Dynamic HTML Using Active Server Pages (ASP)

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Dynamic HTML UsingActive Server Pages (ASP)

• Alberto Espinosa
• MIS 45-870

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Static HTML and the HTTP Protocol

• HTTP ? designed as a doc fetching protocol
• 1. User clicks on URL with HTTP protocol
• 2. Browser requests HTML page to web site
• 3. Server finds/sends HTML page to client as is
• 4. Clients browser interprets HTML and presents
  page to user

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Dynamic HTML Overcoming HTTP Shortcomings

• HTML is static text (info) and tags (formatting)
• Corporate information is dynamic
• If info changes ? HTML pages need to change
• How to customize displays for different users?

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Dynamic HTML

• 2 Solutions to Static HTML
• 1. Client side scripting
• Further processing by browser after page is
  received
• 2. Server side scripting
• Prior processing by web server before page is sent

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Client Side Scripting

• Useful for interactive use with user
• Browser needs to support the scripting language
  used
• Most popular JavaScript, VB Script
• Embed scripts in HTML page
• HTML stuff
• ltSCRIPT LANGUAGE JavaScriptgt
• script code
• lt/SCRIPTgt
• More HTML stuff

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Server Side Scripting

• Useful to interact with data stored on the server
  (databases, images, etc.)
• And when centralized processing is needed
• Sever needs to support the scripting language
• Most popular
• CGI ? Perl (Unix)
• ASP ? VB Script or JScript (Windows)

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Server Side Scripting (contd)

• Embedded scripts in HTML page
• HTML code
• lt (marks the beginning of ASP
  script)
• ...
• ASP script code
• ....
• gt (marks the end of ASP script)
• More HTML code
• lt more ASP gt
• Etc.

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Dynamic HTML with ASP

• 1. Client clicks on URL with .asp file
• 2. Web server notices file extension .asp
• Note Only Windows NT IIS web server supports ASP
• 3. Server then processes .asp file
• 4. Server creates a new HTML file
• 5. Contains all original HTML stuff
• 6. Plus processing results from ASP code
• 7. Dynamically formatted as HTML
• 8. Server sends the new HTML file to client

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Dynamic HTML with ASP
ASP code on server
HTML code sent to client
Same

• ltH3gtWelcome to my pagelt/H3gt
• ltH2gtHere is my product listlt/H2gt
• lt Start ASP code
• Open a database connection
• SQL queries to database
• Copy results to a record set
• Display records one at a time
• Close database connection
• gt End ASP code
• ltPgtThank you very much for inquiring about our
  products

ltH3gtWelcome to my pagelt/H3gt ltH2gtHere is my
product listlt/H2gt ltPgt ltBgtProduct
Pricelt/Bgt ltHRgt ltPgtHammer ... 8.50 ltPgtPliers
. 7.79 ltPgtScrewdriver .. 4.50 ltPgtPower
Drill .. 49.99 ltPgtChainsaw 95.95 ltPgtWrench
.. 6.50 ltPgtThank you very much for inquiring
about our products
Dynamically generated by ASP
Same
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ASP, SQL, Databases, and HTML
Web Server MS IIS Web Server
HTML
ASP
Databases
Client Browser Internet Explorer Netscape
Navigator
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Server Requirements

• You cant do ASP on Andrew
• ASP requires an MS Windows environment
• NT Server with Internet Information Server
• NT Workstation with Peer Web Services (10-user
  connection limit)
• Win95/98 with Personal Web Server

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Common Uses of ASP

• Register as a client (insert a record in
  database)
• Products services listing (query database)
• Place orders (inserting records in database)
• Track order status (query database)
• Tech support (query a knowledge base)
• Fill out a survey (insert record(s) in database)

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Very Common

• Feed data to an ASP script using HTML forms
• This is typically what the Submit button does
• HTML forms contain items data with field names
• Which are passed to ASP scripts for processing
• Often used to embed an SQL command
• To query a database (product list, etc.)
• Or to insert records in a database (orders, etc.)

