I'm not sure what you mean by 'using an image button' in this context. Your problem is that you need to pass a bunch of data between two CGI scripts (or between invocations of one program).

One way to pass information between CGI scripts is to pass things around in GET or POST fields (as you've apparently considered). But what's the problem here? If the user is going to click on a submit button, then they're submitting a form, and so the information can be passed. If you don't want the information popping up in textfields, get to know and love the hidden type of form variable. Or you might set the information from the DB as the value of a cookie when you do the fetch from the DB, and read the cookie in on successive invocations.

There are other possible solutions, but we should probably wait to see what you really meant by your question before giving solutions =)

HTH

Philosophy can be made out of anything. Or less -- Jerry A. Fodor

The earlier post is absolutely right...of course.. I wonder if you want something a little bit more basic, ie: using an image to replace the default "submit" button inside a form

if this is the case, then this snippet of HTML should work

<input type="image" name="button" src="images/bttn_download_now.gif" w
+idth="125" height="18">
[download]

This replaces the submit button with "bttn_download.gif".. the only difference that you notice is that two extra parameters, x coordinate and y coordinate of the image clicked on by the user, is passed into your script..

so, what you should do is replace the submit button with that above, replacing path to image as necessary... then, use either the GET/POST variables to populate the form elements in the next page, or use a cookie (see earlier post) or use hidden fields..
HTH

I want to use an image(ie button.jpg) instead of the default submit button that is created to submit the form.

<input type="image" src="image.gif" alt="alt_text" name="submit_name" value="submit_value">

I believe you may have left out the src attribute:

<input type="image" name="whatever" value="andever" src="button.jpg">

... but I've been wrong about what web browsers will accept in the face of overwhelming specifications before. :)

Thanks chromatic. I had realized that I left out the src attribute just after I submitted that response, and then updated it immediately.

You can do something like the following:

<form method='post' action='http:/whatever.com/foo'>
 Address: <input type='text' name='address'>
    ...
 <input type='image' name='whatever' src='url-to-image.jpg' border=0>
</form>
[download]

<form name='form_name' method='post' action='http:/whatever.com/foo'>
Address: <input type='text' name='address'>
...
<img src='url-to-image.jpg' onClick='document.form_name.submit()'>
</form>
[download]

<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="name" VALUE="John Q. Smith">
<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="address" VALUE="1600 Pennsylvia Avenue">
[download]

Alternatively, set one hidden field or cookie with a unique identifier and maintain the information on the server.

I also need to correct Masem's post, since we now know:

<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="name" VALUE="George W. Bush">
<INPUT TYPE="hidden" NAME="address" VALUE="1600 Pennsylvia Avenue">
[download]

:-)