November 1999
Help! Surviving the Customer Support Crunch
You Asked for It!
By Dave Sims
As corporate infrastructure turns outward, so to do its support systems. Fueled by the rush to e-commerce, online support is becoming big business. This month, Dave looks at some of the technologies designed to leverage against the Web to tackle the problem efficiently.
Self-Service Syndication with ICE
By Dan Greening
While traditional customer support is mostly reactive, another model is emerging for moving content around the Web. Based on XML, the Information and Content Exchange (ICE) protocol provides structure to streams. Dan explains what this means for syndication, and how Andromedia is using the protocol to simplify some of its programming tasks.
Plugging in to Hosted Applications
By Mike Thompson
Application service providers and hosted application are becoming the buzz of the Web. Mike offers an insider's perspective on their benefits and what to look out for as he chronicles their history and breadth.
C O L U M N S :
Webmaster's Domain
LDAP is lightweight database system that's heavy with structure. Lincoln D. Stein explains the beauty and scalability of LDAP hierarchies by relating them to his personal experiences in the medical profession.
Integrated Designer
Color, shape, and typeface can make an immediate impression on your site's visitors, assuming your graphics don't take too long to download. Molly E. Holzschlag shows you how to use appropriate design to keep customers satisfied.
Database Developer
Oracle's DBMS has continued to grow over the years, to where it now requires 50 times more disk space and 8 to 16 times more RAM than its ancestors. Ken North takes us on a tour of this expansion as he discusses what's new with Oracle 8i.
Programming with Perl
This month, function follows forms: Randal L. Schwartz provides a Perl program that invokes the URL of a form page, studies the resulting HTML, and creates another Perl program that invokes the resulting form action script.
Java@Work
Want to create dynamic graphics to spice up your Web page? It's a snap, or perhaps a ball, with Al Williams' Vapplet.
Beyond HTML
Combining Active Server Pages with the MSXML parser, Michael Floyd shows you how to deliver XML dynamically.
D E P A R T M E N T S :
Script Junkie
While some argue over whether JavaScript is an appropriate language for object-oriented design, Steve Johnson chooses instead to lead by example as he shows how to take advantage of JavaScript inheritance. But should he stamp out new objects from prototypes or wrap them up instead? Read along as he creates some reusable HTML components.
Lab Note
Server-side includes, or Sun's answer to Active Server Pages? Regardless of the answer, JSP is a clever bridge between Jave servlets and HTML. Ethan Henry provides an overview of the technology and examples that demonstrate dynamic page generation and database access.
The Home Page
Editor-in-Chief Bob Kaehms is looking for a solution in "You Rang, Erlang, and the Poisson Problem".
News & Notes
Email The Common Denominator.
Mail.com
The Yin and Yang of Web/TV.
The Last Page
Editorial Director Dale Dougherty talks about "Masters of Our Shifting Paradigm."
