Until recently, I only had the vaguest of ideas of what mod_rewrite was, and I certainly had no clue about how to use it. So, when I started designing this site, I decided to delve into the wonders that are the mod_rewrite Apache module.

So, what is mod_rewrite for?

Simply, mod_rewrite is used for rewriting a URL at the server level, giving the user output for that final page. So, for example, a user may ask for http://www.somesite.com/widgets/blue/, but will really be given http://www.somesite.com/widgets.php?colour=blue by the server. Of course, the user will be none the wiser to this little bit of chicanery.