Experiments in Linking Web Pages to Databases

Experiment 1: Hyperlinking to a database using the HTML <a href= > tag

We have previously uploaded the Access database accts.mdb to the following location on the Freeserve server:

http://www.19Pelham.freeserve.co.uk/Database/accts.mdb

Clicking below will hyperlink to this database using the <a href = > HTML tag. Clicking here has the effect of simply downloading (by ftp) the database to your computer and opening up Access to show the database on your computer. Any changes you make won't go back into the original database on the internet though. You are not sharing it, you're downloading a copy of it.

Hyperlink to database accts.mdb on the Freeserve server

The HTML code we used to achieve this download was:

<a href="http://www.19Pelham.freeserve.co.uk/Database/accts.mdb"> Hyperlink to database accts.mdb on the Freeserve server </a>

Conclusions:

1. Hyperlinking to a web database using an <a href = > HTML tag will download the database to your computer.
2. Updates to shared web databases should be performed on the web server, not on the client's computer. For that we need server-side scripting. See below.

Experiment 2: Run server-side ASP scripts in simple non-database example

This application runs and gives the VBScript / HTML code for a server-side ASP program that uses VBScript to give you a random message.

Run ASP script file asp1.asp

Experiment 3: Our travel agent application using an Access database on the internet

This application uses VBScript / HTML code for a server-side ASP program that accesses an Access database on an internet server and displays data about travel destinations and travel agents. VBScript ADO database commands are used to access the database.

http://databasedesign.co.uk/traveladvisoryservice

Experiment 4: Our updateable product list application using an Access database on the internet

This application uses VBScript / HTML code for a server-side ASP program that accesses an Access database on an internet server and displays and updates a product list for a fictitious builders suppliers company. Items in the product list can be viewed, and anyone who knows the password can add, change and delete product records. The date of the most recent update is displayed. Feel free to try it. No rude data items please :-) The password is 'knucklebones'.

http://databasedesign.co.uk/simpleproductlist/products

Send us email at John.Carter@databasedesign.co.uk