Ooble

I wouldn't use C - it'd be more trouble than it's worth. Python, however, would be an excellent choice if you already know it - you just need to make sure your host supports it.

__________________
Me :: You :: Them

Mocker

AJAX is probably the way to go if you want to avoid frames. Even if you do CGI with python or C, or do php scripts, you will need something like AJAX or to use frames in order to load data without reloading the page, which you stated was your original goal. If you wanted to you could also look into Flash programming, or Java applets, but those are even more likely to depend on the clients settings than Javascript with AJAX

__________________
#programmingforums relay - http://thegupstudio.com/cgi-bin/pforelay.cgi
freelance scripts - http://ryanguthrie.com/index.html

Dameon

AJAX is often used without a good reason. You limit your audience to those with very modern browsers with all the bells and whistles turned on and just as importantly break the functionality of the Back button. I wouldn't count on getting your content indexed, either. That's one thing with maps or emails, as Google did, in which the interface needs to be updating in pieces as stuff changes. In your case, PHP includes or similar may be a better bet.

Alternatively, you can investigate the approach I have been moving towards on my own site. The menu (at least on my local copy) is loaded separately by the browser using the XSL document() function and treated as if it was in the original doc tree, allowing it to be transformed as appropriate. Since XML + XSL doesn't work so well with search engines or all but a few browsers, feel free to use a standalone XSL engine/tool to transform your content using your XSL stylesheets as it changes. What you get is a pile of static html pages that you can update or mass-update easily. XMLStarlet works great for the purpose. Your nav will still reload, but the bandwidth is minimal, with maintenance as easy as with frames.

__________________
MD5(sig) = bcef75433db02e9ad9bf81d6f7c5c270