Bellerophon symbol, variation 7 jonath.co.uk
Thursday 24th Jul 2003

What the hell does all this mean:

HTTP_ACCEPT = image/gif, image/x-xbitmap, image/jpeg, image/pjpeg, application/x-shockwave-flash, application/vnd.ms-excel, application/vnd.ms-powerpoint, application/msword, */*

What is it with browsers, eh? Why do they wanna tell my web server all this stuff? I wonder how the conversation goes and what Apache says in return?

Apache: So . . . erm . . . it says here that you accept gifs, jpegs, pjpegs, flash . . . wait a sec . . . what the hell is a pjpeg?
Browser: You don't know?
Apache: No, but it doesn't matter. I don't have any of those anyway. And . . . let's see now . . . msword, ms-excel . . . hmmmm
Browser: You gonna run the script or what?
Apache: Sorry?
Browser: These are just environment variables. I'm asking you to run index2.cgi, remember?
Apache: Yeah, sure . . . It's a crazy world, eh?
Browser: What?!
Apache: Dr. David Kelly . . . what's all that about?
Browser: Just run the script please. Give me some HTML.
Apache: Prescription pain-killers . . .
Browser: I'm smelling 404
Apache: You want some HTML, do you?
Browser: Oh yeah.
Apache: That's all you care about?
Browser: Pretty much.
Apache: Ah well . . . here you go. That stretched out 1x1 gif might not come out properly though.
Browser: Yeah, whatever.

The graph to the left shows the kind of stuff I do at work. Well . . . yeah, in a way. This is the original, showing colours as they were originally.

I bought the Guardian today, full of interesting web-sites and computer/internet related stuff, and I go and leave it at M****'s. Typical. See, er, the Guardian had this article about work web-logs, so I thought I ought to offer something.

I do remember the golden rule for web-logs though: Write nothing you would feel uncomfortable telling your grandmother.

I like that.

And look . . . [out-of-date link removed. Try this one instead.]


Add your comment (or not):

Name:
URL:
Comment: