Chapter 51: Working with ColdFusion MX Variables

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Overview

The templates you've created so far have used only two types of variables: the form variable, in which a user types information into a form box, and the query variable in which <cfquery> is used to fetch records from a database and make the results available as variables within your template. But as you begin to envision ways to use ColdFusion in your own projects, it's likely you've realized that you'll need other ways to get variable data in and out of your templates.

In this chapter you'll be introduced to several other types of ColdFusion variables, and you'll get a close look at two of the most common ones: the URL variable, a variable used to pass information from one template to another via URLs; and the list variable, a special type of "complex" variable capable of holding more than one data element. You'll also learn about some tools ColdFusion offers for working with the various variable types and how to use them to create common applications, such as "drill-down" displays and basic keyword search engines.

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