Technical report. Using a world wide web server as a local organizer for protein and DNA sequences

We have used a local World Wide Web (WWW) server to organize protein and DNA sequences that are used frequently in our laboratory. WWW server programs are available for most computer platforms and are easily set up with minimal computer skills. This approach allows for the easy retrieval of sequence data, which can then be used as input for other analysis programs. This format is especially simple to use in conjunction with WWW database searches. The sequence files may be served to the "public" Internet or kept private by requiring a password for access. Other advantages are (i) sequences can be accessed from multiple computer platforms using the appropriate WWW-browser; (ii) files can be accessed remotely from any computer on the Internet; (iii) only a single sequence format is used, simplifying the updating and archiving of data; and (iv) links to remote files can also be served in addition to local files.