Chapter 11

A better solution is to use a templating system. There are many templating 

systems available, most of which would meet this challenge with ease. However, 

CGI::Application includes support for HTML::Template,

4

 and the two have been 

specially designed to work well together.

5

 Listings 11 4 and 11 5 show how the 

exact same output could be generated using HTML::Template.

Listing 11 4. Message Entry Screen Implemented with HTML::Template

sub _edit {

  my $self = shift;

  my %options = @_;

  # load template for edit screen

  my $template = $self >load_tmpl( edit.tmpl );

  # include reply_id in hidden field if replying

  $template >param(reply_id => $reply_id) if exists $options{reply_id};

  # return template output

  return $template >output;

}

Listing 11 5. Message Entry Screen Template File edit.tmpl

  
Enter Your Message Below

    Name: 

    Subject: 

    Message Body

4. I wrote HTML::Template while working for Jesse Erlbaum, the author of CGI::Application, at 

Vanguard Media (http://www.vm.com). It is, of course, available on CPAN!

5. However, if HTML::Template isn't your tool of choice, using an alternative templating system 

is as easy as implementing a replacement for the load_tmpl() method in your subclass.

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