PHP and PERL are the prefered scripting languages, although MS products can be used on a MS machine.
Forms and scripting are not that hard. Just click on view source and you can see the code which creates most pages.
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PHP and PERL are the prefered scripting languages, although MS products can be used on a MS machine.
Forms and scripting are not that hard. Just click on view source and you can see the code which creates most pages.
How does that help? Xtremenovice said: I am not really comfortable in any web software yet…
Again, Dreamweaver doesn't generate scripts of any kind so there is no "source" to "view". You can make DW plug-in towards scripts but it doesn't create anything.
If it's not "that hard" – sling something together instead of shooting your mouth off. The Web is due for a new form script with a captcha or other bot slapper. Hey, you can be famous! You will also help tens of thousands of people.
Risto
Risto, we're all on the same side here and it's not a John Wayne film..
Paul,
I have always been more of a Clint Eastwood kind of guy, but yes, you are right.
Sorry John, I'm having a crappy day and I took it out here, where I shouldn't have. I normally pray for telemarketers but they have stopped calling... :( I didn't put it very nicely. However, my point stands, if you have a solution, why not supply it? :confused:
Risto
Nice work on the Avatars Risto - I like the one with a red hat, smile and big tie best.
Hi Tim, I have used this a few times. It makes a nice form you just have to fill in certain things but the text provided tells you how to do it. But I would recommend you get a gmail account and put an email link there, quicker and easier. Gmail has a good spam filter plus you can use google analytics for all the info about your webpage and who is hitting on it etc. tao
Hi,
Thanks for all the feedback.
What I don't quite understand is why a form with no protection will result in lots of spam, but posting a simple email link will not?
Thanks,
Tim.
Simple email links *will* be harvested and result in spam.
Email addresses in websites are harvested by spam bot/spider programs that are constantly searching the web to find email addresses.
Not sure where you might have got the idea simple (text) email links are safer??.
I know sledger has already commented, but i think a summary of the problems might be useful:
Form mail scripts are problematic because:
1) The location of the mail processor is present on the html page and therefore vulnerable to exploits.
2) Form processing often includes facilities for forwarding submitted forms to arbitrary addresses. If this is so, it becomes useful to spammers by potentially allowing them to use the form processor to forward spam to their own chosen addresses.
3) Any form can be used by automated bots to send spam to you - they simply update the form content with spam and send it to you.
Countermeasures:
The 'type what you see' in the box mechanism tries to stop automated system sending form content to you. It works by building a random image showing distorted numbers/letters and expects the user to identify them and can check that the image has been recognised. This is quite hard for automated bot systems to do.
Spam filters on incoming form content and restricted email forwarding.
Email addresses embedded in web pages are problematic because
1) Bots can scan html pages and extract email addresses. They are then used for sending spam and often circulated.
Countermeasures:
Spam filters on incoming email.
Use images for email addresses and or provide email addresses as text but mangled so that the respondent has to alter the address before using it: myEmail "at" someplace "dot" com. Not a good solution because it stops the instant 'click to email' functionality.
Don't know if that makes things clearer or not.
Paul
This forum is fantastic, really knowledgable users.
Thanks Paul, much much clearer.
I have found a great flash form tutorial;
How about a flash form, is that less vulnerable to spam?
Thanks for all your input guys.
Tim.