Server-side scripting always occurs on the server and as a result, it will produce outcomes that are more consistent. Additionally Server Side Scripting offers enhanced security and all of the information is available for manipulation and analysis.
The Main Languages for Server Side Scripting are:
Perl: A mature, cross-platform language
ASP: A Windows-based framework
PHP: A cross-platform, open-source language
Java: A cross-platform programming language
Perl has been around since the beginning of the World Wide Web. Perl is wonderful at organising text from various sources and merging them to form complete documents, which is precisely what is involved in server-side web development. Versions of Perl are available free for all major operating systems.
Active Server Pages (ASP) is not a language. More exactly, ASP is a framework that lets you combine one of a number of scripting languages - VBScript and JavaScript being the most popular choices - and SQL for accessing databases together with an expandable set of software components. ASP can respond to user input in a form, send customised pages to users based on preferences, and design web pages driven from a database.
PHP has gained a large following among programmers with its familiar syntax and comprehensive function library. PHP is a very capable language, with a large array of built-in functions to do everything from tracking user sessions to generating dynamic content.
Java is perhaps the most powerful platform for server-side web development. From small Java programs (Servlets) that handle page requests to JavaServer Pages (JSPs) that combine HTML with custom tags and Java code, to Enterprise JavaBeans (EJBs), software components with complicated abilities to carry information seamlessly across servers and networks to accommodate distributed applications.
All can produce dynamic data on the fly, which brings us to The Web and Databases.