query a database, save to a file...

[kit_Karson]

Good Afternoon Folks!

 

I am quite green in the gills on php... I have learned enough to create a real basic webpage to pick NFL teams, and playing around with that.

 

However my work requires that I search various sections of land to determine if a site of cultural significance is located within said section of land. I can tell from the following snippit of code that this is a php form to query the database:

 

<form method="post" action="nrcs-f.php">

<table border=0>

 

  <tr>

    <td align=right>Township (formatted as '001N', '023S', etc.):

    <td><input type="text" name="twp" size=4>

    <td align=right>Range (formatted as '004E', '089W', etc.):

    <td><input type="text" name="rg" size=4>

    <td align=right>Section (1-36)

    <td><input type="text" name="section" size=2>

  <tr>

    <td colspan=2 align=center><input type="submit" value="Submit query">

    <td colspan=2 align=center><input type="reset" value="Clear query">

 

Because the number of sections that I would have to check (around 7,000) I had asked for a copy of the database so I could easily create a map of sensitive locations. I have not heard a yes, no, maybe, piss off etc from them (that was a year ago I asked).

 

So my question is this:

Is it possible to utilize a php script to read the form information from a text file and submit the form, then save the resulting page/query result?

 

[cags]

A tentative yes. What you wish to do sounds theoretically possible and not entirely complicated. Having said that I'm not convinced on the morale/ethic stance of basically ripping the content en masse from a site.

[kit_Karson]

My problem is that I have to manually search this site each and every time we do any work, that takes a lot of time, time that can be used on more productive tasks. They ask us to build a "database" from previous searches, but will not provide us any assistance in building this database other than access to searching theirs via this portal.

 

I could do it by hand for all 7,000 sections and obtain the same result, but that would take much, much more time.

 

All I want to do is map what sections contain sensitive areas and what sections do not...

 

Actually, all this information is available on a public website (not by logging in) in a less user friendly way. However I can understand the ethical concerns and will leave it at: Yes it is possible.

 

Thanks