ColdFusion FAQs
Without a doubt, the most commonly asked question about ColdFusion is "What the heck is it?" This, then, is the logical starting place for FAQs on the subject:

What is ColdFusion?
ColdFusion is a three-part application server for construction and delivery of scalable Web applications that integrate browser, server, and database technologies. Built-in tools speed the development process; ready scalability offers reliability and functionality. Open integration with a wide range of technologies such as databases and
e-mail, and a variety of security features make it possible to build complex, secure systems quickly and with relative ease.

What are the three components of ColdFusion?
ColdFusion 4.0 is made up of:

1. CF Server

- the platform for delivery of ColdFusion Web applications

2. CF Studio

- an integrated development environment with a wide range of tools and editorial capabilities for creating ColdFusion applications

3. ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML)

a tag-based, scripting language for building complex, interactive applications for ColdFusion servers.

Who would use ColdFusion?
ColdFusion can be used at just about every level from departmental intranets to large scale enterprises. Easy to use tools make it a natural for new programmers, while advanced features are well-suited to development of complex Web applications. While ColdFusion is most commonly used by development teams, a single-user edition of CF Server is included with the Studio package to accommodate the individual programmer. For more details about ColdFusion uses and users, select Who Uses ColdFusion? on the Table of Contents at left.

What operating systems does ColdFusion support?
ColdFusion was the first Web application server
on Windows NT, and both server and tools are available for Windows 95/98, Windows NT, and Solaris. Support for HP-UX was to be made available in the first quarter of this year (1999), and plans for a future release supporting Linux have been announced.

What Web servers are supported?
Without clustering, CF Server works with any server that supports ISAPI, NSAPI, Apache API or CGI. With clustering (used on very large volume sites) CF Server is currently more limited, working only with IIS (Internet Information Server) on Windows NT, and Netscape Enterprise Server on Solaris. Expanded support was to be made available in early 1999.

What is CFML?
ColdFusion Markup Language is an advanced
tag-based scripting language for building powerful interactive Web applications. With a syntax very similar to HTML it is easily learned, integrates tightly with both HTML and XML, and is compatible with Java, JavaScript, C++, VBScript, etc.

What is WDDX all about?
WDDX is what allows Cold Fusion to access data and move it around efficiently and dynamically. Web Distributed Data Exchange is an XML term used to describe complex data structures like arrays in a generic fashion in order to move them between different application server platforms, and between servers and browsers using only HTTP. WDDX turns any kind of data into a chunk of text (which is then known as a WDDX packet) that can be passed between environments (e.g. from ColdFusion to JavaScript, or from a COM-enabled environment like Visual Basic to ColdFusion). The process of creating WDDX packets is called serializing, while deserializing returns the packet to its original form. Serialized data is first enclosed between WDDX tags, then Header tags, then Data tags. A very simple WDDX packet would look something like this:

<WDDXPacket version='0.9'>
<HEADER></HEADER>
<DATA>
<STRING>Hello, World!</STRING>>
</DATA>
</WDDXPACKET>

Is ColdFusion well-regarded in the hi-tech community?
It is, indeed, and is the recipient of the New Media Magazine HyperAward for 1999. New Media purports to force their 'winners to walk through fire' to qualify, for what that's worth.
More of ColdFusion's many awards are shown in the left-hand margin.