Arrays/Serialize????

Anon

HELP! I am setting the following array in one of my web pages:

$position_number = 0
while($a_row = mysql_fetch_array($result))
{
$position_number++;
$position[$position_number] = array($a_row[id], $position_number);
}

Once this array is set, I have 80+ member IDs and position numbers loaded into the $position[] array. My problem comes when I want to create a link to a new webpage and send the entire array in the link. Someone told me to use serialize/unserialize, which I have tried to do, and upon logging the results in a file, I notice that after the serialize function is used, I get a value similar to the following (but longer) in the serialized variable:

a:59:{i:1;a:2:{i:0;s:7:"1197801";i:1;i:1;}i:2;a:2:{i:0;s:7:"5067401";i:1;i:2;}i:3;a:2:{i:0;s:7:"4097901";i:1;i:3;}i:4;a:2:......

So I know it seems to be doing SOMETHING; however, in the new page, when I use the unserialize() function, this value is not converted back into the original multi-dimensional array. Rather, it completely empties the variable so that the returned value is "" or NULL or any other value which you could consider to be completely WRONG considering the expected output.

Obviously, I am doing something completely wrong here.... Someone please help me!!! :-(

Thanks,
Nate

Anon

Not sure exactly what you're trying to do, but whenever I use queries that return multiple rows, I always work with the data inside the while loop:

$file = fopen("file.txt", "w");
while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($row)) {
  $id = $row["id"];
  $other_var = $row["other_var"];
  fwrite($file, $id . "," . $other_var . "\n");
}
fclose($file);

Just an example...

Anon

Thanks for the input; however, the assignment process I use works just fine for me. I have the $position[] array as mentioned before which has successfully been populated with 80+ names.

e.g., $position[1][0] = 1234567 (member id); and $position[1][1] = 1 (position in list)

My problem is when I try to serialize this array and unserialize it, I keep coming up with an empty variable. Why is the serialized variable not being converted back into a multi-dimensional array when I use the unserialize() function?

e.g.:

//the following returns the number 80
$number_of_elements = count($position);
print($number_of_elements);

//convert array to byte-stream
$serial = serialize($position);

//the following prints the byte-stream version of the $position array
print($serial);

//the following SHOULD convert $serial back to the same multi-dimensional array format as $position:
$back_to_array = unserialize($serial);

//but instead, returns a variable with no values:
print($back_to_array);

//the following returns the number 1, instead of the expected 80
$number_of_elements = count($back_to_array);
print($number_of_elements);

Does this make a little bit more sense? Hopefully this will give a better picture of what is happening. Again, the values are being stored just fine with my while() statement, but it is in the conversion to byte-stream data and back to PHP format that things are going haywire... somebody please help me!!!

Thanks guys,

Nate

jeembo

Did you ever find an answer? I've run into the same problem and so far no one has a solution.

Jim