Technology choice - a strategic decision

See here why C++ may be your best choice for CGI programming. And why VBMcgi is your best choice for CGI programs in C++.

Consider this: the ability to develop web based software systems is very valuable. The Internet is on of the main forces transforming the humanity in the transition to the 3rd millennium, and the web is one of the most important applications of the Internet. The gains of productivity that a well-tuned web system can deliver to commercial and industrial automation are immense.

On the technical point of view, the Internet is a network of different types of linked computers. Proper software makes then communicate, so Internet services can be defined (email, web, ftp, etc.) The protocol specifications of the services are open, so anyone can develop software for Internet.

Depending on what the mission of yourself or your firm is, it can be considered either inside or outside the mission to have high-level expertise of basic software development. The expression "basic software" here means in depth understanding of operating systems and related knowledge.

Eventually, your firm wants to purchase a closed solution on information technology and concentrate in say e-commerce by focusing in having the best products, best delivery, etc. That's a perfect strategy.

But if your firm or yourself want to keep learning more and more about the intricacies of the information technology, it is quite possible that you either know, or want to know, or want to improve your knowledge in the language C/C++. This language is the choice for most professionals and firms that want to understand the information world from the low level, so that no detail is left unconsidered. By using C/C++, a individual or a firm can truly touch the very intimacy of operating systems, network programming, and so on. There is plenty of reason for one to choose this language, including the existence of legacy applications. In short, to use C/C++ is a strategic decision.

Now suppose that you have made the strategic decision of using C/C++. By having made this decision, you want to use C/C++ in as many projects as possible. And what happens when you want to develop Internet software systems (CGI programming)? You choose a library to help you do the CGI programs and go ahead. But most of the existing libraries approach the CGI program development wrongly. The first problem is when a C++ library for CGI does not work well in both unix and Windows (most of them work only in UNIX). But the key issue is deeper than that.

The key issue is that almost all available C/C++ libraries for CGI provide you classes to help you send html to the output (the user browser). This approach works well only if your html is a simple code (so that you can edit in a simple text editor). But the reality in today's html design market is that sophisticated WYSWYG html software (such as Dream Weaver, Front Page, etc.) is indispensable. The html code generated is very sophisticated and is quite hard to be understood from a simple text editor. The html code makes sense only for the browser.

So, how can one produce Internet software systems using CGI programs written in C++, and still have sophisticated html code for the final user? When I felt this dilemma in means of 1999, I decided to create and maintain a library to solve that. I (VB) worked with Martins, thus the library is named VBMcgi. Latter Martins became too busy to keep attention to this project, so I'm keeping support for it alone.

VBMcgi is the only C++ library for CGI programming that isolates the work of the webmaster and web designer. The webmaster is the only one to know C++, VBMcgi, database access, and related subjects. A 100% ordinary web designer, that only knows how to use html design software (like Dream Weaver) can join the team easily (that is, no special skills are requested for the web designer). The webmaster sends a few easy instructions to the web designer, and the interactivity will be achieved.

Conclusion: Say an individual of firm want to use C/C++ for strategic reasons, and use this language to develop web software (CGI programming). VBMcgi is a free, open source, multiplatform library for this. And VBMcgi is the only C++ library for CGI that allows having a development team without asking for special skill from webdesigners.

sbVB, May 10, 2001.