Why Arent You Using CGI?

 31 December 18:00   Why Aren t You Using CGI ?

     The actual name CGI acclimated to forward chills up my spine. For years I put it in the too-hard-basket . But like alotof things in life, CGI is not as alarming as it seems. If you accept a CGI agenda on your website and you understand how to FTP files, affairs are you can accept a CGI Software up and active in beneath than 20 minutes.

     CGI (Common Aperture Interface) is not a programming accent but a accepted that allows visitors to collaborate with your website. CGI scripts can be accounting in a amount of altered languages but alotof are accounting in Perl (Practical Abstraction and Advertisement Language).

    This commodity gives you data of 5 chargeless CGI scripts that will do the following:

1. Mail out your Newsletter from your server
2. Track the amount of times your chargeless E-Book is downloaded
3. Rotate banners on your website
4. Create your own auto responders
5. Allow visitors to acclaim your website to accompany

    At the end of this commodity are data of area to download these 5 chargeless scripts. But first, actuality are some basal guidelines on how to configure and install CGI scripts:

    1. CGI programs usually appear in a zip file. Achieve the book and accessible the README file. This certificate will accord you instructions for configuring the program file.

    2. Accessible the program book using a argument editor such as Block (the program book will usually accept the book addendum .cgi but may accept additional extensions such as pl).

    In alotof CGI programs you will accept to configure the afterward 4 items: <dir>

    (a) the aisle to perl

    This is area the perl program resides on your server. The aisle will usually be:

    #!/usr/bin/perl

    but could be:

    #!/usr/local/bin/perl

    If you re borderline what your aisle to perl is, analysis your web host s online chiral or FAQs. If you can t acquisition it there, artlessly ask your web host.

    (b) the aisle to sendmail

    Most CGI programs acquaint you if your visitors accept completed a accurate action, and for that, the program needs to understand area the sendmail program resides on your server. The aisle to your UNIX sendmail program will usually be: /usr/sbin/sendmail

    But it could aswell be something like this:

    /usr/lib/sendmail

    Again, analysis the affidavit on your web host s website, or artlessly ask your web host.

    (c) the complete aisle to your CGI agenda

    The complete aisle tells the CGI program absolutely area to acquisition the book (or files) that it needs to open. Unfortunately, the complete aisle to your CGI agenda is not something you will be able to assumption or deduce - it is absolutely approximate and depends absolutely on how the arrangement ambassador at your web host has abstracted your host s harder drive.

    The easiest way to acquisition out your complete aisle is to ask your web host. Addition way is by using telnet - just blazon in pwd (print alive directory) and that should accord you your complete path.

    (d) Your email abode

    This is the abode that the CGI program will use to acquaint you if an activity has been completed. </dir>

    3. Uploading

    Upload the program files to your cgi-bin (or a agenda off your cgi-bin) using ASCII mode. Never use Bifold mode, as this will play calamity with the line-breaks in the script.

    4. Set the Book Permissions using CHMOD

    CHMOD (changing mode) is the appellation for ambience aegis permissions on files. The README book will usually acquaint you the permissions that you charge to set for anniversary file. The Software book will charge to be set to 755. This allows the book s buyer to read, write, and assassinate the file; anyone abroad can alone apprehend and assassinate it.

    You can set the permissions using telnet, but the easiest way is to use the congenital advantage in your FTP program.

    5. Calling the Software

    Now that you ve configured the script, uploaded it and set the permissions, it s time to try it out! You do this by calling the Software using a URL in an HTML document. This is what the URL for calling your Software will commonly attending like:

     yourdomain.com/cgi-bin/script.cgi

    Again, the README book should accept specific instructions on how to alarm the script. In addition, alotof CGI programs are accompanied by a web page that contains the anatomy your visitors would use to alarm the script.

    And now actuality are the data of the 5 chargeless CGI scripts I mentioned earlier:

    Subscribe Me Lite

    Subscribe Me Lite is a program that allows prospects/customers to automatically subscribe and/or unsubscribe themselves from your commitment list. It has a congenital accumulation commitment anatomy for sending out your newsletter or updates.

    More Information: cgiscriptcenter.com/subscribe/index2.html

    Rob s Book Tracker

    Rob s Book Tracker is a perl Software that counts book downloads or click-thrus to any file. Actual advantageous if you wish to understand how some humans are downloading your chargeless E-Book.

    More Information: robplanet.com/cgi/tracker/

    AdRotate Pro

    AdRotate Pro is an ad circling program that s simple to bureaucracy and simple to use. Appearance cover absolute rotations, accomplishment by date, angle or clicks, absence ads for if all ads are expired, and chump reports.

    More Information: vanbrunt.com/adrotate/

    MasterRecommend

    This Software allows visitors to acclaim your website to a acquaintance by sending an email, after abrogation your website. The program will aswell forward you a archetype of your company s bulletin (nice to understand what your visitors anticipate about your website).

    More Information: willmaster.com/master/recommend/MasterRecommendmanual.html

    Master Auto-Responder

    This is a accepted auto-responder program. The Software allows you to set the "From:" and "Subject:" curve for your auto-response.You can aswell accept to accept a archetype of anniversary email that the auto-responder receives.

    More Information: mastercgi.com/howtoinfo/howautoresponderswork.shtml

    If you charge added advice installing your CGI scripts, actuality are two accomplished chargeless tutorials:

• spider-food.net/install-a-cgi-script.html
• stefan-pettersson.nu/scripts/tutorials/installcgi.html

    (c) 2001 by Michael Southon