Amidst a learning spree on semantic HTML and the ways servers communicate with web browsers, I was introduced to 'GET' and 'POST' requests.
These are HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol - the language the browser uses to 'speak' with servers) request methods, typically used for sending and receiving data in forms. They are written like this inside the HTML5 form element:
<form method="GET">
<form method="POST">The semantics behind the form element could form (see what I did there?) another lesson entirely. They are explained nicely here.
GET and POST requests can be tricky to understand because some explanations are too techincal and miss the big picture. Here are some basics:
- GET requests are the default method used by browsers, meaning that if no method is specified, a GET request will be issued automatically.
- Both methods are able to send to and retrieve from data a server, however GET should only really be used as a 'getter' for retrieving data, because using it to send data raises some privacy issues.
- GET requests send information (name and value pairs in forms) within the URL of HTTP requests, rather than in the body. This means information submitted in a form will be visible in the URL. For example, when logging into a site, sensitive information such as a password would be part of the URL.
- In addition, a limited amount of data can be displayed in a URL. This means submitted data could be lost.
- POST requests send information in a separate header file. Data sent this way is also not encrypted, but is safer.
This video gives a practical example and describes further differences between GET and POST (skip to 5:19).