Client-side scripting: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 08:41, 11 August 2005

Revision as of 11:37, 16 September 2005

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In contrast, [[server-side scripting|server-side scripts]], written in languages such as [[Perl]] and [[PHP]], are executed by the web server when the user requests a document. They produce output in a format understandable by web browsers (usually HTML), which is then sent to the user's computer. The user cannot see the script's source code (unless the author publishes the code separately), and may not even be aware that a script was executed. The documents produced by server-side scripts may, of course, contain client-side scripts.

Client-side scripts have greater access to the information and functions availablee on the user's computer, whereas server-side scripts have greater access to the information and functions available on the server. Server-side scripts require that their language's [[Interpreter (computing)|interpreter]] is installed on the server, and produce the same output regardless of the client's browser, [[operating system]], or other system details. Client-side scripts do not require additional software on the server (making them popular with authors who lack administrative access to their servers); however, they do require that the user's web browser understands the scripting language in which they are written. It is therefore impractical for an author to write scripts in a language that is not supported by the web browsers used by a majority of his or her audience.

Unfortunately, even languages that are supported by a wide variety of browsers may not be implemented in precisely the same way across all browsers and operating systems. Authors are well-advised to review the behavior of their client-side scripts on a variety of [[Platform (computing)|platforms]] before they put them into use.