Maintaining FORM data after refresh or redirect

binarylime

Attention all PHP coders...

I haveith a question...

I have a page (written in HTML/PHP) that contains a simple form that asks various questions. Once the questions are answered, the user presses a submit button that POSTS all the information to another PHP script that checks for errors. If any errors are found, it redirects back to the original page and tells the user what they did wrong....

BUT ALL THE DARN FORM FIELDS ARE BLANK.

Are there any headers or cache controls I can include in my code so that when a user refreshes, is redirected, or hits the "back" button that all of the data they entered in my form (input's, textarea's, etc) will remain there?

Thanks.

stolzyboy

easiest thing to do is tell them the error and spit out the form again, like (not coded correctly, just for example)

if (check for submission)
{
if (errors)
{
tell them error and spit out form with form fields filled in with $_POST['whatever_form_field_name_was']
}
else
{
do whatever you were gonna do it no errors
}
}
else
{
give them form initially
}

dankstick

Try this little script out...

<?
if(!$HTTP_POST_VARS){
echo show_form();
}else{
if(is_data_not_ok($HTTP_POST_VARS)){
echo show_form($HTTP_POST_VARS);
}else{
echo "IT IS ALL OK!!!!";
}
}

function show_form($vars=False){
if(is_array($vars)){
extract($vars);
echo '<p>'.is_data_not_ok($vars).'</p>';
}
return "<form action=\"$PHP_SELF\" method=\"post\">".
"Your Name: <input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" value=\"$name\" /><br />".
"<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Gimme!\" /></form>";
}

function is_data_not_ok($vars){
if(is_array($vars)){
extract($vars);
}
if(!$name){
$message = "You need to fill in a name!";
}
return $message;
}

?>

OR you can try out session variables or cookies. Use those if you really want the data to be preserved after refreshes and browser closing.

binarylime

Well, the script would work, but since I post to a seperate page that error checks, I lose the form info when I come back.

So, I'm just having to add all the variables to the session cache and if the user did not supply the appropriate information, my form fills everything in based on the session cache.