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The Common Gateway Interface (CGI) is a standard for interfacing external applications with information servers, including Web servers. A CGI program, unlike a normal HTML page, is executed in real-time, so that it can output dynamic information.
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Key
Points - CGI
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 Support
with most hosting plans |
| Easy
to learn |
| Inflexible |
The common gateway interface provides a consistent way for data to be passed from the user's request to the application program and back to the user. This means that the person who writes the application program can makes sure it gets used no matter which operating system the server uses (PC, Macintosh, UNIX, OS/390, or others). It's simply a basic way for information to be passed from the Web server about your request to the application program and back again.
Because the interface is consistent, a programmer can write a CGI application in a number of different languages. The most popular languages for CGI applications are: C, C++, Java, JavaScript, REXX, and Perl.
Many CGI scripts are available freely on the web.
Resources For CGI
TheCGISite.com
- An excellent collection of CGI resources
The
CGI Resource Index - 1000's of CGI resources
CGI-World.com
- Large collection of CGI resources
