keeping POST values when moving between pages

tatjana

Hi-I have just started using php at work-I was kind of roped in to help on a project 2 weeks ago and I am in at the deep end!
I am building a shopping basket and my problem is that I lose the values of certain Form Post variables when I jump between php pages.
The sequence of pages is below:
orderDetails --> Credit Transaction --> Confirmation/Error Page

OrderDetails holds all the values I need as hidden form variables, the transaction page is not displayed and passes a return code to the Confirmation page. This page also has a form with the same hidden variables as orderDetails. On error you post back to orderDetails but all the values have disappeared (as displayed by phpinfo())
I am mega-😕 - I think the values are lost between the transaction page and the error page as nothing is displayed by phpinfo() when I arrive at the last page. When I post back, the variables are there but empty.
How do I keep the values from Page 1 to Page 3 and back again?
I just don't know where to look in the manuals??
And the person here is off sick!!!
Many thanks

Tracer

Try using sessions (cookies) to store your vars in.....This would be the most effective method.

tatjana

I had thought of this but I keep getting told by the more experienced programmers that I can just keep it all in hidden form variables. I just want to know how to do it so that I can actually learn something new and not keep bugging the others

Tracer

I just want to make sure I have this clear. Without using sessions you need to pass variables through a FORM.

1) User inputs data and presses submit
2)Variables are passed to page x
3)Page x is not displayed to the user and has no submit button?!
4) Page x points to page z
5) No vars on page z

Why not call all of page x as either an include or a function of page z? I Am not sure why you would want to do this in tewo seperate PHP scripts?

if you add the line

inlude(x.php) ;
before any of the code on z.php it should work fine

tatjana

you are correct-page y just does all the database insertions, credit card authorisations etc and sends a code to page z.
I will try the include -do I have to change Submit on the first page to go to page z instead of page y?
thanks again

Tracer

yes.... structire of the first page (a.php)

then (c.php)

<?
include(b.php)

//the rest of your code
?>

then all the form vars submitted to c.php will be availabel within b.php

Hope this helps

tatjana

thanks for being so helpful-I am sure that I will posting again so bye for now

PhaZZed

I think you should use sessions, they are much more secure, just register the variables as session variables, or just dump all the data into a database and just make sure all the dumped data is linked to a shoppers account number!