With IBM's Net.Data product, you can create dynamic Web pages using data from both relational and non-relational database management systems (DBMSs), including DB2, IMS, and ODBC-enabled databases, and using applications written in programming languages such as Java, JavaScript, Perl, C, C++, and REXX.
You can think of Net.Data as a macro processor that executes as middleware on a Web server. You can write Net.Data application programs, called macros, that Net.Data interprets to create dynamic Web pages with customized content based on input from the user, the current state of your databases, existing business logic, and other factors that you design into your macro.
A request, in the form of a URL (uniform resource locator), flows from a browser, such as Netscape or Internet Explorer, to a Web server that forwards the request to Net.Data for execution. Net.Data locates and executes the macro, and builds a Web page that it customizes based on functions that you write. These functions can:
Net.Data supports industry-standard interfaces such as HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and Common Gateway Interface (CGI). HTTP is used between the browser and the Web server, and CGI is used between the Web server and Net.Data. This lets you select your favorite browser or web server for use with Net.Data. Net.Data also supports FastCGI and the major Web server APIs on multiple operating systems.