CGI Programming Using Perl

Course Description

This course bridges the gap between using HTML to create static Web pages and using Perl CGI scripts to create dynamic Web pages. The course emphasizes using the Perl 5 CGI library routines to process HTML forms by providing extensive working examples and by students writing applications to illustrate the concepts presented. This course is not intended to be a substitute for a Perl programming course.
3 days
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Prerequisites

Familiarity with HTML forms. Programming experience is required. Basic UNIX skills and the ability to use VI or a basic text editor are also required.

Course Introduction

Course Objectives
Course Overview
Suggested References

The Internet and the Web

TCP/IP and Ports
DNS vs. Hosts Files
Servers and Clients
Client/Server Protocols

Browsers and Servers

URLs
WEB Browsers and Servers
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol
HTTP Requests and Responses
HTTP Headers
HTTP Requests
Mime Types

Introduction to CGI

HTML Tag Structure
HTML Document Structure
URLs and CGI
CGI Programs
Running and Debugging from the Command Line
Running and Debugging from a Browser
Handling an HTML Form with CGI
Generating HTML

CGI and Perl

Perl
Perl Programs
Why Use CGI.pm (and Where is It?)
Running and Debugging from the Command Line
Generating HTML with CGI.pm
Running and Debugging from a Browser

Generating HTML

Introduction to CGI.pm
How to use CGI.pm's Online Documentation
CGI.pm's Rules for General HTML Tags
CGI.pm's Rules for HTML Form Tags
Named vs. Positional Parameters in CGI.pm

Generating Forms

General Structure of HTML Forms
Form Element Tags
Pushbuttons
Radiobuttons
Checkboxes
Popups and Listboxes
Textfields, Passwords, and Textareas

CGI Data Flow Architecture

URL Encoding and Decoding
Data Flow between Browsers and Servers
GET vs. POST
Which to Use?
CGI Environment Variables
Accessing CGI's Environment Variables

Processing Form Data

Static Forms
Dynamic Forms
Controlling Flow with User Input
Accessing Form Data Using CGI.pm
The param Method of CGI.pm
Sticky Widgets
Validating Input from the Browser
Command Line Debugging

Client-Side Statefulness

Stateful vs Stateless
Why use Stateful CGI Applications?
Program to Program Interaction
Stateful Access with Hidden Fields
Multiple Forms and Hidden Fields
Stateful Access with Netscape Cookies
Using Cookies with CGI.pm
Cookie Management

Database Access

Server-Side Statefulness
Flat-File Databases
Structuring Text Data
File Permissions and Flat-File Databases
Perl's DBM Interface
Perl's DBI/DBD Interface
Issues with Statefulness

Additional Web Programming

Extra Path Information
Frames
Server Side Includes (SSI)
The exec command
A Page Hit Counter Using SSI
Animation Description
Netscape's Server Push
Client Pull
The GD.pm Module

CGI Security Issues

Browser to Server Security Issues
CGI Security Issues
CGI Interaction with the Operating System
Database / File System Overflow
CGI and User Authentication
Perl