SUMMARY:   This course will provide the student with the tools needed to write interactive Web pages using CGI and Perl. The student will design, code and test Perl programs and HTML/CGI front-end panels. The pages will be installed and tested on a local UNIX machine. AUDIENCE:   Beginning and intermediate level programmers. PREREQUISITES:   The participant should have basic knowledge of data flow and program design. Knowledge of a program editor. Familiarity with HTML and a web browser. DURATION:   4 Days. APPROACH:   This class is taught by lecture with hands-on workshops. OBJECTIVES:   After taking this course the student should be able to: Describe the CGI interface between an HTML web page and the Perl code Build HTML pages with Forms to invoke CGI/perl Code Perl programs using all available features (loops, if...then...) Use perl's UNIX-type functions (split, for...) Perform file i/o and write HTML responses using local data Create separate utility files that contain common subroutines Among the projects the student will complete are a "hit counter" for web pages, a guestbook, and a data search-and-retrieval program Among the projects to be completed are: guest book, hit counter, reformat data from a form and send e-mail, and generating HTML pages using perl script. COURSE CONTENT:   BASIC CONCEPTS WWW and interactivity CGI - what is it? Perl - what is it? CGI AND FORMS General structure of HTML Specific structure for forms Tags for building forms How CGI accepts information from forms Exercise: build a form, execute an existing program PERL - OVERVIEW General Syntax History Command line execution CGI execution Functions DATA Variables Assignments Exercise: define and print arrays PROGRAM CONTROL if while for ARRAYS array associative array keys() values() each() delete PROGRAM CONTROL II foreach BASIC I/O STDIN STDOUT I/O FROM CGI examples project REGULAR EXPRESSIONS concepts samples patterns FUNCTIONS calls to system functions built in functions FILE I/O read/write operations