PHP Wont Parse

[StormTheGates]

Hey all, I have an odd problem that I hope someone here has had and knows how to fix.

 

I recently installed Apache, PHP, and MySQL on a new server we have at work. Everything works fine, oddly enough, except for PHP parsing.

 

You see the following code:

 

<?
echo "test";
?>

 

Will display the PHP code, while

 

<?php
echo "test";
?>

 

Will echo "test". The problem seems to be that PHP isnt parsing the <? directive as a start command. Does anyone have any idea why this might be?

 

Thanks for any help.

[Ruzzas]

I believe its a certain setting in PHP. I haven't any clue which one though.

[Ruzzas]

whoops, found it:

 

short_open_tag

http://php.net/manual/en/ini.core.php

[wildteen88]

Always use full PHP (tag) syntax, that way issues like this will never arise.

 

Tags such as <? ?> or <?= ?> will only be available when a setting called short_open_tag is enabled.

[PFMaBiSmAd]

Don't use the short open tags. It results in non-portable code because you won't always be on a server where you will have the ability to turn the setting on.

 

You have probably already wasted 10x times more time messing with this on one server setup than you ever saved in typing time by leaving off three letters a few times on a page.

 

If you simply use full opening tags, you won't ever need to waste any of your time messing with this problem when you put your code onto a different server. And if you ever expect to publish any of your code for others to use, you CANNOT use short open tags in it because the people using that code won't necessarily have the ability to turn on the setting on their server.

[StormTheGates]

whoops, found it:

 

short_open_tag

http://php.net/manual/en/ini.core.php

 

You are both a gentleman and a scholar. Fixed it right up, thank you.

[StormTheGates]

Don't use the short open tags. It results in non-portable code because you won't always be on a server where you will have the ability to turn the setting on.

 

You have probably already wasted 10x times more time messing with this on one server setup than you ever saved in typing time by leaving off three letters a few times on a page.

 

If you simply use full opening tags, you won't ever need to waste any of your time messing with this problem when you put your code onto a different server. And if you ever expect to publish any of your code for others to use, you CANNOT use short open tags in it because the people using that code won't necessarily have the ability to turn on the setting on their server.

 

Relax boss, I didnt exactly get a choice. The government hands me the code, I just make it run on our servers.

[PFMaBiSmAd]

Ummm. You can search and replace the tags to fix the problem forever in any piece of code.

[StormTheGates]

Ummm. You can search and replace the tags to fix the problem forever in any piece of code.

 

You assume that the government wants things functional and backwards compatible. The last time I mucked with their code they had a hissy fit. Trust me I know <? are bad tags, Ive seen benchmarks where the <?php is much faster. But sadly they are paying the bills so I just make our server run it.