This is a set of documents that outline the advantage and practical applications of database enabled websites. With the advent of low cost or free standards-based relational databases it has allowed many sites to explore their uses in web applications.

The sample application this tutorial is built around is a guestbook that I wrote for PHP. The application is available for download in the File Area. Feel free to use, modify or redistribute it any way it pleases you since I have released the code under the GPL.

I have developed this tutorial with some specific parameters in mind. I have tailored all the database information here to reflect the MySQL relational database because that is what is used by my provider Pair Networks and is the database I personally prefer. The programming instructions are based on the PHP server-side scripting language and the webserver is (of course) Apache.

I will outline how to get Debian GNU/Linux to run these programs, but if you get it working with another distribution and will send me the instructions on how you did it I will add it here.

Thanks to othniel@netscape.net and dmcaruso@netscape.net who submitted the RedHat PHP outline.

The Materials
The Tutorial
Distribution Specifics
Extras