Why does JavaScript's document.lastModified() not work in ASP files?

ASP is compiled when the user requests the file, so browsers report the time the HTML was generated, not when the ASP file was saved. Here is some code 
 
VBScript: 
 

<%      thisfile = Request.ServerVariables("SCRIPT_NAME")      thisfile = Server.MapPath(thisfile)      set fso = CreateObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject")      set fs = fso.getfile(thisfile)      dlm = fs.datelastmodified      set fs = nothing: set fso = nothing      Response.Write("Last modified: ")      Response.Write(formatdatetime(dlm,1) & " " & formatdatetime(dlm,3))  %>

 
JScript: 
 

<script language=jscript runat=server>      var thisfile = Request.ServerVariables("SCRIPT_NAME");      thisfile = Server.MapPath(thisfile);      var fso = new ActiveXObject("Scripting.FileSystemObject");      var fs = fso.GetFile(thisfile);      var dlm = fs.DateLastModified;      Response.Write("Last modified: " + dlm);  </script>

 
Of course, when you add this script to a file and save it, the dateLastModified value will become "now()" by definition. 
 
If you have a common include file, you could put this code in THAT file without changing the calling file. See Article #2072 if you want the last modified time of the include file instead.