phppup

Thanks @Barand. I hadn't seen the update until now and had been thinking about how to make the appointment time unique (since all must begin on the hour). I was considering querying the table in a manner such as //for a rough example in a given week SELECT timeslot from APPT where day=Thursday //get the data into a useable variable $a = "9AM"; if (exists ($a)){ $a = $a."_2"; if (exists ($a)){ //set appointment as a unique string 9AM_2 }else{ echo "pick a different time"; Not sure if this approach would be reasonably effective. Opinion?? It about the need for an additional table, but I will try to understand @mac_gyver example and see if I can get it to work for me too. Is a TRY/CATCH necessary either way?

As a rudimentary example, I want to allow users to set an appointment. I'm considering a drop-down that will display 1,2,3, and 4 o'clock. There are 2 appointment slots available each hour. After the 2nd appointment is filled for a specific time, the option will be removed from the drop-down selection. I've essentially gotten the necessary mechanics figured out and plan to eliminate a timeslot when a SELECT returns 2 as the number of current appointments for a specified time. My question is: How can I ensure that additional appointments are not set from the time that the first appointment refreshes the drop-down to the time the option is removed. I realize this is a thin possibility, but theoretically, 10 users could have the opportunity to grab the second slot. If they all hit enter simultaneously, how can I prevent an overloaded schedule (since the time itself is not unique)?

@Barand I think I'm more concerned that I deciphered RTFM so quickly. LMAO But I've found that empty inputs are SET as such, and can trip up the intentions of my code. Checking for NOT BLANK seems more effective. Am I mistaking something here?

I'm not exactly sure of your question, but I know that getting help can sometimes be tough on the weekend, so I'll try. Ahhhh, you posted as I'm typing. If this solved your problem, then good. Personally, I've had issues with ISSET and prefer something like if($_SESSION['owner'] != "") In this case, it does not become active alongside your validation if a required field is left empty.

I have a list of items and want to verify that each is unique before doing further processing to the list. Is there a built-in function or simple method to verify this? My thought was to put each item into an array and then create a function to run through each element compared to the entire list, but that seems a bit cumbersome. Any better alternatives?

I'm not familiar with the subject, but I can share some ideas: To expand on ginerjm comment, perhaps you create a table that populates as users join the chat. Then, use that same information from an array to disconnect these people. Or, can the chat room simply be destroyed? Is this a general chat or a private conference? If the average conference lasts 1 hour, can you set an automatic logout/end of season for 90 minutes? This will provide a buffer but also unsure that users are thrown out when their time is done.

@Barand So I guess at this point my question is, what is the correct syntax to use within the option tag while creating it with PHP? It seems simple enough under "normal conditions", but I am echoing echo "select name='amt_".$i."'>".$quantity."</select>"; the drop-down and using PHP to populate the options through a loop. I can't put an echo inside an echo, can I? I understand that some re-working will be necessary, but my goal was to create the for as a large PHP echo without direct HTML usage.

It looks like you have to find the LENGTH of each string to start. Then create an array for each variable that will hold the values of each position. Then use a loop to assemble a new STRING created from $a[0]$b[0]$a[1]$b[1].... etc.

@Psycho Thanks for the outline of information. I've begun to understand and get comfortable with the effectiveness of arrays (I think... LOL). This is an attempt at using arrays meaningfully. Thanks for the guidance. @Barand I think I follow what you are doing here, and I'm trying to confirm it to my code. However, my understanding of PHP-shorthand is not very good. Can you elaborate/simplify what this actually means, please. I realize that: qtyOptions is calling the function and $_POST['qty'][1] will provide a value as $current What is <?= doing? What do the ?? mean?

I'm not sure if I've got a syntax or an implementation problem, but I've created a form entirely in PHP. Essentially, each item is pulled from an array and named with the associated key index. Each item is attached to a drop-down menu containing integers 0 thru 10 (indicating the quantity for an order). On submission of the form, I want the selected values to be retained. If other fields of the form are not complete, error messages will display, and I want these values to be retained rather than resetting. for($i = 0; $i < 11; $i++){ $quantity .= "<option>".$i."</option>"; } for($i = 0; $i < count($arr); $i++){ echo "select name='amt_".$i."'>".$quantity."</select>"; } How can I have each drop-down retain it's value after a (failed) submit effort?

