1. Data-Enabled Web Sites: Classibooks.com & Internet Database Technologies Colin Fukai April 4, 2000 Gonzaga University

2. Background Education Gonzaga University: BBA (MIS, HR) - 2000 My “Internet Credentials” 4 years of web design/construction experience www.ticketswest.com www.cavanaughs.com www.planetquake.com Contacting Me www.colinfukai.com Colin@colinfukai.com

3. Introduction Database connectivity and the web The web is simply a new interface for structured data collections Internet DB Web Page

4. Introduction Cont. Benefits E-commerce $$$$$ Thin clients, dumb terminals, and centralized computing (web apps) Drawbacks Complexity Time & Resources Security

5. Classibooks.com A “Meeting Place”. Registered users (sellers) post their used textbooks. Buyers browse the listings and then contact the seller. Classibooks.com does not sell anything, it just makes the connection between buyer and seller.

6. Technologies Database MS Access Web Server NT Server 4, IIS 4 Server Side Scripting ASP Development Tools Interdev, Visual Basic

7. Databases LOGICAL DESIGN! Considerations Size Complexity Separation of data and processes Classibooks Database Customer (seller) Post (the book listings)

8. Web Server Microsoft NT Server 4 Internet Information Server 4 (IIS4) Setting up a site with NT Server 4: Internet Service Manager Web directory (Inetpub/wwwroot/yoursite) ODBC Connection (DSN)

9. Server Side Scripting Code that is executed on the web server, as opposed to client side scripting that is run on the user’s web browser (e.g., JavaScript). ASP = Active Server Pages According to Microsoft: Active Server Pages is an open, compile-free application environment in which you can combine HTML, scripts, and reusable ActiveX server components to create dynamic and powerful Web-based business solutions.

10. Server Side Scripting Cont. ASP is really just a way to “dynamically generate” web pages. It is based on the Visual Basic language which is easy to use and familiar to many programmers. Provides many powerful built-in capabilities, such as database connectivity.

11. Server Side Scripting Cont. How does an ASP page work? USER (Internet Browser) ASP Page My Site WEB Server processes ASP page, returns results Static Web Page

12. A Simple ASP Page Example ASP Page My TEST ASP Page <% Dim myVar myVar = “Hello World” Response.Write myVar %>

13. A Closer Look at the Code <% Dim myVar myVar = “Hello World” Response.Write myVar %> Variable Initialize Output Tag indicates ASP code

14. A More “Complex” Example Input Output Input.htmOutput.asp

15. Where Am I for sign-in sheets Type the information to make a sign-in sheet for the New Products seminar. Pass form values to this page Input Submit the information Input.htm

16. Spokane Clothiers Welcome to the New Products Seminar Held In <% Dim strCity strCity = Request.Form("City") Response.Write strCity %> on <% Dim strDate strDate = Request.Form("Date") Response.Write strDate %> Please sign in by printing your name at the front desk. Get data from input box “City” and output it Get data from input box “Date” and output it Output.asp

17. Development Tools Microsoft Visual Interdev Part of “Visual Studio” Rapid Application Development for the web Overview of the Interdev Integrated Development Environment

18. Interdev IDE Toolbox Project Explorer Item Properties Main Editing Window

19. InterDev Example What do we need to accomplish a simple page, connected to a database? Win 9x or Win NT IIS or Personal Web Server (PWS) A database and working knowledge of how a simple DBMS like MS Access works. Time and patience… the tools are more powerful and simple than ever, but that means more things can go wrong.

20. Personal Web Server Obtaining & installing Good for workstation testing Create a new site Know what default page name is (default.asp, index.htm)

21. Interdev Example Cont. Create a new project Create an ASP page Create a database connection Add a “recordset” to the page Set that recordset’s source fields (SQL) Connect form controls (e.g., listboxes) to the recordset or simply output it as text View page

22. ASP Issues Connecting to the database DSN = A file that contains commands for connecting to a database. DSN or DSN-less? ASP Components Compiled modules of code that interact with your web site. Separates business logic from the web pages themselves.

23. ASP Issues Cont. ASP Components Cont. Components are written with fully featured languages like Visual Basic or Visual C++. Modularity, Reusability. How to use a component: Compile component (.dll) Register component on the web server Create instance of component object in ASP code to access the component’s properties and methods.

24. ASP Issues Cont. Sessions and maintaining state The time a visitor is at your site, and all the actions they perform while there, is called a session. Sometimes we want to maintain information (the state) about a user as they move from page to page. This is where ASP Session capabilities come in handy. But, don’t use it. Use cookies or query strings to pass data between pages.

25. The Alternatives… Chilisoft (www.chilisoft.com) Run ASP on any web server, and not just NT Cold Fusion (www.allaire.com) Cold fusion markup language PHPx (www.php.net) It’s free!

26. ASP Resources msdn.microsoft.com msdn.microsoft.com/asp Good starting point www.15seconds.com www.learnasp.com www.4guysfromrolla.com

27. Conclusion Know what you want to accomplish BEFORE deciding how to construct it. Do not invest in resources that you will not, practically, need, but do plan for the future – in other words, watch out for “chicken little” salesmen. Put yourself in the user’s shoes. Functionality and content above flashiness. Data design as important as site design.

28. Thanks!