AJAX

AJAX

Overview

This example is the companion code for the Ajax for Beginners tutorial. It shows a minimal AJAX pattern with Lua Server Pages (LSP): the browser sends a small POST request in the background, the server processes the data, and the page updates without a full reload.

Files

• www/index.lsp - Handles both the HTML page and the AJAX requests. The page captures keypresses in the browser, posts the pressed key code back to the same URL, logs the value on the server, and returns JSON for the browser to append to the page.

How to run

Run the example with the Mako Server:

cd AJAX
mako -l::www

For more detail on starting the Mako Server, see the command line video tutorial and the command line options documentation.

After the server starts, open the HTTP URL printed in the Mako console. Type into the input field and watch the data appear in the browser while the server prints the processed values to its console.

How it works

When the page loads, the JavaScript in index.lsp attaches a keypress handler to the text field. Each keypress is URL-encoded and sent back to the same page with fetch(...) as a POST request. The LSP code reads the key field, converts the numeric key code to a printable character when possible, traces the value on the server, and replies with response:json(...). The browser then appends the returned character to the output area.

Packaging for Xedge

This example can be packaged as an Xedge app by creating a ZIP from the app directory, so the app files are at the ZIP root. See Xedge App Deployment for the detailed deployment workflow.

cd www
zip -D -q -u -r -9 ../AJAX.zip .

Upload the generated ZIP with the Xedge App Upload tool.

Notes / Troubleshooting

• This example is intentionally small and focused on the request/response pattern, not on production-grade input handling.
• If you do not see updates in the browser, make sure JavaScript is enabled and confirm that the Mako Server is still running.