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To access the contents, click the chapter and section titles.
Platinum Edition Using HTML 4, XML, and Java 1.2
(Publisher: Macmillan Computer Publishing)
Author(s): Eric Ladd
ISBN: 078971759x
Publication Date: 11/01/98
PHP
 | PHP (originally called PHP/FI) was developed by Rasmus Lerdorf, who needed to create a script that enabled him to log visitors to his page. The script replaced a few other smaller ones that were creating a load on Lerdorf’s system. This script became PHP, which is an acronym for Lerdorf’s Personal Home Page tools. Lerdorf later wrote a script that enabled him to embed commands within an HTML document to access a SQL database. PHP grew into a small language that enables developers to add commands within their HTML pages instead of running multiple smaller scripts to do the same thing. PHP is actually a CGI program written in C that can be compiled to work on any UNIX or NT system. The embedded commands are parsed by the PHP script, which then prints the results through another HTML document. PHP is browser independent because the script is processed through the PHP executable that is on the server. For those using Apache, a module is provided that enables you to parse PHP embedded HTML files without having to directly call the PHP parser.
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PHP can be used to integrate MySQL along with Oracle, Sybase, mSQL, Postgres95, and on any database using ODBC on NT to create dynamic HTML documents. It’s fairly easy to use and quite versatile.
 | ON THE WEB
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| http://www.php.net/ Visit this site for more information on PHP, which includes examples of how PHP can be used.
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ColdFusion
Allaire created ColdFusion as a system that enables you to write scripts within an HTML document. ColdFusion, a database interface, processes the scripts and then returns the information within the HTML written in the script. Allaire wrote ColdFusion to work with just about every Web server available for Windows NT and to integrate with just about every SQL engine using ODBC.
ColdFusion works by processing a form, created by you, that sends a request to the Web server. The server starts ColdFusion and sends the information to ColdFusion that is used to call a template file. After reading the information that the visitor entered, ColdFusion processes that information according to the template’s instructions. It returns an automatically generated HTML document to the server and then returns the document to the visitor.
- • See “Using ColdFusion” for more information on using ColdFusion, p. 879.
W3-mSQL
 | W3-mSQL was created by David Hughes, the creator of mSQL, to simplify accessing an mSQL database from within your Web pages. It works as a CGI script that your Web pages go through to be parsed. The script reads your HTML document, performs any queries required, and sends the result back out to the server to the visitor. W3-mSQL is much like PHP/FI, but on a smaller scale. W3-mSQL makes it easy for you to create Web documents that contain information based on what is in your database.
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A sample bookmarks script and database dump is included within the W3-mSQL archive.
MsqlPerl
 | MsqlPerl is a Perl interface to the mSQL database server. Written by Andreas Koenig, it utilizes the mSQL API and enables you to create CGI scripts in Perl, complete with all the SQL commands available to mSQL.
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MsqlJava
MsqlJava is an API that enables you to create applets that can access an mSQL database server. The package has been compiled with the Java Development Kit version 1 and tested using Netscape 3.
Microsoft’s Active Server Pages
Active Server Pages (ASP) enables you to produce dynamic content with the use of ActiveX on the server (MS Internet Information Server). Commonly, VBScript is used to write ASP applications, but JScript and PerlScript are also used. Using VBScript, you can easily write applications that access a database, enabling you to provide dynamic content based on the information in the database.
- • For more information, see “Active Server Pages and VBScript,” p. 835.
WDB
 | WDB is a suite of Perl scripts that helps you create applications enabling you to integrate SQL databases with the World Wide Web. WDB provides support for Sybase, Informix, and mSQL databases, but it has been used with other database products as well.
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