Scripts are how you specify the evaluation and publication of your data. The retrieve stage retrieves a set of metadata. Evaluate and publish process that metadata as part of the flow of information out to the user.

       In the evaluate stage, you can specify one (or many scripts) that examine the metadata for relationships. For example, if you are retrieving a set of Internet RFCs, you might use the evaluate stage to examine references from one RFC to another and compute a luminosity value: which RFC is cited most often by another. Or, in the evaluate stage, you might examine the fact that one RFC might obsolete another and build a set of linkages so that the user interface can then do an appropriate action such as greying out the obsolete RFCs and stacking them under the most current one.

       Technically, the retrieve stage is bringing back a set of nodes that are part of a directed graph. In the evaluate stage, you are specifying the linkages between those nodes.

       The publish stage, which consists of a single script, is where you format the meta-data for the particular user interface you are working with. That might be a JavaScript array, or an html page, or perhaps even an email message or a VRML world. Your choice!

       If you look at the space.cgi definition, you will see there are two ways to call scripts: you can specify a script that is stored in the SpaceServer (actually, the script is in a file system or web tree and the pointer to the script is in the SpaceServer). Alternatively, you can specify a URL (with optional username and password) and point to a script anyplace on the net. The current Builder (the software module that executes the pipeline from retrieve to evaluate and publish) that we are making available to you is written in TCL, so your scripts will be running in a safe TCL environment.

       To get you started, we've provided a series of generic scripts.

Scripting Classes
Evaluation Scripts		In the midst of the retrieve-evaluate-publish paradigm resides at least one evaluation script. Learn more about them here.
Publication Scripts		The final operation performed on the search results before handing them back to the requestor is the publish operation.

      The best way to do scripting is to work by example. The following pointers should provide a good working foundation to get started with space.cgi.

Scripting Examples
space.cgi interface		The best way to do scripting is to work by example. The space.cgi description walks you through the parameters and includes a few script calls
examples		You can see a few "cooked" examples in forms in the examples section
EDGARspace		Don't hesitate to visit EDGARspace and view source to see how we're using the capabilities of space.cgi to build a better EDGAR.