When I first started coding web …. way back in the day, you would have a <form> page and this would POST to an ACTION page, then this would send you to a RESULT page. The problem with this was the users experience was not consistent and they would often have to go and click on a link to a return to main page. This was the world of the web back at the end of the 90s in Web 1.0. it was an ugly clicky world using dial up …. remember that !

Come the turn of the century a small group of people started to write logic of the action page and result page into the <form> using URL variables and condtional code. I saw this and felt enlightened. It was like old skool VB programming all around a form and its inputs. These recursive pages meant that every <form> just posted back to itself (so the index.cfm page would post back into the index.cfm page and no action pages or other such were required. This was a much more easy way to manage pages and data flow in webpages as a coder, but required a lot more variable management and conditional coding. There is lots of ifexists(var)  What you have to remember is that when the page first loads you want to expose forms and input boxes. Second time around you want to expose results or error feedback or allow the user to redefine. Its easy, but the trick is allowing for the variables and getting your head round it.

Its a skill I am relearning and I am enjoying every moment!