[SOLVED] have single quotes in a variable

[jwk811]

i need to make a variable which is going to consist of html and the single quotes in there keep messing it up. is there a way i can make the single quotes still be apart of the variable but ignore it.. understand what im trying to do? thanks for the help!

[alpine]

Try to escape the single quotes if you are using single quotes around your variable definition

[code]
<?php

$var = 'it\'s like this';

$var = "it's like this";

$var = <<<_HTML
it's like this
_HTML;


?>
[/code]

[jwk811]

using the backslash will fix this?

[alpine]

yes, but if your variable contains a lot of html with single quotes - don't escape them all, use the latest example instad. With that you can mix both single and double quotes without any escaping.

[.josh]

yes.

if you do $blah = 'moreblah'; // with single quotes

and try to throw in a quote in there, php will think you are closing the string.  the backslash tells php to treat it as a regular character instead of a special character (something it looks for to do something...like close the string.

if you do $blah = "moreblah"; // with double quotes

you can use the single quote inside there, because php will not be looking for the single quote to close out the string.

[jwk811]

oh i see but in the html there are also double quotes so that wouldnt work either.. thats actually how i had it started.. and alpine i dont understand the last var you have listed..

[.josh]

well then you are just going to have to go through and add a \ to all of your quotes then.  And next time I suggest you be more consistent with your coding, instead of randomly using single or double quotes.

[heckenschutze]

Or break from PHP:

[code]<?php
function foo()
{
    $myvar = "bar";
?>
<b>
$look im not php :), don't have to worry bout quotes or vars :D, print vars like <?php echo $myvar;?>
</b>
<?php
}
?>[/code]

[alpine]

By using this method you can mix single and double quotes and no escaping is nessesary:
[code]
<?php

echo <<<_HTML

<table width="100%" border="1">
<tr>
  <td align="left">
    This is some $text and it's an easy way of echoing php
  </td>
</tr>
</table>

_HTML;

// or defining it

$var = <<<_HTML

<table width="100%" border="1">
<tr>
  <td align="left">
    This is some $text and it's an easy way of echoing php
  </td>
</tr>
</table>

_HTML;


echo $var;

?>
[/code]

[wildteen88]

Yes the HEREDOC syntax is recommended for this (see post above).

Note when using HEREDOC syntax do not indent or put anything else on the same line as the closing delimiter (_HTML; in the example above). Otherwise you'll get an unexpected $end error message.

Also when you use variables in HEREDOC you may need to wrap curly braces around them to help PHP out a little, especially with arrays (if yoou use them). Example:
[code=php:0]$var = <<<EOF
This is some {$var}, when using an array you also need to use curly braces {$myarray['key_here']}
EOF;[/code]