Web browsers simplify accessing information, sometimes by entering a website’s URL or using a search engine. Query strings in the address bar contain variables passed to web servers for information retrieval and can be used to access applications and search boxes on websites.
The web browser has revolutionized computers and the information made available using them. Sometimes using a web browser is as simple as entering “www.somewebsite.com” into the address bar and hitting enter (or clicking the GO button). Many times this will get any computer user where they need to go and nothing else will be needed.
Other times, a web surfer may visit a search engine when the search query is entered and the surfer clicks the search button the item in the address bar is no longer very friendly. Consider the following example:
To search the Internet for malted milk balls, using Google, enter the string “Malted milk balls” and click on the search button.
The address bar changes when results are returned to display the following: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Malted+Milk+Balls&btnG=Search
The part after the last slash (/) is called the query string. A querystring is a URL containing a list of variables that are passed to the web server to retrieve information. In the case of the above example, the querystring tells the Google web server to search the database for English (hl=en) and query the database for Malted+Milk+Balls (q=Malted+Milk+Balls). The last variable passed is the button used to find the results (btnG=Search).
If the Google search button on the home page was clicked, the btnG= part of the query string would read something like btnG=Google+Search.
Query strings may not seem very useful, but they can help access applications from other pieces of code and allow web page jumping. For example, some web pages now include their own Google search boxes. These boxes work like the ones shown on Google.com by simply submitting a query string with s= to the Google search engine.
The use of query strings can also be used to build a search for a particular site or search engine in the search engine dialog of both Internet Explorer 7+ and Mozilla Firefox. These browser features allow you to use any website with a search box from your browser without visiting the actual search page. Query strings help make this possible.
Another way to use a query string is to enter http://www.google.com/search?q=fun+and+games into your browser’s address bar. The result should return results for fun and games. Pass the query string “fun and games” to the google.com search application.
A querysting is just another way to access applications on the internet. Many times they may not be noticed, but other times they may allow additional access to web-based services and databases.
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