what are CGI scripts and the CGI-BIN?
CGI, or the Common Gateway Interface is a means by which your web server software can interact with the rest of your computer system. This allows you to gather information from your site using forms, or to tailor your pages to your reader’s needs. The name cgi-bin is really just the name of the directory on the server that holds your scripts! How effective are CGI scripts at making a Web page more interactive? A web page as HTML is basically dumb as dirt. It sits there and browser figures out how to present the information to you. With CGI, you can create an interactive experience for your readers. When you use CGI, you can tailor your output for your reader’s browser. If you are running a site where people log in, you can actually tailor their pages to meet their individual needs. This is how you create the “MY-wherever.com” type of pages. HTML is a one way trip down the information highway. The server sends you a page. CGI allows your readers to supply information back to your server
