The first step in getting going with Web Connection is to install the product. Web Connection ships as a self-extracting zip file that you either download from the Web or comes on a CD.

Unzip the Web Connection Install files

Click on the EXE file and unzip the application into a directory of your choice. The file is a WinZip self-extracting file, so it should ask you to either open the file or extract the content to a directory of your choice. I suggest you extract to a directory. This first step creates the Web Connection application directories, which are where all of the source and support files get installed.

Web Connection installs a hierarchy of directories as follows:

wconnect
	classes*	-	VFP source and direct support files for the framework (required for development)
	html		-	HTML sample pages
	scripts*	-	The Web Connection ISAPI DLL and CGI executable file
	templates	-	The Management Console File templates
	tools		-	several useful support tools and classes
	wwdemo		-	VFP source for the demos that ship with WWWC
	wwThreads	-	VFP Source for the Message Board
	wwReader	-	VFP Source for the Message Board Offline Reader application
	WebControl	-	The Web Control Framework Samples
	WebLog		-	The WebLog sample application

Run the Setup Program

The next vital step is to run the Setup program which is installed into the Application root directory. The Setup.exe file should launch automatically when the unzipping completes - however if it does not make sure to run this file manually before proceeding. To do so, start Explorer, go to the Web Connection install directory and double click on Setup.Exe. The Setup program topic takes you through the installation steps - please read these topics as you step through the installation.

In case of problems

If something goes wrong during installation and your server won't work you can look at the Setup Troubleshooting topic, which describes a number of problem scenarios and attempts to take you through them. If these don't work for you you should post a message on the message board at http://www.west-wind.com/wwThreads/.

Checking out the demos

This step serves two purposes: It makes sure that the installation works and lets you see Web Connection in action with demos that you can look at and code you can step through if you choose. Make sure you run the Web Connection server (DO wcDemoMain.prg). You Should be able to navigate to http://localhost/wconnect/ to get started.

Most of the examples on the demo pages have links to show you the source code required to create that request by clicking on the [Show Code] link on the bottom of the page. At this time you can also start poking around in the code, making a few adjustments, maybe creating a new method and stepping through the code to get an idea what's involved in writing code for Web functionality.

See also: