// Gets the browser specific XmlHttpRequest Object
function getXmlHttpRequestObject() 
{
    if (window.XMLHttpRequest)
    {
	return new XMLHttpRequest(); //Not IE
    } 
    else if(window.ActiveXObject)
    {
	return new ActiveXObject("Microsoft.XMLHTTP"); //IE
    } else
    {
	alert("Your browser doesn't support the XmlHttpRequest object.\nThe shopping cart won't work.");
	return NULL;
    }
}