Help req. Reading data from MySQL db with PHP

[Dariusz]

I have PHP code (below) which reads data from a MySQL format database. The
problem I am having is trying to find out when the last ID entry was made.
When the script is executed, the $gbID is supposed to be read and display
the last entered ID number ($How_many_entries) - the ID number is entered /
updated automatically in another PHP script which deals with data entry to
the database.

But instead of displaying the result of the query, it displays the ID
number ($How_many_entries) as "Resource id #4", and looking around the
search engines, no page makes particular sense as to what I've done wrong.

Does anyone know how to get the $gbID number from the database and into
$How_many_entries so I can perform some math work on it?

Thanks.

Dariusz

<?
$DatabaseName = "Guestbook";
$table_to_look_for = "entries";

$connection = @mysql_connect("localhost") or die("<B>Could not connect to
MySQL: </B>".mysql_error());

mysql_select_db($DatabaseName);

// get all tables in the database
$result = @mysql_list_tables ("DatabaseName");

// Display database entries in reverse order (remove 'DESC' to have forward
display of results)
$sql = "SELECT gbID, gbDate, gbIP, gbURL, gbName, gbComment FROM
$table_to_look_for ORDER BY gbid DESC";

$result = @mysql_query($sql, $connection) or die("<B>Problem reading from
database: </B>".mysql_error());

while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($result))
{
$gbID = $row['gbID'];
$gbDate = gmstrftime('%A %d %B %Y at $T',strtotime($row['gbDate']));
$gbURL = $row['gbURL'];
$gbName = $row['gbName'];
$gbComment = nl2br($row['gbComment']);

$display_entry .= "$gbID:<BR><B>Posted on: </B>$gbDate &nbsp;<B>IP:
</B>Logged<BR><B>Posted by: </B>$gbName<BR><B>Personal website:
</B>$gbURL<BR><B>Comment: </B>$gbComment<BR><BR>";
}

$sql = "SELECT last_insert_id($gbID) FROM $table_to_look_for";
$How_many_entries = @mysql_query($sql, $connection);

// $How_many_entries = $How_many_entries / 5;
echo "Entries: $How_many_entries<BR>";

etc....

[Jørn-Inge Kristiansen]

why not just use the mysql_num_rows($query) function that php offers
"Dariusz" <[e-mail]> wrote in message
news:xs****************@wards.force9.net...

I have PHP code (below) which reads data from a MySQL format database. The problem I am having is trying to find out when the last ID entry was made.
When the script is executed, the $gbID is supposed to be read and display
the last entered ID number ($How_many_entries) - the ID number is entered / updated automatically in another PHP script which deals with data entry to
the database.

But instead of displaying the result of the query, it displays the ID
number ($How_many_entries) as "Resource id #4", and looking around the
search engines, no page makes particular sense as to what I've done wrong.

Does anyone know how to get the $gbID number from the database and into
$How_many_entries so I can perform some math work on it?

Thanks.

Dariusz

<?
$DatabaseName = "Guestbook";
$table_to_look_for = "entries";

$connection = @mysql_connect("localhost") or die("<B>Could not connect to
MySQL: </B>".mysql_error());

mysql_select_db($DatabaseName);

// get all tables in the database
$result = @mysql_list_tables ("DatabaseName");

// Display database entries in reverse order (remove 'DESC' to have forward display of results)
$sql = "SELECT gbID, gbDate, gbIP, gbURL, gbName, gbComment FROM
$table_to_look_for ORDER BY gbid DESC";

$result = @mysql_query($sql, $connection) or die("<B>Problem reading from
database: </B>".mysql_error());

while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($result))
{
$gbID = $row['gbID'];
$gbDate = gmstrftime('%A %d %B %Y at $T',strtotime($row['gbDate']));
$gbURL = $row['gbURL'];
$gbName = $row['gbName'];
$gbComment = nl2br($row['gbComment']);

$display_entry .= "$gbID:<BR><B>Posted on: </B>$gbDate &nbsp;<B>IP:
</B>Logged<BR><B>Posted by: </B>$gbName<BR><B>Personal website:
</B>$gbURL<BR><B>Comment: </B>$gbComment<BR><BR>";
}

$sql = "SELECT last_insert_id($gbID) FROM $table_to_look_for";
$How_many_entries = @mysql_query($sql, $connection);

// $How_many_entries = $How_many_entries / 5;
echo "Entries: $How_many_entries<BR>";

etc....

