Displaying images from MySQL databases.. .

Bard09

Hi,

I'm new at PHP, and was using a tutorial available at Codewalkers.com to learn how to perform image uploading and viewing through MySQL.

The tutorial I was using is available here.

Although I was able to successfully retrieve and view images using the provided tutorial code, upon adapting it for my code I am encountering a problem. I'm supposed to retrieve the image [stored as a BLOB] along with some other form data, but instead of displaying the image, I'm just getting a large chunk of binary text.

Click here for an example of what I'm talking about.

Here is the code for the above example. I hope you can help me figure out how to get my image to display properly! I know it's possible, as I have similar code that works, but I can't put my finger on why this is happening. Here's the code:

<?php 

$db = mysql_connect(xxxxxxxxxxxxx);

mysql_select_db("Honor_Bios",$db);


$first_name=$_GET[first_name];
$last_name=$_GET[last_name];
$hometown=$_GET[hometown];
$age=$_GET[age];
$major=$_GET[major];
$anything=$_GET[anything];
$image_type=$_GET[image_type];
$image=$_GET[image];
$id=$_GET[id];

$result = mysql_query("SELECT * FROM Freshmen WHERE id=$id",$db); 
$myrow = @mysql_fetch_array ($result); 

$image_type = $myrow["image_type"];
$image = $myrow["image"];
Header ("Content-type: $image_type");
print $image;


echo "First Name: ".$myrow["first_name"]; 
echo "<br>Last Name: ".$myrow["last_name"]; 
echo "<br>Hometown: ".$myrow["hometown"]; 
echo "<br>Age: ".$myrow["age"]; 
echo "<br>Major: ".$myrow["major"];
echo "<br>Anything else: <pre>".$myrow["anything"];

echo "</pre>";
?>

Thanks in advance!

-Bard09

Pig

Probably not what you're after, but it is more efficient to store the path to your images in the database, rather than the images themselves. Just something to keep in mind.

Sorry, not sure the actual answer to your question.

Bard09

Yeah, I heard that that is more efficient, but for my purposes is not implicitly necessary.

Does anyone know why my images are not displaying correctly?

-Bard09

barand

I think the way to do it is to create the image with a separate script and display it with an img tag

hth

Norman_Graham

As Barand has pointed out, you can't just use print/echo with an image - you have to insert the image into an <img /> tag. Print expects string/integer data, not binary data.

Norm

streetsole

i dont really understand how to use the img scr tag to display the image from the database cud someone expain it with a little more detail
thanx
-newbie

Pig

get the stored URL from database, and echo it into the src

$result = mysql_query("SELECT img_url FROM table_name WHERE id='$id'");
$row = mysql_fetch_row($result);
echo("<img src=\"" . $row[0] . "\">");

fine

Use one php script pull image out of database. use <img src="pull.php?id=XX"> to show it. (don't do this 2 jobs in a single php file).
image hosting tutorial might help.

duelist

$result = mysql_query("SELECT img_url FROM image WHERE id='$id'");
$row = mysql_fetch_row($result);
echo("<img src=\"" . $row[0] . "\">");

base on coding above,this code should display image from database.did img_url stand for image url?how can i retreive image url?what should i type at img_url(bold).

thanks in advance

Roger_Ramjet

What everyone is saying here, Bard, is that once you have the image in a blob field it is just binary data - not an image file. To display the image you need to extract the binary data and save it as a file again. Only then will you be able to display it on a page.

Now, since you are going to have to re-create the image as a file, and since the blob will take up as much disk space as the original file, you might just as well forget the blob and just save the original file as a file and store the filename and path in the db. Faster all round, and much simpler as well.

PS. I don't know what the 'advantages' are that the tutorial talks about, I've never come across any.