys can restructure things without breaking the scripts. Believe me, development is much easier and much faster if one thing doesn't break the other. cheers, gary