Understanding web development
Developing for the web is developing with Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).
Understanding HTTP
To communicate with a web server, the client, also known as the user agent, makes calls over the network using HTTP. As such, HTTP is the technical underpinning of the web. So, when we talk about web applications or web services, we mean that they use HTTP to communicate between a client (often a web browser) and a server.
A client makes an HTTP request for a resource, such as a page, uniquely identified by a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), and the server sends back an HTTP response, as shown in the following diagram:
Figure 15.1: An HTTP request and response
You can use Google Chrome and other browsers to record requests and responses.
Good Practice: Google Chrome is available on more operating systems than any other browser, and it has powerful, built-in developer tools, so it is a good first choice of browser for testing...
