Passing multidimensional arrays through post/get

[janroald]

Not sure if this is the right forum-cathegory, but heck...

 

//Examplified vars
<input type="hidden" name="foo[]" value="bar1">
<input type="hidden" name="foo[foomatic][]" value="bar2">
<input type="hidden" name="foo[foomatic][]" value="bar3">
<input type="hidden" name="foo[foomatic][bar][]" value="bar4">
<input type="hidden" name="foo[foomatic][bar][]" value="bar5">

 

print_r

 

Array
(
    [0] => bar1
    [foomatic] => Array
        (
            [0] => bar2
            [1] => bar3
            [bar] => Array
                (
                    [0] => bar4
                    [1] => bar5
                )

        )

)

 

Anyone knows when this feature was supported, or to what extent it is supported?

Tested on FF/IE6  POST/GET Apache/PHP4

 

 

[per1os]

I have no clue, does it work? If so what is the question?

[mjlogan]

Adding to the above, I'd use sessions.

[janroald]

I have no clue, does it work? If so what is the question?

 

Yes, it works in the context I mentioned in the start post.

The question is really to what extent this works.

In "old" times I used the [] way to transfer arrays, but I had no idea it worked with multidimensional ones too. Serializing data was, to my knowledge, the best way to transfer such data between pages, of course until sessions became an option, as "mjlogan" points out.

This way one can access all form data through only one array variable. A huge workload has been lifted from me with this.

What makes this work? Is it the browser, webserver or PHP? 

[per1os]

It is the browser/HTML.

 

Nothing fancy about that code simple HTML.

[janroald]

Obviously, the webserver/scripting language does it's part too. Since an array variable is created in php from a form string.

I'm sure this couldn't be done earlier at some point, since we used serializing to get it done.

[per1os]

The webserver always has something to do with it, unless javascript can handle that type of data, than that is browser compatibility no? But yea, one way or the other this would NOT be possible period without some type of webserver and or language to power it. I think that goes without saying.

[janroald]

Seems we kind of agree then.

My question still stands.

Does this way of passing multidimensional arrays work with all common webservers/browsers/languages? Is it a standardized way to pass multidimensional arrays?

 

I'm googling and googling, but can't seem to find references to this anywhere. Just plain old [] to send an array. Cant seem to find examples of anyone doing name="foo[bar]", which will make the array assosiative, much less name="foo[bar][]" which will make it multidimensional.

 

If this is now standard behaviour there are huge advantages to benefit from it.

[per1os]

I would try it in Javascript, if you can pull the data in javascript it should work with any webserver out there. I know if it works in JS it will work with IIS and .NET.

[janroald]

I'm not at all sure what you mean, or that you understand what I am writing here.

foo[bar] is just text with brackets on client side.

[per1os]

I understand what you mean.

 

What I am saying is that if the input above can be accessed from Javascript, chances are most webhosts/languages support the multi-dimensional array return from an input field. That is why I said do a test with Javascript and see if Javascript can access the multi-dim array.

[janroald]

Js cant access any array since there exists no array in the input fields, only pure text. Of course js can parse the text an build it's own array, but that proves nothing.

Unless you can provide an example of what your intensions are, I can only understand that what you are trying to say makes no sense at all.

In essence, the example I started with at first, will be sent to the server like this text string :

?foo%5B%5D=bar1&foo%5Bfoomatic%5D%5B%5D=bar2&foo%5Bfoomatic%5D%5B%5D=bar3&foo%5Bfoomatic%5D%5Bbar%5D%5B%5D=bar4&foo%5Bfoomatic%5D%5Bbar%5D%5B%5D=bar5

 

in php then :

 

$_REQUEST[foo] now contains the array parsed from that text string.

Whether js can access anything, has nothing to do with it at all.

 

 

[per1os]

I will do some testing and see if I cannot create what I am thinking.