Perl Template Toolkit: Scalable Templating for the Web

by Darren Chamberlain, Dave Cross, Andy Wardley

Overview

Among the many different approaches to "templating" with Perl--such as Embperl, Mason, HTML::Template, and hundreds of other lesser known systems--the Template Toolkit is widely recognized as one of the most versatile. Like other templating systems, the Template Toolkit allows programmers to embed Perl code and custom macros into HTML documents in order to create customized documents on the fly. But unlike the others, the Template Toolkit is as facile at producing HTML as it is at producing XML, PDF, or any other output format. And because it has its own simple templating language, templates can be written and edited by people who don't know Perl. In short, the Template Toolkit combines the best features of its competitors, with ease-of-use and flexibility, resulting in a technology that's fast, powerful and extensible, and ideally suited to the production and maintenance of web content and other dynamic document systems.In Perl Template Toolkit you'll find detailed coverage of this increasingly popular technology. Written by core members of the technology's development team, the book guides you through the entire process of installing, configuring, using, and extending the Template Toolkit. It begins with a fast-paced but thorough tutorial on building web content with the Template Toolkit, and then walks you through generating and using data files, particularly with XML. It also provides detailed information on the Template Toolkit's modules, libraries, and tools in addition to a complete reference manual.Topics in the book include:

• Getting started with the template toolkit
• The Template language
• Template directives
• Filters
• Plugins
• Extending the Template Toolkit
• Accessing databases
• XML
• Advanced static web page techniques
• Dynamic web content and web applications

The only book to cover this important tool, Perl Template Toolkit is essential reading for any Perl programmer who wants to create dynamic web content that is remarkably easy to maintain. This book is your surefire guide to implementing this fast, flexible, and powerful templating system.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781449313234
Publisher:	O'Reilly Media, Incorporated
Publication date:	12/23/2003
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	592
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Darren Chamberlain is an active member of the Template Toolkit development team.

David Cross is the owner of Magnum Solutions Ltd., a London-based Perl Consultancy, and is also the author of the well-respected Data Munging with Perl.

Andy Wardley is the author of several CPAN modules including the Template Toolkit. He is a software researcher at the Canon Research Centre Europe and specializes in web-related technologies including dynamic content generation, web application frameworks, and the customization and localization of user interfaces and web content.

Table of Contents

	Preface	ix
1.	Getting Started with the Template Toolkit	1
	What the Template Toolkit Does	1
	The Templating Ecosystem	4
	Installing the Template Toolkit	8
	Documentation and Support	10
	Using the Template Toolkit	12
	The Template Toolkit Language	21
	Template Variables	22
	Template Directives	28
	Integrating and Extending the Template Toolkit	32
2.	Building a Complete Web Site Using the Template Toolkit	33
	Getting Started	34
	Template Components	36
	Defining Variables	39
	Generating Many Pages	43
	Adding Headers and Footers Automatically	49
	More Template Components	51
	Wrapper and Layout Templates	58
	Menu Components	66
	Defining and Using Complex Data	72
	Assessment	79
3.	The Template Language	81
	Template Syntax	82
	Template Variables	95
	Virtual Methods	119
4.	Template Directives	137
	Accessing Variables	137
	Accessing External Templates and Files	140
	Defining Local Template Blocks	147
	Loops	148
	Conditionals	153
	Filters	155
	Plugins	156
	Macros	158
	Template Metadata	161
	Exception Handling	163
	Flow Control	170
	Debugging	171
	Perl Blocks	172
5.	Filters	176
	Using Filters	178
	Standard Template Toolkit Filters	178
6.	Plugins	195
	Using Plugins	195
	Standard Template Toolkit Plugins	196
7.	Anatomy of the Template Toolkit	235
	Template Modules	235
	The Runtime Engine	245
	Module Interfaces	251
8.	Extending the Template Toolkit	286
	Using and Implementing Noncore Components	286
	Creating Filters	300
	Creating Plugins	311
	Building a New Frontend	338
	Changing the Language	347
9.	Accessing Databases	356
	Using the DBI Plugin	356
	Using Class::DBI	363
	Using DBIx::Table2Hash	367
10.	XML	375
	Simple XML Processing	375
	Creating XML Documents	377
	Processing RSS Files with XML.RSS	380
	Processing XML Documents with XML.DOM	383
	Processing XML Documents with XML.XPath	386
	Processing XML Documents with XML.LibXML	388
	Using Views to Transform XML Content	388
11.	Advanced Static Web Page Techniques	393
	Getting Started	393
	Library Templates	406
	Content Templates	414
	Navigation Components	422
	Structuring Page Content	440
	Creating a New Skin	455
12.	Dynamic Web Content and Web Applications	466
	CGI Scripts	466
	CGI Templates	486
	Apache and mod_perl	491
	A Complete Web Application	496
Appendix	Configuration Options	517
	Index	557