I freaking hate AJAX

There was a time when I was GLAD javascript was gettin used less and less as a core script langugage. It was just so darn confusing and it was so browser dependent. But it seems these new fangled AJAX and the hype around it is gonna make it ever so popular again. AJAX isnt even new but merely a collection of exisitng technologies yet the marketing put them like its sum new toy.

No it isn't. Use a framework which uses AJAX widgets, not just HTML widgets. You need something like tapestry where you don't write any javascript at all, YOU PLACE AND IMPLEMENT WIDGETS. Sadly Ruby on Rails (being the shit eating POS it is) lacks this brilliant idea of the AJAX Widgets, Instead they give you ways
of sticking code onto boring HTML forms.
So instead of javascript and html, you code with widgets.