Included file seems inert??

[Anon]

This may seem like a stupid question but I need to ask it anyway...

I have a form that submits to $PHP_SELF. I have an if statement at the top of this form that includes another page that validates the form fields if the form has been displayed before using a hidden field in the original form.

It appears that the validation outlined in the included file is not happening. It is as if PHP is not running the included file.

Is there something I need to know about including files in this way? Should I be using the require() function instead?

[[deleted]]

First, you should be making sure that the include() file is indeed being included.
Put something like:

echo 'include file included';

at the very top of your include file.

Your method of using include() files sounds just fine.