[Andy Hassall]

On Sun, 28 Sep 2003 21:32:51 GMT, [e-mail] (Dariusz) wrote:

I have PHP code (below) which reads data from a MySQL format database. The
problem I am having is trying to find out when the last ID entry was made.
From the 'when' above, it sounds like you want date and time?
When the script is executed, the $gbID is supposed to be read and display
the last entered ID number ($How_many_entries) - the ID number is entered /
updated automatically in another PHP script which deals with data entry to
the database.
But now you say you only want the last allocated ID number?
But instead of displaying the result of the query, it displays the ID
number ($How_many_entries) as "Resource id #4", and looking around the
search engines, no page makes particular sense as to what I've done wrong.
That would mean you're using a result set resource directly in a print
statement, rather than fetching rows from it.
Does anyone know how to get the $gbID number from the database and into
$How_many_entries so I can perform some math work on it?
Another confusion from your choice of variable name; the last allocated ID
number may have no relation to how many entries there actually are, for various
reasons.

When the last entry was entered: SELECT MAX(date_field) FROM table. Relies on
there actually being a date field in there, of course.

The last allocated ID: This is part of the table metadata in MySQL, which you
can get from SHOW TABLE LIKE 'name'. A less reliable method could be SELECT
MAX(id) FROM table, but the last allocated ID could (a) have been deleted or
(b) be well below the most recent ID, if the auto_increment number had been
reset for that table.
// Display database entries in reverse order (remove 'DESC' to have forward
display of results)
$sql = "SELECT gbID, gbDate, gbIP, gbURL, gbName, gbComment FROM
$table_to_look_for ORDER BY gbid DESC";

$result = @mysql_query($sql, $connection) or die("<B>Problem reading from
database: </B>".mysql_error());

while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($result))
{
$gbID = $row['gbID'];
$gbDate = gmstrftime('%A %d %B %Y at $T',strtotime($row['gbDate']));
$gbURL = $row['gbURL'];
$gbName = $row['gbName'];
$gbComment = nl2br($row['gbComment']);

$display_entry .= "$gbID:<BR><B>Posted on: </B>$gbDate &nbsp;<B>IP:
</B>Logged<BR><B>Posted by: </B>$gbName<BR><B>Personal website:
</B>$gbURL<BR><B>Comment: </B>$gbComment<BR><BR>";
}

$sql = "SELECT last_insert_id($gbID) FROM $table_to_look_for";
This will not work. LAST_INSERT_ID returns the ID value that was generated in
the previous INSERT statement involving an AUTO_INCREMENT column, for this
connection only.
$How_many_entries = @mysql_query($sql, $connection);

// $How_many_entries = $How_many_entries / 5;
echo "Entries: $How_many_entries<BR>";

You have to fetch from the resource returned by mysql_query, as you did above.
You can't use it directly, it's just a resource handle.

--
Andy Hassall (an**@andyh.co.uk) icq(5747695) (http://www.andyh.co.uk)
Space: disk usage analysis tool (http://www.andyhsoftware.co.uk/space)

[Dariusz]

In article <bl**********@tyfon.itea.ntnu.no>, "Jørn-Inge Kristiansen" <jo******@stud.ntnu.no> wrote:

why not just use the mysql_num_rows($query) function that php offers

Perfect, sorted the problem out. Thanks.

Dariusz

[Dariusz]

In article <9m********************************@4ax.com>, Andy Hassall <an**@andyh.co.uk> wrote:

On Sun, 28 Sep 2003 21:32:51 GMT, [e-mail] (Dariusz) wrote:

I have PHP code (below) which reads data from a MySQL format database. The
problem I am having is trying to find out when the last ID entry was made.

From the 'when' above, it sounds like you want date and time?

I apologise for the slight wording mistake - wrote the posting late at
night... I was after the last inserted ID number.

But instead of displaying the result of the query, it displays the ID
number ($How_many_entries) as "Resource id #4", and looking around the
search engines, no page makes particular sense as to what I've done wrong.

That would mean you're using a result set resource directly in a print
statement, rather than fetching rows from it.

Thanks for this information, cause I looked all over and could not find a
proper explaination of what the error meant.

Thanks for your help, very useful.

Dariusz

[Jørn-Inge Kristiansen]

well, the mysql_num_rows function doesn't find the last inserted id, but how
many posts there is, if you have deleted a post or something like that, the
last inserted id, and the number of posts in the table will not be the same.

or to define it more, it's how many rows/posts you get out of the query
you're doing. (wich in this case is all the posts in the table)


"Dariusz" <[e-mail]> wrote in message
news:%A*****************@wards.force9.net...

In article <bl**********@tyfon.itea.ntnu.no>, "Jørn-Inge Kristiansen"

<jo******@stud.ntnu.no> wrote:

why not just use the mysql_num_rows($query) function that php offers

Perfect, sorted the problem out. Thanks.

Dariusz