Putting Files on the CMS Web Server: The HTML Command

There is now a World Wide Web server running on our CMS system, located at:

http://vm.uconn.edu/

The CMS web server allows you to define your own WWW home page, HTML files, forms, and GIF files on your CMS account. These files can then be read by anyone with a World Wide Web client such as Mosaic or Netscape. You don't have to run your own web server on a workstation, or move the files to someone else's workstation. You can keep your HTML and GIF files on your CMS 'A' disk, and you control which of your files are served out over the web.

Just follow these simple steps to place your files on the CMS web server.

Logon to your CMS account.
Link to the TOOLS disk, by entering this command:
```
USE TOOLS
```
Perform some basic setup by invoking the HTML exec:
```
HTML
```
Create or upload one or more HTML files, on your 'A' disk. You can use XEDIT to create them.
If you need help on the HTML markup language, invoke the HTMLDOC exec from CMS; see especially the Beginner's Guide to HTML. This information is also available in the CMS web server's home page.
Invoke the HTML exec to preview your HTML files.
```
HTML filename
```
where filename is the CMS filename of your HTML file. The filetype must be HTML, and the file must reside on your 'A' disk.
In addition to previewing the file, the HTML exec also makes the file generally available on the web.

Setup Performed by the HTML Exec

The following setup is performed by the HTML exec.

Creates a INDEX HTML (a default home page for your account).
Creates a WEBSHARE FILELIST. Files must be listed in WEBSHARE FILELIST in order to be read on the World Wide Web.
Creates a sample called SAMPLE HTML.
Creates a sample form called SAMPFORM HTML.
Creates several files associated with a sample image map, whose filenames begin with ISMAP.
Grants the web server accounts, HTTPD*, read access to your 'A' disk.
Adds a call to UCCPROF to your PROFILE XEDIT, to set CASE MIXED for HTML files.
If a filename is specified, the HTML exec will add it to your WEBSHARE FILELIST, to make sure it's available for viewing on the web. It then invokes the WWW client for CMS, to view the document.

Accessing Your Home Page and Individual HTML Documents

Now that you have defined your WEBSHARE FILELIST, your home page, and any other HTML files, you or anyone else can access them from a World Wide Web client, such as Mosaic, Netscape, or WWW.

Your personal home page can be referenced with this URL string:

http://vm.uconn.edu/~userid/

where userid is your CMS userid, preceded by the tilde character (~).

Someone logged on to our CMS system could access your home page by invoking the CMSWEB command:

CMSWEB ~userid

INDEX HTML on the CMS account userid is used as the default home page.

Specific documents can be referenced with a URL string of this form:

http://vm.uconn.edu/~userid/filename.filetype

Someone logged on to our CMS system could display a specific document on someone else's account with this command:

CMSWEB ~userid/filename.filetype

Any documents which you wish to be served out MUST be listed in your WEBSHARE FILELIST, or in a subdirectory defined in WEBSHARE FILELIST. Only those files listed in WEBSHARE FILELIST will be accessible over the web, so security is not a problem. If you don't have a WEBSHARE FILELIST, nothing on your disk will be accessible over the web.

Writing HTML Documents

Under CMS, you can use XEDIT to create or modify HTML files. In addition, there is a DCF-to-HTML conversion package, called DCFHTML, located on the TOOLS disk (enter HELP UCONN DCFHTML for more).

There are numerous packages available for Macintosh and Windows for creating and editing HTML documents.

In addition, if you find interesting documents on the web, you can save the source (HTML), and modify them as you like.

There is a list of WWW and HTML topics available on the web, at

http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Software/Mosaic/Docs/www-info.html.

From CMS, you can invoke the HTMLDOC exec to go to this list.

Of particular interest is a document called A Beginner's Guide to HTML. This document is located at

http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/General/Internet/WWW/HTMLPrimer.html

Forms

The CMS web server provides forms support. The HTML setup program will copy a sample form called SAMPFORM HTML to your 'A' disk, and add it to your WEBSHARE FILELIST.

Information on coding HTML forms can be found near the bottom of the Beginner's Guide to HTML (see previous section).

There are several special fields in SAMPFORM HTML which you should know about.

Action: This defines the program which takes over when the form is filled out. On the UConn CMS web server there is a special program called SENDFORM, which will either bounce the values back to the person filling out the form, or send them on to some e-mail address, depending on the value of the Sendto field (see below).
Sendto or Address: This field is used as the e-mail address to which the form will be sent. If Sendto=Test, then the values of the form are bounced back to the user. This is the recommended setting when creating a new form. SAMPFORM is coded with Sendto=Test. Address and Sendto are synonymous.
Form or Subject: This field defines the name of the form, and is used as the subject field when the server transmits the form via e-mail. Subject and Form are synonymous.
Sender_email: This field may be supplied on the form as a place where the user may fill in his/her e-mail address. If the field name is defined as Sender_email then it is added as the Reply-To field in the e-mail headers when the form is sent. This enables the recipient of the e-mailed form to use the e-mail reply function; otherwise, a reply would go back to the HTTPD server. Although you can use any field name you want to prompt for e-mail address, it is recommended that you use Sender_email so that the correct Reply-To field is generated.
Message or Reply: This field defines an optional reply message, which you can have displayed to the person filling out the form. It is displayed when the person clicks on the Submit button to send the completed form. The optional message is displayed after the initial message. This initial message indicates whether the e-mail has been successfully sent, along with the destination address and subject.

