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http://www.macromedia.com/software/coldfusion/productinfo/faq/

What is MX?

We use "MX" to identify the new products that are part of the Macromedia MX product family. Each product that bears the MX mark is major new version. Together, the Macromedia MX products make it possible to build a new generation of Internet solutions.

Who should use ColdFusion MX 7?

ColdFusion MX is designed for developers building dynamic websites and Internet applications. Easy-to-use visual tools and an intuitive server scripting environment dramatically shorten the learning curve for new developers. At the same time, advanced features such as ColdFusion components, integrated debugging, XML handling, Java integration, web services, and the extensible event gateway architecture make ColdFusion ideal for developers creating complex web applications and applications that need to be accessible from mobile devices.

How does ColdFusion MX 7 run on other J2EE application servers?

The ColdFusion MX runtime environment is a Java application that takes advantage of the many powerful services in the J2EE platform to connect to databases, manage security, and process application requests. When ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise Edition is installed in the J2EE configuration on top of a Java application server, it uses that server's J2EE infrastructure to execute ColdFusion applications as pure Java bytecode. Developers can then continue to develop and deploy ColdFusion pages while easily managing ColdFusion MX server settings using the ColdFusion Administrator.

Which J2EE application servers does ColdFusion MX 7 support?

ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise installed in the J2EE configuration supports deployment on JRun (full license included with ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise Edition), IBM WebSphere Application Server, and BEA WebLogic.

Will I have to learn Java or JSP to use ColdFusion MX 7?

No. ColdFusion MX 7 fully supports ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML) and extends the ease of use and productivity that has always characterized ColdFusion. In fact, one of the goals of the ColdFusion MX architecture is to make it possible for more people to take advantage of the power of Java application servers without having to learn complex technologies, such as the Java language, JavaServer Pages (JSP), Java Servlets, or Enterprise JavaBeans (EJB).

Will I need to buy Macromedia JRun to use ColdFusion MX 7?

No. ColdFusion MX 7 provides the complete infrastructure for deploying ColdFusion applications, including an embedded server based on JRun technology. Using ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise installed in the J2EE configuration, however, does require a Java application server. ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise Edition ships with a full license of JRun 4 that can be used for deployment, or you can choose to deploy on a supported third-party J2EE server.

If I get ColdFusion MX 7, will I be able to use all of the features in JRun?

ColdFusion MX Standard 7 does not provide direct access to the J2EE APIs. Users that need access to the full range of capabilities in the J2EE platform should purchase ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise Edition which comes with a full license of JRun 4.
Note: Access to the full set of J2EE APIs is only available when ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise is installed in the J2EE configuration.

Which features of JRun does ColdFusion MX 7 support?

ColdFusion MX 7 Enterprise Edition, when installed in the J2EE configuration, enables full access to Java 2 APIs via a license of JRun.

How does ColdFusion MX 7 integrate with Microsoft .NET?

ColdFusion MX 7 provides high performance while running on Windows servers, including Microsoft Windows 2003. In addition, ColdFusion MX 7 integrates with the key servers in the Microsoft .NET product family, including IIS, SQL Server, and Exchange. ColdFusion MX 7 also provides advanced support for key Microsoft .NET framework technologies, including .NET web services and the COM component model.

http://simplythebest.net/info/programming/coldfusion.html

Web application server

ColdFusion is an application server that runs on a web server. It runs on Linux, Solaris, Windows servers and even the personal web server on Windows 98. The ColdFusion Web application server works with the HTTP server to process requests for web pages. Whenever a Cold Fusion page is requested, the ColdFusion Application Server executes the script or program the page contains. Unlike JavaScript and Java applets, which run on the client, ColdFusion runs on the Web Server itself. Scripts you write in Cold Fusion will run the same way on every browser.

ColdFusion server was developed by the Allaire Corporation to be a simple to use yet powerful alternative to Perl and other CGI technologies. ColdFusion server is a Rapid Application Development system for professional developers who want to create dynamic Web applications and interactive Web sites. It provides a fast way to integrate browser, server and database technology into Web applications. Developing applications with Cold Fusion does not require coding in a traditional programming language like Perl, C/C++, Visual Basic, Java or Delphi. You build applications by combining standard HTML with a straightforward server-side markup language, the Cold Fusion Markup Language (CFML). Cold Fusion is a markup language. It can create and modify variables and has program flow controls. It can perform quite complicated tasks. With over 75 CFML tags and over 250 custom functions any web application can be built. Input for Cold Fusion scripts often comes from a user submitting a form to a Cold Fusion template. Cold Fusion application pages handle everything from capturing data a user enters to presenting output. Cold Fusion scripts can also get their input from URL strings, CGI variables or databases. Pages with the .cfm extension are processed without the need for CGI-style URLs to specify an executable. Output from Cold Fusion scripts is typically sent to a user's web browser, put into a database, written to a file or e-mailed. Cold Fusion was designed to build complex, high traffic web sites. ColdFusion server is designed to run on multi-processor systems and allows you to build a dynamic web site that can be run on a cluster of servers.