Thank you @Barand @kicken @requinix It's a lot to sift through. i had another thought and would appreciate some feedback on it. Previous lessons have indicated that trusting user data can be unwise. And in this instance, the possibility of duplicate file names from users submitting images of BIRDS is probably high. Therefore, renaming the files is very likely. If a user is required to authenticate before upload, and is then entered into a separate table with an auto increment, can I use the following methods successfully: auto increment field is 'order' rename image as order + TIMESTAMP (perhaps only month.day.time) [within calendar year] In this way, having the order as the leading digit will automatically set a very large range for each user. My thinking is that it will also create a set of numbers that will be sequential as a group. Overkill or good idea? Pitfalls? (If I use this, it is technically a hybrid of everyone's assistance. Who should get the solution mark?) *Perhaps we can create a "community achievement trophy" for teamwork within a thread*

How about a database table with a column called "logins". Add 1 to the user each time there is a successful login. Then, if logins == 3, create a warning message that indicates they've reached the limit. (Heck, you can even use this to create a message at every visit to indicate how many visits are remaining for that user.)

@kicken How would I do that? I ultimately want to be able to refer back to the sets of images and know that this set were from Bob and this set were from Joe (as a neat sequenced set within a sequential group). In this way, if images 8,9, and 10 are outstanding, I can easily give credit to whomever is responsible for image 7 through 12 because there are no shuffled results

I'm not entirely clear about what you mean. If I try to determine the number of the last loaded file, won't I still be in the same predicament?

I skimmed this thread from the beginning, and while I am not nearly as experienced as those who've been assisting you, I have encountered many issues in coding. My suggestion to you would be to create a NEW simple, form with ONLY one field. <form> <input type="text" name="first"> <input type="submit"> </form> Add a very basic PHP script to create a table with the one field. Load the code with ERROR detection to give you clues to every potential defect. Once you are able to successfully populate the database table with a piece of data from the form, you can THEN expand the code to include additional fields, validation, etc. Create a new version with each effort so that you always have a working template to return to and then just continue to build on the foundation until you have what you wanted. It may take longer, but you will learn and get a better understanding for the future. Good luck.

I want to allow users to upload images to a directory. I want the images renamed sequentially and lumped together with each upload. Eg: If Bob uploads 3 images to the BIRD directory, the files will be named BIRD1, BIRD2, and BIRD3. When Tom then uploads 6 images to this directory, they will be sequential from 4 to 9. And when Jane adds 5 the numbering will run from 10 to 14. I suspect that in each instance I will need to SELECT an "image quantity" column and initiate a number sequence from the sum at that point. But my question is more about maintaining the integrity of the sequences. If Tom and Jane upload somewhat simultaneously, how can I control the outcome to prevent Tom from having numbers 4,5,8,11,13 and 14 with Jane's images interspersed in the sequence? Obviously the two uploads will be competing based on image sizes, network speed, etc. How can I keep the separate batches organized as a group?

how can I retrieve the single variable that I want from the function? A similar example for what I'm attempting to accomplish $seq=""; function doThis($num=4){ for($i=0; $i<$num; $i++){ echo $i."<br>"; $seq .= $i; } echo $seq; } doThis(); echo $seq; //get variable here How can I access the variable that is created inside the function, and use it on the outside?

Got it. One last thing. Is this only needed in PDO? Is there a procedural equivalent? Or is it defaulted?

Thanks for the explanation. And that's why I asked. Just because I "like" my code doesn't mean it's doing everything that it should be doing as effectively as it could be doing it. And I want to learn and stride to do it the right way. Aside from instances with a unique parameter,should I be doing this (try & catch) regularly with all my INSERT statements? It would probably reduce the amount of code and PHP checks (ie: input length) while putting a heavier burden on the SQL database. Is that advisable? Preferable? Learned allot. Thanks again everyone.

So, if I'm comprehending this correctly, it not do much about determining whether the unique element is available (which the SELECT will accomplish) but MORE about determining whether the value is INSERTable (which is defined in absolute terms by the field being unique).

Thanks for the input from everyone. I'm trying to digest all the info, but I'm still a bit uncertain as to why this is better than my code that checks (and prevents) the acceptance of a name that already exists. Isn't something like $sql="SELECT username from table where username = $username"; if($result = mysqli_query($link, $sql)){ if(mysqli_num_rows($result) > 0){ //BINGO! it already exists //take appropriate action } else { //proceed with the insert } doing the same thing?

Thanks for the example @Psycho What does this look like in procedural format? I've seen examples in procedural that use $ex->getMessage() Is that interchangable with getCode?

Does one bad apple (the unique value of already exists) spoil the entire insert? $firstname and $lastname (although valid) are rejected and need to be re-submitted of the $username already exists?

Finally found success after my last debacle. Now it's time to INSERT my data into a table. My data is $firstname, $lastname, $username Since the $username is UNIQUE, it seems advisable to use a try & catch statement. How do I isolate the $username to do this effectively? How is this method better than using IF statements?

I have function xyz($var0, $var1, $var2) and I want to see their values visually. I want to generate FOR-style statement to automate this process. Did creating a function with elements assigned inadvertently create an array?