Including GIF Files in your HTML Documents

The CMS web server also supports GIF files.

The CMS server provides a set of GIF files, listed in

http://vm.uconn.edu/htlib.html

These files can be seen near the bottom of the home page in the CMS web server.

You can reference these predefined GIF files with a partial url of

/htlib/filename.gif

A GIF file residing on your 'A' disk would be referenced as

/~userid/filename.gif

GIF files can be referenced as inline, meaning they are displayed automatically as part of the current document. The sample INDEX HTML has an example of an inline GIF file. You can also reference a GIF file as a separate file, using the standard URL syntax, much like a reference to another HTML document; the only difference would be that the filetype (or file extension) would be .GIF.

Please note that you must list any GIF files in your WEBSHARE FILELIST. They are not added automatically, nor are they displayed, by the HTML exec. Make sure to specify the filemode as asterisk in WEBSHARE FILELIST (for example, MY GIF *). Also make sure to start the filename in column two or greater in WEBSHARE FILELIST.

The VMGIF command can be used to display a GIF file on a graphics terminal, to ensure that it was uploaded correctly:

VMGIF filename

You must be logged on to a graphics terminal, or use a terminal emulator that supports graphics, in order to use the VMGIF command.

Please note that even though the CMS WWW Server supports graphics, the CMS WWW clients do not. Graphics (GIF files) on the CMS server will display correctly from WWW client programs that support graphics (such as Netscape or Mosaic).

Image Maps

The CMS web server comes with an IMAGEMAP CGI script, which currently only supports rectangular areas. We have obtained an enhanced version of IMAGEMAP, from Ben Chi at University of Albany, which supports rectangles, polygons and circles. In addition, UCC has provided a cgi called IMAGEXY which may help when designing image maps. It allows you to click anywhere on an image, and displays the X,Y pixel coordinates of the location you click on.

When you run the HTML setup exec, you will be prompted as to whether you want to copy down the imagemap samples. The imagemap sample filenames start with ISMAP. The root test file is called ISMAPTST HTML, which you should be able to open with this URL:

http://vm.uconn.edu/~userid/ismaptst.html

where userid is your CMS userid, and must be preceded with tilde (~). The ISMAPTST HTML and accompanying files were developed by Ben Chi at the University of Albany.

The file "ISMAPXY HTML" is a slightly modified file, which makes a call to the IMAGEXY cgi. This allows you to get an idea of the dimensions and layout of your image, and hopefully will assist you in developing your image maps.

Notes on Imagemap syntax

These notes were taken from Ben Chi's IMAGEMAP cgi:

There are two formats for image maps: CERN and NCSA. CERN-formatted image maps are identifiable by the extensive use of parentheses therein. This script requires NCSA format for which the entries have the form:

RECTANGLE href x1,y1 x2,y2   (x1,y1 a corner; x2,y2 the opposite corner)
CIRCLE    href x0,y0 x1,y1   (x0,y0 locates the center; x1,y1 is an
                             arbitrary point on the cirumference.)
POLYGON   href x1,y1 x2,y2 x3,y3, . . . xn,yn (each xi,yi a vertex; the
                             last may, but need not, duplicate the
                             first.  In that case n - 1 = number of
                             sides; otherwise, n = number of sides.)
DEFAULT   href               What to do if cursor is in no figure.

All the coordinates are in pixels and must be positive integers.

Each href is the absolute URL that should be referenced if the cursor point lies inside the associated figure. It need not include the host and port unless different from that of the server. Example: /foo.bar/polyarea.html. The shape names may be abbreviated to their first four letters; DEFAULT to DEF.

Control Files Used by the CMS Web Server

INDEX HTML (optional)

Your default home page. This is the home page displayed when someone invokes the url

http://vm.uconn.edu/~userid

where userid is your CMS userid (account name). The CMS userid must be preceded by the tilde character (~).

From CMS, someone could display your home page by using the CMSWEB command:

CMSWEB ~userid

WEBSHARE FILELIST (required)

WEBSHARE FILELIST lists all those files you wish to make available on the World Wide Web. Files must be listed in WEBSHARE FILELIST, or in a subdirectory defined in WEBSHARE FILELIST, in order to be accessible over the web. Comments are included in the WEBSHARE FILELIST to document it's use.

The HTML Exec will automatically add a file to your WEBSHARE FILELIST when you preview it.

Printing HTML Files on the Mainframe 3829 Printer

In some World Wide Web clients, such as Mosaic, it is possible to save an HTML document as Postscript. These files can then be printed on Postscript printers. This can tie up PC or Mac printers, since postscript files usually take a long time to interpret.

You can upload postscript files and print them on the mainframe 3829 printer located in Operations. For more information, see HELP UCONN PSINT on the mainframe.