-----Original Message----- From: Tom Deprez [mailto:Tom.Deprez@uz.kuleuven.ac.be] Sent: Friday, March 26, 1999 5:09 AM To: zope@zope.org Subject: [Zope] Unusual question

Hi,

This is (I think) an unusual question on this thread, but I want to ask it.

We are at the start of making an intranet, which will contain a database of procedures (how to handle some examinations etc). We want to make it able that people can query this database and get the information they want on there web-browser.

cool.

A day ago, we were confinced that PostgresSql with PHP3 (www.PHP3.org) would be the solution to this problem. This on a RedHat Linux 5.2 system with Apache as web-server. But now we've seen Zope. I'm wondering..., can Zope do the same things as PHP3?

It can do the same thing, and more. This isn't a hack on PHP3, but Zope has many more components and widgets out of the box. It's also object oriented, which helps when your components scales, or when you want your application to suddenly be stitched into four other application six months from now that you didn't forsee.

Or is this a complete different application?

PHP has it's niche. Tony 'tone' McDonald mentioned that he thought code inside HTML is elegant, and it is, but it's even more elegent when that code is for the layout of your user interface only. Mixing application code with HTML, or worse yet, making your entire HTML document one huge script, is not so elegent.

How stand Zope and PHP3 next to each other?

I believe PHP3 is a scripting language... I'm wondering : is Zope also only a scripting language? Or is it more? Is the scripting language (=Python?) more powerfull then Zope)

Zope is an Application written in a scripting language (Python) that is based on several components also written in Python and C. One of the components of Zope is Document Templates (DTML) which is also a scripting language. It's a bit complex, much more so than PHP's underlying system. Tony also mentioned that PHPs database itegration is excellent, and I'd like to add that Zope's is also top notch. A particular nice thing about Zope is it's database abstraction layer, what we call Database Adapters. You can write program for any SQL server and just change the DA when you change databases. Or your app could use two databases transparently; the DTML programmer wouldn't need to know which database is being queried, it would just be a case of calling the write SQL methods. This also give some compartmentalization. Your Python expert writes your external methods, your SQL expert manages DAs and writes ZSQL Methods, and your DTML/user interface expert uses all of these methods to layout the application.

Are there people, using PHP3 next to Zope?

Comming soon. The problem is (rumor has it) that Apache sends Zopes output directly back to the browser, not giving it a change to run through any other handlers, like the PHP one.

ps. Has Zope the capability to easely make these scripts? I mean not text-based , but in a certain IDE or RAD application?

There is a web based interface. The (IMO) ultimate programmer interface is emacs, which can use Zope with FTP (if your using ZServer).

Please, say in some simple words what Zope is and for what it can be used... I've read the web-page. But since I'm a stupid person in this field of webservers I can't understand what they are explaining.

Whew. Zope is a web application platform. It is a framework for writing applications over the web. It is more than this, because it supports more protocols than HTTP, but for your purposes you can call it a web app platform. Zope provides you with a standard set of services that your application can build on. Services include DTML, trasparent persistence of your data, interface to databases, a management interface for developing and managing your application, and a whole slew of out of the box objects for you to use (like documents, files, methods, DAs, mail transport, etc...) Many people have mentioned Python in responses to your question. Python is an incredible language, but I think the application you described can be done easily in Zope with no Python at all. All you need is DTML, some ZSQL Methods, and a good design and your done. -Michel

Thanks in advance.

Kind regards, Tom.

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