Simple Question - Data Input

[BrandonSi]

Do I need to use HTML to get user input from a browser? I'm writing a simple expense tracker and I want the data input to all be on one line, consisting of amount, category, description, payment method and date.

I've got the mysql db set up fine, and I put together code snippets to get a drop-down box to show the various categories available.. but when I try to create a simple text box for a user to input amount or description I get lost.. everything I've found on the web seems to use HTML forms.. I just wanna keep my straight .php file.

Here's my code for the drop-down box.

[code]<?
$dbh=mysql_connect ("localhost", "branthan_et", "enterprise") or die ('I cannot connect to the database because: ' . mysql_error());
mysql_select_db ("branthan_expensetracker");
$sqlOptions = "SELECT * from categories";
$resultOptions = mysql_query($sqlOptions);

echo '<select name="selectName">';
echo '<option value="">--Select--</option>';
while($opt = mysql_fetch_array($resultOptions))
{
echo '<option value="'.$opt['categories'].'">'.$opt['categories'].'</option>';
}
echo '</select>';
?>[/code]

Do I have to echo the HTML? If so could you share an example of how I would do that please? Basically I want to get all the input into variables and create a new record in the table. I can handle the sql code, but the simple stuff is really messing me up!

[trq]

Of course you have to use html. There is no such thing as a form in php.
[code]
<form action="handle.php" action="POST">
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="category">category
  <input type="text" name="description">description
  <input type="text" name="payment">payment
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="date">date
</form>
[/code]
That will post your data to [i]handle.php[/i] which will then be available in the $_POST array.

[BrandonSi]

[!--quoteo(post=386110:date=Jun 20 2006, 01:22 PM:name=thorpe)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(thorpe @ Jun 20 2006, 01:22 PM) [snapback]386110[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
Of course you have to use html. There is no such thing as a form in php.
[code]
<form action="handle.php" action="POST">
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="category">category
  <input type="text" name="description">description
  <input type="text" name="payment">payment
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="date">date
</form>
[/code]
That will post your data to [i]handle.php[/i] which will then be available in the $_POST array.
[/quote]

Thanks.. That was kind of a dumb question, but I haven't ever worked with php.

Now how would I integrate a drop-down box that's populated from my mysql table into that one category field? I've got a php script to do it that executes fine from the browser as .php, is there a way to link a HTML form so that it gets its data from execution of that script?

[AndyB]

Like this:

[code]<form action="handle.php" action="POST">
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="category">category
  <input type="text" name="description">description

<?
$dbh=mysql_connect ("localhost", "branthan_et", "enterprise") or die ('I cannot connect to the database because: ' . mysql_error());
mysql_select_db ("branthan_expensetracker");
$sqlOptions = "SELECT * from categories";
$resultOptions = mysql_query($sqlOptions);

echo '<select name="selectName">';
echo '<option value="">--Select--</option>';
while($opt = mysql_fetch_array($resultOptions))
{
echo '<option value="'.$opt['categories'].'">'.$opt['categories'].'</option>';
}
echo '</select>';
?>

  <input type="text" name="payment">payment
  <input type="text" name="amount">amount
  <input type="text" name="date">date
</form>[/code]

[BrandonSi]

That's what I was thinking, but isn't my db password going to showup in the html source?

[trq]

No....php is parsed on the server. Only the outputed html ends up on the client.

[BrandonSi]

[!--quoteo(post=386119:date=Jun 20 2006, 01:52 PM:name=thorpe)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(thorpe @ Jun 20 2006, 01:52 PM) [snapback]386119[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
No....php is parsed on the server. Only the outputed html ends up on the client.
[/quote]

Thanks!

Does anyone see any formatting issues with that dropdown box php code? The output was fine when run as a .php but now I think the echo commands are screwed up.. maybe a quotation mark issue?

dropdown code
[code]
<?
$dbh=mysql_connect ("localhost", "branthan_et", "enterprise") or die ('I cannot connect to the database because: ' . mysql_error());
mysql_select_db ("branthan_expensetracker");
$sqlOptions = "SELECT * from categories";
$resultOptions = mysql_query($sqlOptions);

echo '<select name="selectName">';
echo '<option value="">--Select--</option>';
while($opt = mysql_fetch_array($resultOptions))
{
echo '<option value="'.$opt['categories'].'">'.$opt['categories'].'</option>';
}
echo '</select>';
?>[/code]


Output from browser
[code]
'; echo '--Select--'; while($opt = mysql_fetch_array($resultOptions)) { echo ''.$opt['categories'].''; } echo ''; ?> [/code]

[trq]

Are you sure you have php installed and configured properly on the server?

[redarrow]

always save files with a .php exstention ok

example

test.php

[BrandonSi]

[!--quoteo(post=386212:date=Jun 20 2006, 07:30 PM:name=redarrow)--][div class=\'quotetop\']QUOTE(redarrow @ Jun 20 2006, 07:30 PM) [snapback]386212[/snapback][/div][div class=\'quotemain\'][!--quotec--]
always save files with a .php exstention ok

example

test.php
[/quote]

God I feel dumb. I was saving it as an .html, since it had .html code in it. [img src=\"style_emoticons/[#EMO_DIR#]/unsure.gif\" style=\"vertical-align:middle\" emoid=\":unsure:\" border=\"0\" alt=\"unsure.gif\" /]

Thanks, it works perfectly now!