Ajax, XSLT and SVG: Displaying ATLAS conditions data with new web technologies

The combination of three relatively recent technologies is described which allows an easy path from database retrieval to interactive web display. SQL queries on an Oracle database can be performed in a manner which directly return an XML description of the result, and Ajax techniques (Asynchronous JavaScript And XML) are used to dynamically inject the data into a web display accompanied by an XSLT transform template which determines how the data will be formatted. By tuning the transform to generate SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics) a direct graphical representation can be produced in the web page while retaining the database data as the XML source, allowing dynamic links to be generated in the web representation, but programmatic use of the data when used from a user application. With the release of the SVG 1.2 Tiny draft specification, the display can also be tailored for display on mobile devices. The technologies are described and a sample application demonstrated, showing conditions data from the ATLAS Semiconductor Tracker.