August 1998
Processing Payments
Virtual Credit
By Godfrey Nolan
In order to sell over the Web, you need some means of getting money
from the customers bank to your own. Luckily the same mechanisms for conventional
card-swipe transactions map right onto the Web. But what are your choices,
and how do you know which is right for you? Godfrey points out the options.
Small Change
By Russ Jones
The beauty of micropayment systems is that they don't require
a bank, they can be implemented in nontraditional ways, and they're relatively
easy to put together. The problem is their lack of use. Russ Jones hopes
to change things by showing us how, while Dale Dougherty tells us why--reminiscing
about the good ol' days of Green Stamps.
C O L U M N S :
Webmaster's Domain
Do we really need another Internet specification? Lincoln D. Stein discusses the reality of secure transactions and debunks the myth of SET.
Visual Designer
In contrast to pixel-based bitmaps, vector graphics form shapes using
mathematical instructions; their size doesn't affect their downloading
time. A perfect format for the Web? Lynda Weinman fills us in.
Database Developer
Databases are going object relational, and Ken North provides more recipes for the alphabet soup of Universal Database Programming.
Programming with Perl
Want to make sure that incessant requests won't knock your scripts
for a loop? Follow along as Randal Schwartz stress-tests CGI.
Java@Work
When it comes to dynamic Web content, Java servlets offer many of the
advantages of CGI scripts without many of the drawbacks. Al Williams walks you through
the basics.
Beyond HTML
Although still a new technology with few working applications, XML
is already implemented as part of IE4. Michael Floyd continues last month's discussion
showing how to parse a valid XML document to display its structure.
D E P A R T M E N T S :
Script Junkie
Web-based order forms facilitate commerce on the Net. Rob Falla demonstrates
how to add function to your forms using cascading style sheets (CSS) in
Microsoft Internet Explorer and LAYER tags in Netscape Navigator, and also
discusses some cross-browser work-arounds.
Lab Note
In the quest for sophisticated Web-page editing solutions, Shelly Brisbin takes you on a tour of three professional-quality options: GoLive CyberStudio 3.0, NetObjects Fusion 2.02, and Macromedia Dreamweaver 1.2.
The Home Page
Editor-in-Chief, Bob Kaehms tells you "The Novelty of Current Affairs."
News & Notes
E-Commerce In a Box; Auction It Off Online.
The Last Page
Editorial Director Dale Dougherty talks about "Soft Wallets and Palm Reading."
