Perl For Web Site Management

Checking links, batch editing HTML files, tracking users, writing CGI scripts-these are all things that can be easily done with Perl, a scripting language that runs on almost all computing platforms. For many web designers and hobbyists who would benefit from these tasks, however, Perl seems like an arcane, forbidding world of chops and chomps, execs and elsifs, and a never-ending series of odd punctuation characters. So we use clunky tools, we edit files tediously by hand, and we rely on programmers and system administrators to do " the hard stuff " for us. The secret is that while being a Perl expert is hard, most Perl scripts are relatively simple. Perl for Web Site Management teaches you how to use Perl to help you do some everyday tasks on your web site. Assuming no prior programming background, this book teaches you how- to use Perl and other open source tools to : Incorporate a simple search engine ; Write a simple form-processing CGI script ; Convert multiple text files into HTML ; Monitor log files ; Track users as they navigate your site. Although the book is written for Perl novices, the techniques in Perl for Web Site Management become complex enough to offer valuable lessons for more experienced programmers as well. There are many excellent books for learning Perl, but Perl for Web Site Management is not as much about learning Perl as it is about getting things done with Perl. Sure, you might learn a little bit about programming, and perhaps learn something about the role of open source tools on the Web. But the focus of the book isn't to educate you, it's to empower you. Whether you're a developer, designer, or simply a dabbler on the Web, this book is the practical, hands-on introduction to Perl you've been waiting for.