What are Active Server Pages (asp)?
These are components that allow web developers to
create server-side scripted templates that generate
dynamic, interactive web server applications. By embedding
special programatic codes in standard HTML pages, a
user can access data in a database, interact with page
objects such as Active-X or Java components, or create
other types of dynamic output. The HTML output by an
Active Server Page is totally browser independent which
means that it can be read equally well by Microsoft
Explorer, Netscape Navigator, or most other browsers.
ASP make it easy for a developer to create everything
from a website that is customized to a viewers tastes,
to a complex database application that may access legacy
data from a mainframe.
A very simple example of ASP:
<HTML>
<HEAD>
<TITLE>Sample Web Page</TITLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY>
<P>
Hello <%= Request.ServerVariables("REMOTE_USER")
%>
The time here is <%= now %>
Your browser is <% = Request.ServerVariables("http_user_agent")
%>
</BODY></HTML>
Are Active Server Pages also CGI?
Yes and no (don't you love straight answers). Active
Server Pages and CGI scripts do similar things - namely
create dynamic output on a web page or react to form
input. However, Active Server Pages run in the same
process as the server, and they are multi-threaded.
All this leads to faster speeds than CGI scripts can
achieve and the ability to handle large numbers of users.
Do I need any special software?
No. Since Active Server Pages (ASP) integrate their
special coding with normal HTML codes, any standard
web authoring tool that allows editing of HTML can be
used. However, if you wish to integrate ActiveX controls
with your ASP, then you will need an appropriate development
environment such as Visual Basic or Visual C++.
Are Active Server Pages secure?
Yes. They can not cause security breaches with a browser
on their own, however, malicious Java or ActiveX apps
can be embedded in them just like they can be embedded
in ordinary HTML pages. At the server end, individual
ASPs can be protected on a per user basis.
What databases can I use with Active Server Pages?
You can use any ODBC-compliant database such as FoxPro,
Access, Paradox, Microsoft SQL Server, etc.
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