Commercial astrological service

Astrological chart for your website
commercial on-line service

Examples of Use

Example 1 (view): Simply insert the chart into your webpage as two lines of HTML-code, as in this example::

The first line contains IMG-tag of picture with the astrological chart, generated by script "usc_chart.pl", which calculates and draws this chart. The second line contains the astrological data as a HTML comment. Correspondence between the chart and the data is determined by te chart identificator, which is marked above in red.

Detailed description of parameters, used when accessing the script and setting astrological parameters, is given in the interface description.

A number of parameters can be set by default, as shown in the next example.

Example 2 (view): In this example only necessary parameters are set, and default settings are used for the chart size, background color, date, time and house system:

If the astrological data for the chart does not include the date and time, in this case transit chart is drawn for the current time, i.e., for the time when the visitor's browser addresses the script service for the chart picture.

An experienced webdesigner can instantly say that browsers will have problems with cashing pictures. Indeed, most browsers, when viewing the picture page for the second time, will not show a new picture, but an earlier picture, saved by the browser in cash.

Example 3 (view): This example shows how to use paratemer "rnd" and JavaScript to avoid problems with cashing pictures by browsers and how to get a refreshed transit chart. Astrological data, as in previous examples, is located on the chart page as a commentary line:

Drawing the chart and procedures for its refreshing are contained in a separate JS file, inserted on the webpage as one line:

Please, see contents of example3.js file below:

var ucs_chartsrc = 'http://www.urania.ru/cgi-bin/ucs_chart.pl';
var ucs_uid = 'u0044'; // User ID
var ucs_chartid = 'ex3ch1'; // Chart ID
var ucs_chartsize = '600';
var ucs_chartbackgr = 'transparent';
var ucs_delay = 60 * 1000; // Chart refreshing every 60 seconds
//-----------
document.writeln('<img name=chart src=' + newchartsrc() + ' width='+ ucs_chartsize +' height='+ ucs_chartsize +'>');
setTimeout('setnewchartsrc()', ucs_delay);
//-----------
function newchartsrc () {
var rnd = Math.round(Math.random() * 1000000000);
return ucs_chartsrc + '?uid='+ ucs_uid +'&sid='+ ucs_chartid +'&size='+ ucs_chartsize +'&backgr='+ ucs_chartbackgr +'&rnd=' + rnd;
}
//-----------
function setnewchartsrc () {
document.images.chart.src=newchartsrc();
setTimeout('setnewchartsrc()', ucs_delay);
}

In this example we use standard function setTimeout to make the browser call the handler (the function setnewchartsrc), every minute. This handler assigns to parameter "scr" the new value of URL source address. Thanks to random meanings of parameter "rnd" in this address, the browser is forced not to take the chart from cash, but address the astrological service script and obtain new chart picture.

Example 4 (view): This example shows how to use several charts on one page. We draw two transit charts in Placidus and Koch systems. The astrological service does not restrict the number of charts per page; you only have to remember, that astrological charts are pictures of 10 Kb and more, and it takes some time for the browser to load them.

The chart is drawn by JavaScript-function chartoutput, which has ony one parameter, chart ID. This function, as well as the procedures for refreshing the charts, are contained in a separate file example4.js. Please, see its contents below:

Procedures are set so that, at every refreshing, parameter "rnd" has the same non-zero value for both charts, thus speeding up the chart drawing by cashing astrological data.

This is how it is done: in order to to draw the first chart, the browser addresses the astrological script, which reads the astrological data source for this chart. During this procedure the service reads astrological data for all the charts and stores it in a special cash. Parameter "rnd" is the key to this cash, and when the browser addresses the service for the picture of the second chart, there is no need to read the data source again, and the astrological data for this chart is taken from the cash.

Example 5 (view): This example shows how to use JavaScript language to view the list of astrological charts.

Elements of the "charts" list have values from "chart01" up to "chart10", which are used as charts' IDs. The chart is drawn with the help of function setnewchartsrc, which is called from the onChange handler of the "charts" list. Function "setnewchartsrc" recognizes the current chart ID and calls the astrological service for chart picture refreshing.

As in above examples, all JavaScript constants and procedures are contained in a separate file example5.js (please, see its contents below).

Note 1: This is the first example of the use of an external astrological data source: in this case it is a simple text file "example5.data" with the astrological data for all the charts on the list. When setting the "data" parameter for adressing the service, please, note the following:
a) the data source should be in the same domain as the page with the charts;
b) it is necessary to state the full path to the source within this domain.

Note 2: Parameter "rnd" has the same non-zero value of 1. Because of this, the service addresses the data source only when drawing the first chart. Data for the rest of the charts are taken from the internal data cash. Moreover, since the URL-address of the chart picture remains the same, for next viewing of the chart most browsers will take this picture from its cash, without addresing the chart drawing service.

This was the simples example of a static HTML-file with a fixed chart list. Programmers, experienced in work with dymanic pages will have no problems with creating astrological charts lists which can be edited and will be able to apply the astrological service to already existing data bases.

Example 6 (view) - This example shows the simplest dialogue form which allows to draw the astrological chart for the chosen moment. Here CGI-interface is used. Processing of the form data and generating the chart page is done in PERL (please, see the text of this script), but other dynamic technologies can be used, e.g., ASP.

Brief algorithm description: the script receives the field values of the form and remorizes it in a data source file in the format, corresponding to the astrological service interface; the chart ID is generated at random in order to avoid confusion when several visitors view the chart page at the same time (for the same purpose the source data file contains data for several recent charts). Then the script generates HTML-code of the chart page and returns it to the browser. Request parameters ("sid" - chart ID and "data" - data source) of the astrological service clearly define, where the service should look for the chart data.

This example allows you to create an intercative astrological chart page; you only have to add the necessary field (name, geographical location, e-mail, etc.), and verification of the data entered

Urania's Astrological Online Service Center tel./fax: +7 495 624-7124, e-mail: webmaster@urania.ru

Urania's Astrological Online Service Center
tel./fax: +7 495 624-7124, e-mail: webmaster@urania.ru