CGIpp The official CGIpp FAQ
maintained by Stig E. Sandø

Last update: 1st Sept 97
  1. General Questions
    1. Where do I get Cgipp-related news?
    2. Can I use Cgipp on our Intranet?
    3. What database platforms does Cgipp support?
    4. Can I generate javascripts with Cgipp?
    5. Does Cgipp support API?
    6. What plans exist for Cgipp?
  2. Technical Questions
    1. What debugging capabilities is in Cgipp?
    2. Can I use Cgipp without networks and Internet?
    3. I have this old Commodore 64 ...
    4. What platforms does Cgipp support?
    5. What servers does Cgipp support?
    6. What browsers does Cgipp support?
    7. What do I need to test Cgipp?
    8. What kind of logging does Cgipp support/use?
    9. Can I generate inline images with Cgipp?
  3. Other questions
    1. Does Cgipp include a mailserver/mailprogram?
    2. Where can I get more information about (insert OS)?
    3. Where can I get more information about (insert compiler)?

General Questions

  1. Where do I get Cgipp-related news?
    USA Today seldom writes about it, and since it has yet to invade Wall Street you won't find it in many economic papers either. The Internet is your best source of information, first and foremost the Web is the place to search.
  2. Can I use Cgipp and Cgi on our Intranet?
    Yes, you can use it on a majority of computers, provided you have an appropriate compiler to make the library. Using Cgi and Cgipp-programs on your Intranet is also possible, provided you have a suitable server for your cgi-scripts where the library is available.
  3. What database platforms does Cgipp support?
    There is no explicit database support, but this is planned in later releases (at least for mSQL). However, you can use just about any database but you'll have to use other libraries in addition to Cgipp.
  4. Can I generate javascripts with Cgipp?
    Javascripts can be generated as part of any HTML-Document, but there is no tools in Cgipp directly geared towards Javascript generation. I have some javascript-code I used in the SPAM-system for cookies which might be of interest.
  5. Does Cgipp support API?
    Cgipp is an independent class library, meant to be portable and does not currently support any specific API's, but support is planned for Apache, WSAPI and ISAPI.
  6. What plans exist for Cgipp?
    Support for databases/SQL, and Cookies [DONE].

Technical Questions

  1. What debugging capabilities does Cgipp have?
    Please check cgi/Debug.H which is commented quite well. Some of the macros and classes are quite useful both for CGI and all other programming. All the debugging can easily be turned off by defining NODEBUG and all debugging will be turned off automagically. For full debugging define MAINTAINER but this is really only useful for me, but if you have severe problems it might help you.
  2. Can I use Cgipp without networks and Internet?
    Yes. I have used it in 16-bit DOS without server, browser or any GUI (much of the porting was done this way). When I use linux at home I have no network and no Internet, but I have Apache running where I can easily test my programs. The same applies to just about any platforms. Using it with a server and a good browser (ie. Netscape) is strongly recommended.
  3. I have this old Commodore 64 ...
    If you succesfully port Cgipp to C64, I'll gladly kiss your feet. Cgipp and C++ eats too much memory to be of much use on a C64, so I have not used much energy porting it to C64. Who will want to run a web server on a C64 anyway?
  4. What platforms does Cgipp support?
    It has been succesfully tested and runs flawlessly on SGI IRIX 5.3, IRIX 6.3, SunOS 4.1.x, Solaris 2.x, DEC OSF, Linux 1.2.13 (486), Win95 32 bit, MS-DOS 16-bit. If your platform has a C++ compiler with iostreams, my bet is that it is possible to use Cgipp on it (which applies to most platforms with more than 512 k mem).
  5. What servers does Cgipp support?
    It has currently been tested vs Apache, Netscape Fasttrack (which suck!), NCSA, CERN and Website for Win95. It stays true to HTTP, so it should work with any server.
  6. What browsers does Cgipp support?
    The main browser I use for testing is Netscape, but it has worked 100% with all browsers I have tested it on. It should work 100% correct with any browser who follows the basic standards.
  7. What do I need to test Cgipp?
    A compiler and an environment suitable for testing, be it vanilla MS-DOS with no browser and no net axx, a funky SGI with the latest Netscape version on a 100 Mbit line. Check the documentation for which compiler you need.
  8. What kind of logging does Cgipp support/use?
    An example from the log (v0.2):
    Cgipp debugging log started on Friday, November 08, 1996 11:42:23 AM
    POST method recognized
    ... 
    
    The result at the ... is what you send to cgidebug during your program execution. The library itself provide you with the date when the script was started, which method is used, when cgiMain() is called and what the function returns. This logging can be turned off by defining NODEBUG on command-line.
  9. Can I generate inline images with Cgipp?
    Cgipp has no direct support for image generation, but it should be easy to link in other suitable libraries in your program, like Thomas Boutell's gd-library.

Other Questions

  1. Does Cgipp include a mailserver/mailprogram?
    Not yet, but it is coming (NOT!). :-)
  2. What kinds of machines are the main testing machines?
    The one on the Net is called rembrandt, resides at the Art History Dept. at the Univ., and is one of those fancy SGI Indy's with a large cool screen (with remote control), camera, 128 Mb RAM, 9 Gb HD, etc. It is the home of the DALI (Digital Art Learning Interface) Project, and functions as mail and webserver (Apache). The machine I have at home is a 486 with a five year old lousy screen, running linux/win95 with webserver(apache) for testing of scripts. Lately most of the testing has been done on an SGI O2.
  3. Where can I get more information about (insert OS)?
  4. Where can I get more information about (insert compiler)?