The Maypole web application framework can be used on two levels: first, as a simple way to add an interface to a database (and not much else besides), and second, as a toolkit for building more sophisticated web applications. In principle, there is a continuum of possible usages between these two levels, but it seems best for the purposes of teaching to entirely separate them.

In the first part of this tutorial, we’re going to quickly dispatch the first level of operation, putting a front-end onto a database. Not only is this useful in its own right in many cases, it both gives a demonstration of the power and flexibility of Maypole, and provides a useful basis for showing how Maypole applications can be expanded.

As many of you know, I’m not really a Perl programmer any more; instead, I’m a missionary. It’s a bit of a strange job, since I don’t actually get paid, but I get funded by various supporters. I have a very bad memory, and need to be reminded who my supporters are, how much they pay me, and how I need to get in touch with them to let them know what I’m doing and how their money is being used. This sounds like the ideal job for a little relational database, and so I drew up the following schema:

Download pdf Web Applications With Maypole