Quite frankly, yes. CGI is not an easy protocol to get right. Many programs that are published try to replicate the CGI module's functionality—and do so poorly. They are riddled with security problems and incompatibilities; plus, they do not follow Internet Standards as they should. In Hour 16, "The Perl Community," you learned why "reinventing the wheel" is a bad thing. CGI is an incredibly hard wheel to reinvent, and neither you nor I would get it right the first time or the hundredth time.
The Perl CGI module included with the standard distribution has been tested by hundreds of thousands of programmers and is very robust. Use it.
As I explain in Appendix A, you can install the module for just your use, if necessary. You don't have any excuse not to use it. All the examples in this book require the CGI module, and the explanations assume you have it installed. |