What Is the File Extension SHTML?
The SHTML file extension is used for files containing a “Server Side Include” or SSI. HTML is the Hypertext Markup Language, which is the formatting language in which all Web pages are written. SHTML files contain HTML with "include" instructions inserted, to generate part of the file at the moment that it is requested by a Web browser.
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HTML
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The Hypertext Markup Language is part of a family of markup languages. This group includes the Extensible Markup Language, or XML, which is growing to dominate computer-based data representation to the extent that HTML dominates Web-based data. Markup languages are not programming languages. All they do is convey how text and graphics should be represented and laid out.
Dynamic Web Pages
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HTML cannot be adapted to interactive responses. Once an HTML page has been written it stays the same forever, or until it is re-written. Dynamic Web pages adapt their appearance according to an event, such as user data entry, or a database query. An example of a dynamic web page is the response to a post. A post is where a Web page presents a form, which the user fills in and then presses a button. The button causes an action to be performed by a program on the server. Once the data has processed, it is usual to return the next screen. The displayed page should appear changed so that the user realizes that the button push worked. One option is to display a standard HTML Web page saying “Thank you, your information has been received." Customizing the "Thank you" screen requires a programming element.
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SHTML
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Server Side Includes, contained in a file with an SHTML file extension, are the simplest method for generating dynamic web pages. An SHTML file contains an almost complete Web page, but with sections called in from other files. This is called “including” them. The included files may be newly generated files produced by the program initiated by the post action. This creates an altered follow-on page, according to the user's input. SSI has a very limited command set, which makes it easy to learn.
Alternatives
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SHTML files represent the simplest way to create dynamic web pages. They are appropriate to situations where only small segments of a page are likely to change. Other methods include PHP, Perl and ASP programming languages. These three progressively offer greater customization.
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References
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