Use ColdFusion server to build and maintain databases, process forms, make parts of your web site secure and gather or publish data. You can use it to build web applications like bulletin boards, pop mail clients, online-calendars and chat rooms. Cold Fusion scripts can be written to track hits, clicks, return visits and other valuable traffic statistics. A Cold Fusion application could consist of many application pages, depending on the complexity of your application. Each page performs specific functions in the application. Basically, any function you find on the Internet today can be built and maintained with ColdFusion server.

Databases

ColdFusion makes interacting with your database (Sybase, Oracle, MySQL, SQL or Access) simple. Using standard SQL (Structured Query Language) your web pages and web applications can retrieve, store, format and present information dynamically. If you are known with HTML, CFML (Cold Fusion Markup Language) is just one step further. Reading from and writing to servers is tag based. The <CFFILE> tag takes "arguments" which specify 'action=read/write/copy/delete', 'path=' , and so forth.

The CF tag <CFFORM> will automatically build all the JavaScript code to verify required fields before the form submits. Cold Fusion also has tags to embed COM and Java applets and servlets.

ColdFusion Components
Cold Fusion applications need the following components.

The ColdFusion Application server
The application server runs as a service under Windows NT. The application server listens for requests from the web server to process Cold Fusion application pages. You can stop or start the service.
The ColdFusion Administrator
You use the Administrator to configure various Cold Fusion Application server options, including: Cold Fusion data sources,debugging output, server settings and directory mapping.
ColdFusion Application pages
These are the functional parts of a ColdFusion application, including the user interface pages and forms that handle data input and format data output. ColdFusion makes it simple to pass data to a data source and to receive and format data for display.
ODBC Data Sources
ColdFusion uses ODBC to interact with a database therefore you can use any database that supports ODBC as a data source for your Cold Fusion applications. A ColdFusion data source can be any ODBC-compliant database, as well as an Excel spreadsheet, a text file, an LDAP directory server and others.

Set up your ColdFusion server

You'll need FTP access to a server running ColdFusion and a good editor. You'll need the following components:
Your server must have either Linux, Solaris OS or a Windows operating System. WinNT Server is best.
A Database utility such as Microsoft Access, Oracle, Sybase or Microsoft SQL. MySQL is an open source alternative for your database needs.
A Web Server such as Apache, MS Personal Web Server or Microsoft IIS.
A copy of Cold Fusion and a good text editor.
1. Install your database.

Cold Fusion works well with these databases:.

Access
Oracle
SQL
MySQL
Sybase
2. Install your web server.

3. Install ColdFusion server.

CGI Variables

ColdFusion makes it easy to interact with the Common Gateway Interface (CGI interface). There are many useful applications for the information stored in CGI variables. The list of CGI variables ColdFusion makes available.

ColdFusion CGI Output
CGI.server_software Microsoft-IIS/4.0
CGI.server_name simplythebest.net
CGI.gateway_interface CGI/1.1
CGI.server_protocol HTTP/1.0
CGI.server_port 80
CGI.request_method GET
CGI.path_info /examples/cgi/index.cfm
CGI.path_translated c:\web\cfhub\sample\cgi\index.cfm
CGI.script_name /sample/cgi/index.cfm
CGI.query_string
CGI.remote_host 210.63.88.100
CGI.remote_addr 210.63.88.100
CGI.auth_type
CGI.remote_ident
CGI.content_type
CGI.content_length 0
CGI.http_referer http://simplythebest.net/sample/
CGI.http_user_agent Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 5.01; Windows NT 5.0)


ColdFusion resources
Allaire the official ColdFusion site.
Allaire ColdFusion Developer Center
Allaire relational DB Design a multimedia tutorial.
Allaire Security Zone All the security issues regarding ColdFusion can be found here.
ColdFusion Fundamentals
Cold Fusion Conference Central
AskMe.com a ColdFusion forum.
CCIS Cold Fusion documentation files (pdf).
CF Advisor ColdFusion news, tutorials and bulletin board.
CFCustomTags Over 50 ColdFusion custom tags.
Cold Fusion Brazil
ColdFusion Hub reference, articles and tutorials.
CFMasters ColdFusion related news and links, forum and chat.
CFObjects.com object framework for ColdFusion.
Experts Exchange ColdFusion bulletin board.
Four-Runner developers resources and help in ColdFusion programming and design.
House Of Fusion mailing lists for ColdFusion.
IntraFoundation CFX tags.
Netsystems a complete guide.
Raymond Camden Cold Fusion Development
Team Allaire ColdFusion news, forum and tutorials.
Webmonkey ColdFusion tutorials and articles.
Web Programming with CF ColdFusion functions and SQL commands.