Mapserver <=> ArcIMS <=> MapXtreme, A similar question...

[Stephan Dunning]

>Does anybody here have experience with both Mapserver and ArcIMS?
>Do you have any comments you'd like to share? What do you think of
>them? Which is better? etc.

Along the same lines...

Here's a link to the National Cancer Institute's Interactive Mapping site
(powered by MapXtreme):
http://map4.mapaccess.net/cgi-bin/hsrun/nci/NCI/MapXtreme.htx;start=CheckPas
sword

This is a good example of the functionality I'd like to acheive with our
site.
Much of it I have already accomplished or at least feel I can figure out
how.

But, the things I'm uncertain on are:
*	
*	A SQL Query window allowing advanced queries to be run against our
MSSQL Server DB, and then creating a temporary mapfile to display the
results "on the fly"
	It sounds like this may be possible using perl, but I'm not
positive.   Maybe javascript, java, VB, etc. could accomplish these things?
*	Choosing the number of categories/ranges for a choropleth map
*	Gradient color choices for a choropleth map/legend
*	Range breakout options (i.e. Equal Interval, Quantiles, Natural
Breaks, etc.)

I  may not need to accomplish these task in the immediate future, but
knowing that they are possible is my goal at this point.
Thank you for any input!!

Stephan