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Example--ASP on Server (Query)

• lt Set conn Server.CreateObject("ADODB.Connectio
  n")
• conn.open "orders "
• Set rs_customers Conn.Execute("SELECT
  clientID, clientName,_
• shipAddress, telephone FROM clients") gt
• ltIMG SRC"music22.gif"gtltBgtAlberto's Music
  Instruments, Inc.ltpgt
• ltTABLE BORDER"0"gtltBgtCustomer Listlt/Bgt
• ltTRgtltTHgtClientIDlt/THgt ltTHgtClient Namelt/THgt
  ltTHgtShipping Addresslt/THgt ltTHgtTelephonelt/THgtlt/TRgt
  
• lt do while Not rs_customers.eof gt
• ltTRgtltTDgtlt rs_customers.Fields("clientID")
  gtlt/TDgt
• ltTDgtlt rs_customers.Fields("clientName"
  ) gtlt/TDgt
• ltTDgtlt rs_customers.Fields("shipAddress
  ")gtlt/TDgt
• ltTDgtlt rs_customers.Fields("telephone")
  gtlt/TDgtlt/TRgt
• lt rs_customers.MoveNext
• loop
• Conn.Close gt
• lt/TABLEgtlt/BODYgtlt/HTMLgt

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Example--Response to Browser

• ltIMG SRC"music22.gif"gtltBgtAlberto's Music
  Instruments, Inc.ltpgt
• ltTABLE BORDER"0"gtltBgtCustomer Listlt/Bgt
• ltTRgtltTHgtClientIDlt/THgt ltTHgtClient Namelt/THgt
• ltTHgtShipping Addresslt/THgt ltTHgtTelephonelt/THgt
  lt/TRgt
• ltTRgtltTDgtjoseelt/TDgt
• ltTDgtAlberto Espinosalt/TDgt
• ltTDgtSchenley Park, GSIA Building, 20lt/TDgt
• ltTDgt412-268-3681ltBRgtlt/TDgt lt/TRgt
• ltTRgtltTDgtsandylt/TDgt
• ltTDgtSandra Slaughterlt/TDgt
• ltTDgt5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh PA
  15213lt/TDgt
• ltTDgt412-268-3681ltBRgtlt/TDgt lt/TRgt
• etc.
• lt/TABLEgtlt/BODYgtlt/HTMLgt

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Example--ASP on Server (Data Input)

• ltBgtCustomer Registrationlt/FONTgtlt/BgtltPgt
• ltFORM ACTION
• "http//softrade-11.gsia.cmu.edu/data/custom
  erSubmit.asp"
• METHOD"POST" ENCTYPE"x-www-form-urlencoded
  "gt
• ltTABLEgt
• ltTRgtltTDgtPlease enter a customer ID (4 to 16
  characters)lt/TDgt
• ltTDgtltINPUT TYPE"text" SIZE"35"
  NAME"CustomerID" VALUE" "gt
• lt/TDgtlt/TRgt
• ltTRgtltTDgtPlease enter your namelt/TDgt
• ltTDgtltINPUT TYPE"text" SIZE"35"
  NAME"CustName" VALUE" "gt
• lt/TDgtlt/TRgt
• etc.
• lt/TABLEgt
• ltINPUT TYPE"submit" VALUE"Submit"gtlt/TDgtlt/TRgt
• lt/TABLEgtlt/FORMgtlt/BODYgtlt/HTMLgt

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Example--ASP on Server (Data Input)

• lt!-- customerSubmit.asp --gt
• ltHTMLgtltBODYgtltCENTERgt
• lt Set conn Server.CreateObject("ADODB.Connectio
  n")
• conn.open "orders
• customerId Request.Form("customerId")
• custName Request.Form("custName") . etc.
• Set rs Conn.Execute("INSERT INTO Clients
  (ClientID, CustName, _
• etc. VALUES ('" customerID "', '"
  customerName "', _
• '" shippingAddress "', '" phone "')
  ")
• Conn.Close gt
• Your Customer Registration has been
  processed!ltBRgt
• Thank you very muchltBRgt
• ltA HREF"http//softrade-11.gsia.cmu.edu/data/orde
  rs.html"gt
• Back to main pagelt/Agtnbspnbspnbsp

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(No Transcript)
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IT Exercise III

• A restaurant food delivery service company
• Participant restaurants subscribe to service
• Company developed a web site using ASP to let
• 1. Restaurants subscribe and enter menu items
• 2. Customers place orders
• Web server runs on Windows NT with IIS
• Participant restaurants need to produce their
  HTML pages with order forms
• Which dont need to run on IIS (nor ASP)
• But need to feed data to existing ASP scripts