When this variable is set to 1 (on, true, yes), the runtime automatically removes carriage return characters from data entered in HTML TEXTAREAS (multiple line entry-fields). Stripping the carriage returns from this kind of input prevents double-spacing problems, as well as conflicts that may arise if the data is used in a context that does not expect a carriage return character to precede each line feed character. Some browsers send a carriage return line feed sequence to the CGI program, and when this sequence is written to a file on operating systems that terminate text lines with line feed characters only, the file may appear to be double spaced. The default value for this variable is 0 (off, false, no).
For example, if you enter the following three lines in a TEXTAREA for a field called thetext:
Sometext line 1 Sometext line 2 Sometext line 3
The browser sends the following to the CGI program:
thetext=Sometext+line+1%0D%0ASometext+line+2%0D%0ASometext+line+3%0D%0A
If the CGI_STRIP_CR is set to 1 (on, true, yes), the runtime strips the carriage return characters so that the input line is the following:
thetext=Sometext+line+1%0ASometext+line+2%0ASometext+line+3%0A
For information about writing a CGI program in COBOL, see Launching Web Applications Through CGI in A Programmer's Guide to the Internet.