multiple submit logic

[peter_b]

Hi,

I am trying to understand what is the logic when using submit.

Can I have multiple submits on one form because I have been trying to use the following format and I guess that I am doing something wrong because after submit I keep getting the first section. I guess that I should mention that I am searching for a record and retrieving it from the mysql but after that I can't process it the way that I want to.

e.g.

section 1
form
question
submit = submit

if ($submit )
{
query record
if not available {
error
}else{
display section 2
input hidden questions
submit = update
query server
update record
if updated {
say record updated
}else{
say error at server
}
}
}

Instead of doing section 2 it just displays the error msg from section 1.

Peter

[maxpup979]

Yes--you can have multiple submits in a form--
to figuire out which one was pressed(and therefore which action should be taken) use something like...

if(isset($submit)){
if($submit=="firstval"){
#do something
}else if($submit=="secondval"){
#do something else
}
}

<form>
<input type="submit" name="submit" value="firstval">
<input type="submit" name="submit" value="secondval">
</form>

[maxpup979]

OK...tracing through your pseudocode more closely, the intent is unclear--can you please clarify? I am not sure what you are trying to do with that logic structure

[tbach2]

if your pseudo code is accurate, you are merely checking if submit has a value, not what the value is.

I would suggest using a hidden input to determine what action your script takes on submission. ie,

<input type="hidden" name="action" value="search">

// cleanse all variables...

$action = $_POST['action'];  // or $_GET...

// take action

if($action=='search') {
     // ... do your query...
     // print section2 or error
     die;
}

if($action=='submit') {
     //  submit stuff to database
     //  print success or failure
     die;
}

// print default form

This format will make it easier to keep track of what you need to do with submissions.

Relying on the value in a submit button can cause problems later on because you may change the value of the submit button, or someone may hit return instead of clicking on the button, etc. the "action" field will remain unchanged.

That being said, sometimes it is convenient to have multiple submits-- just be sure you know what the value is in each so you can check against it.

[peter_b]

Hi Maxpup979 and Tbach2,

I appreciate the info and code.

I noticed that you placed php coding before the form and inputs, is this the normal style? I am a little confused as to the processing of php and html with respect as to what happens in the sequence of events.

As for my code, yes I am requesting an input from the user and then querying the db, pulling up the info and stuffing it into hidden fields. After that I want to be able to allow changes and continue processing the data.

It's fairly straight forward but maybe the logic I am using is not adaptable to php / html but I will try it any way.

Peter

[tbach2]

Well, TIMTOWTDI (there is more than one way to do it).

You can put the html on top, but what if you want to do things with headers? Then you're screwed up because you have already sent output.

I learned this format from studying the code in phplib. They consider this format to be a standard. So, I started using it-- and I discovered that it has saved me a LOT of grief. I can go back to old scripts and pick up the idea instantly instead of having to weed through a lot of html and convoluted logic.

It really makes sense when you stop to think about it: if the page is going to pass arguments to itself, there has to be a starting point with no arguments. So the script tests for every known argument and if it doesn't find any, it falls through to the default.

This format also lends itself well to the idea of separating logic from presentation. Do all your script stuff, then stuff the results in a template and stop.

This format has worked extremely well for me, and I encourage you to adopt it early and save yourself some grief later on.

Tim

[tekky]

Originally posted by tbach2
if your pseudo code is accurate, you are merely checking if submit has a value, not what the value is.

I would suggest using a hidden input to determine what action your script takes on submission. ie,

<input type="hidden" name="action" value="search">

// cleanse all variables...

$action = $_POST['action'];  // or $_GET...

// take action

if($action=='search') {
     // ... do your query...
     // print section2 or error
     die;
}

if($action=='submit') {
     //  submit stuff to database
     //  print success or failure
     die;
}

// print default form

This format will make it easier to keep track of what you need to do with submissions.

Relying on the value in a submit button can cause problems later on because you may change the value of the submit button, or someone may hit return instead of clicking on the button, etc. the "action" field will remain unchanged.

That being said, sometimes it is convenient to have multiple submits-- just be sure you know what the value is in each so you can check against it. [/B]

however if you are doing 1 simple form, there is no way to set a hidden value (except with Jscript maybe) based on the submit button you click...

however as stated earlier, you name your submit buttons differently

for example, on a database editing page I did, I had [Fill/Edit] [delete] [insert] [clear]

fill/edit was dynamic, started as Fill, input data, click fill it would change to edit and populate the fields with the first matching record

then just check for if ($edit) if ($delete) etc etc...... since the page has no clue if someone wants to edit/delete/fill/clear/insert before it displays... it has no way of setting a hidden value for the next reload....

just my 2cents