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When a CGI Script is the Most Elegant Solution

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the the-answers-is-always dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Writing local Web applications can be quick, easy, and efficient for solving specific Intranet problems. Learn why a Web browser is sometimes a better interface than a GUI application and why experienced Web developers find themselves struggling to learn a GUI toolkit, and descover that a simple CGI script would serve their needs perfectly well, if not better."

2 of 256 comments (clear)

  1. When the web apps are taking over ... by Gopal.V · · Score: 4, Interesting

    A lot of people are replacing client-server apps with browser based apps, with zero install hassles - which this particular example doesn't really have. But learning to build html apps in CGI mode is easier than re-learning event loops for GTK land (even in perl).

    Of course, debugging in-browser apps is getting easier with firebug and other developer oriented firefox bits. Now, whether the app is built using perl-CGI, mod_perl, php, ruby on rails, even servlets doesn't matter - the UI can actually work very well. For instance my sudoku, in fact looks better in HTML than if I (let me repeat, if *I*) had done it with GTK or MFC.

    And CGI still hasn't lost its edge totally. There are places when you *have* to use CGI to do what you want. I ran into one case when I couldn't use php when I wanted to server pushes on a live connection. Instead of firing multiple requests to the server, I hold the connection and push data when it comes available - sort of stateful connections reinvented for HTTP. Which has definite promise when you're building mashups, which fetch data from elsewhere without cross-user leakage (heh, if he can hijack TCP, I don't know what...) - flockr for instance uses such a script in the backend to feed it data (except I'll be an idiot to post a live CGI script to slashdot).

    CGI ain't quite dead yet ...

    --
    Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum videtur
  2. Re:perl? by cxreg · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "even with mod_perl"? as opposed to what? mod_perl is the most flexible web server technology available on *nix, balancing good performance with a good set of functionality (who can beat CPAN?) it's faster and more scalable than Tomcat, and PHP is simply a joke. about the only true downside is that it's a total memory hog.

    perl CGI, however, is crap as you said

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    God Fucking Damnit