There's a way to do this using "pushlet" technology, but it's rather complicated (involving Frames, JavaScript, and persistent browser connections).

The idea behind a pushlet is that a hidden frame keeps a long-running HTTP GET going to a server. The server dribbles out JavaScript commands, which get interpreted and executed by the browser as they arrive. These commands invoke JavaScript routines that are embedded in either a parent window or in another frame. Typically, a side-effect of this invocation is to refresh part or all of some visible frame.

This collaboration requires that the server-side keep a long-running connection. Most off-the-shelf web servers will time connections out.

KnowNow, Inc. pioneered this technology (though they didn't invent it). They also recently started a SourceForge project to release some of their code publicly.

A google search on "pushlet" might turn up more usable info.

I did something similar but different way back when I first started doing web stuff - except with client side server pull. My approach was to use a timer to reload an empty sub-frameset that wouldn't show up in the browser's display but served as a vehicle for Javascript.

Makeshifts last the longest.

To be honest, it sounds to me if you are looking for information on using NPH (non-parsed header) scripts, using a content-type such as multipart/mixed or multipart/x-mixed-replace.

Perhaps these links may help:

• Google search of perlmonks.thepen.com for "NPH"
• Google search to the web for "nph headers"
• Google search to the web for "multipart/x-mixed-replace multipart/mixed"
• "An Exploration of Dynamic Documents," from Netscape
• Listing of MIME types, from a document at the University of Toronto

Hope that helps some. I'd be interested to hear what you find, if you're willing to report back on it.

If your desire is to have one (or more) small parts of the screen update without the whole screen refreshing, you could try using iframe (and/or layer) tags around the area(s) to be updated and use meta refresh tags on the pages displayed there.

If it's only limited components which have to change, check out OpenThought by Eric Andreychek. It's at CPAN.

OpenThought is an interesting engine for communication between the web server and web page.

Thanks for the plug :-)

For those who haven't used it before, OpenThought is a web application framework which allows you to update portions of the screen without reloading the page.

   If it's only limited components which have to change

OpenThought has grown a lot over the last year. There used to be a limitation that form elements were the only visual items which could be updated without refreshing the screen. However, that has now been extended into any HTML item with an "id" tag. Basically, that could be anything :-)

You're also able to send in JavaScript code from the server, access existing JavaScript functions and variables, and sessions are automatically managed for you -- no more need for cookies or adding session id's to the end of each url. It's good stuff :-)

There's a version in CVS that supports mod_perl 2.x and has some significant improvements in the installation system. It will hopefully be released within a few days. Good luck!
-Eric

--
Lucy: "What happens if you practice the piano for 20 years and then end up not being rich and famous?"
Schroeder: "The joy is in the playing."

Why don't you want to use the meta refresh technique?

Update The "old version" of Royalscore updates for me, but that also uses the meta refresh. If the link to Royalscore you provided updates for you, I'd guess it was some javascript hackery (there sure is a lot of it in the page).

DHTML?

Jenda
Always code as if the guy who ends up maintaining your code will be a violent psychopath who knows where you live.
   -- Rick Osborne

Edit by castaway: Closed small tag in signature