Order By Clause with different headings

myraleen

ok...
Here's the thing
i have a table, with 8 different fields
username
division _id
sys_dba
hq_dba
div_dba
active
email
id

this table is set up with a global order by clause "users.username"

Now, this part i understand fully, and have the ability to make them asc or desc, but only based on the username.

I have set up the headers for the table of these fields as links, and with that when a viewer clicks on say the link division_id all the information is then ordered by that field column.

I'm sure it's easier then i'm thinking of it, but could someone please point me in the right way?

Does it have something to do with putting an order by clause where the fields are now links?

thanx

Sxooter

You can do something like this:

$orderbys = array(
  "username",
  "division _id",
  "sys_dba",
  "hq_dba",
  "div_dba",
  "active",
  "email",
  "id ");

then have each link be something like:

href=./thisfilename.php?orderby=0 -> username
href=./thisfilename.php?orderby=1 -> division_id
href=./thisfilename.php?orderby=2 -> sys_dba
href=./thisfilename.php?orderby=3 -> hd_dba

and so on for each heading.

then, you build your query like this:

$query = "select ";
$query.= implode(", ",array_values($orderbys));
$query.= "from $table order by ";
$query.= $orderbys[$orderby];

Something like that. Note I didn't test any of this, so it's yours to play with, no warrantees implied or otherwise, do not use in water deeper than your ankles, results not typical, your results may not be the same as those in this advertisement... you get the idea.

🆒

Sxooter

I just wanted to point out how I used indexes of arrays for everything here. I.e. you should never do something like:

$value <- Value from a user filled form

select * from table order by $value;

because this lets people try to insert SQL into your database engine by trying to escape from the value and back into SQL. I.e. it's a good way to get hacked.

No matter what someone feeds me in my previous example, the actual field names are fixed in stone by my program, and the user doesn't get to try new ones I haven't defined by changing a get URL and throwing it at the program.