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CGI session variables like in PHP

 [1/9] from: carlos::lorenz::bol::com::br at: 7-Oct-2003 16:52


Hello list, I'm just thinking about wich is the best way to handle persistent words between HTML pages such as PHP does with its session variables. Any thoughts? TIA Carlos

 [2/9] from: SunandaDH:aol at: 7-Oct-2003 16:18


Carlos:
> I'm just thinking about wich is the best way to handle > persistent words between HTML pages such as PHP does > with its session variables.
I don't know the *best* way, as HTTP is inherently stateless. But here are two ideas: 1. If you have identified users (by setting a cookie), use the cookie as a key to an object that holds the session variables for that user. This is what REBOL.org does, and it seems to work. 2. If you don't have cookies, you can't identify users by IP address (those with dynamic IP addresses may give you a different value for every click of enter). So you are pretty much reduced to having a hidden field on every page. Use that as the key to the session variables object. This second method will leave you a lot of discarded session-variable objects as there is no way a user can "log off". You'll want to run an occasional cleanup routine to discard these. To generate a unique key for a session or cookie, experiment with: session-key: copy "" error? try [append session-key to-tuple system/options/cgi/remote-addr] append session-key now/precise session-key: checksum/secure session-key (the error? is for when you are testing locally, and may not be a cgi program. remote-addr is the IP address). Sunanda.

 [3/9] from: rebol:techscribe at: 7-Oct-2003 14:10


Hi Carlos. Create a session cookie with a unique, random name, and create a temporary file server-side with the same name to hold the session information, including session vaqriables.. That's how PHP does it according to Julie Meloni writing for "Webmonkey" (http://www.webmonkey.com) in her article "Authenticate and Track Users with PHP". She writes:
>>>>>
a session is an ethereal blob that can hold all sorts of variables and values. This blob of stuff, also known as a session object, has an identification string. The identification string, such as 940f8b05a40d5119c030c9c7745aead9, is sent to the user via a cookie called PHPSESSID. On the server side, a matching temporary file (think of it as the physical representation of the session object) is created with the same name (i.e., 940f8b05a40d5119c030c9c7745aead9). Each session object has variables registered with it. Inside the session file, on the server, the registered variables and their values are kept safe and sound. Since these values and variables are not kept in a database, no additional system resources are required <<<<< Hpe this helps. Elan Carlos Lorenz wrote:

 [4/9] from: tim:johnsons-web at: 7-Oct-2003 13:05


* Carlos Lorenz <[carlos--lorenz--bol--com--br]> [031007 12:17]:
> Hello list, > > I'm just thinking about wich is the best way to handle > persistent words between HTML pages such as PHP does > with its session variables. > > Any thoughts?
Hi Carlos: I use the following myself: 1)Store as input/type "hidden" 2)Pass info via path-info 3)store system/options/cgi/query-string Also, using mysql and a table just for handling sessions, with session ID and system/options/query string note==>> for the last, it is helpful to make sure that the stored query string is itself 'escaped' via sql protocols tim
> TIA > > Carlos > > -- > To unsubscribe from this list, just send an email to > [rebol-request--rebol--com] with unsubscribe as the subject.
-- Tim Johnson <[tim--johnsons-web--com]> http://www.alaska-internet-solutions.com http://www.johnsons-web.com

 [5/9] from: carlos:lorenz:bol at: 8-Oct-2003 9:57


Sunanda, Thank you for your ideas Carlos Em Ter 07 Out 2003 17:18, [SunandaDH--aol--com] escreveu:

 [6/9] from: carlos:lorenz:bol at: 8-Oct-2003 10:00


Elan This was a very good explanation about PHP session object :) Carlos Em Ter 07 Out 2003 18:10, Elan escreveu:

 [7/9] from: carlos:lorenz:bol at: 8-Oct-2003 9:58


Thank you Tim Carlos

 [8/9] from: SunandaDH:aol at: 8-Oct-2003 12:41


Carlos
> Thank you for your ideas
thanks to you too. I've cobbled together a working example of using cookies to hold session data and put it in the Script Library: http://www.rebol.org/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/rebol/view-script.r?script=cookie-example .r Most of the code has been hacked down from code used in the Script Library itself, but I've left most of the "real world" issues in so you can see the sorts of skips and jumps you may need. You could use it as a starter template for the sort of functions you may need to implement session variables. It *seems* to work for me, but I may have broken something in the rapid cutting and pasting to haul a load of carefully structured functions into one source script. Sunanda Sunanda.

 [9/9] from: carlos:lorenz:bol at: 8-Oct-2003 17:44


sunanda Thank you very much again this sample It is going to be very useful indeed Carlos Em Qua 08 Out 2003 13:41, [SunandaDH--aol--com] escreveu: