From: Philip Hallstrom <ruby@...>
Date: 2006-10-25T13:03:16+09:00
Subject: Re: Best way to automate web browser tasks?

>> curl?
>> 
>> seriously - do you have to do it via firefox?
>> 
>
> No, I *don't* have to do it via FF or any other browser.
>
> Can curl do that sort of thing? I've never used it
> except for simple sucking-down of pages.

Yes.

-F/--form <name=content>

(HTTP) This lets curl emulate a filled in form in which a user  has
pressed  the  submit  button.  This causes  curl to POST data using the
content-type multipart/form-data according to RFC1867.  This enables
uploading of binary files etc. To force the content part to be be a
file, prefix the file name with an @ sign. To just get the content part
from a file, prefix the file name with the letter <. The difference
between @ and < is then that @ makes a file get attached in the post as
a file upload, while the < makes a text field and just get the contents
for that text field from a file.

Example,  to  send  your  password file to the server, where password is
the name of the form-field to which /etc/passwd will be the input:

curl -F password=@/etc/passwd www.mypasswords.com

To read the files content from stdin insted of a file, use
- where the file name shouldve  been.  This goes for both @ and <
   constructs.

You  can also tell curl what Content-Type to use for the file upload
part, by using type=, in a manner similar to:

curl -F "web=@index.html;type=text/html" url.com

See further examples and details in the MANUAL.

This option can be used multiple times.