which should I choose?

pablodelapena

I am creating a photo gallery. All my photos are stored in folders for each event/party/gig etc.

If iw ant to showcase them would I be best creating a single index file which lists all the files within that folder and writes an img tag which points to a thumbnail.php file which generates a thumbnail.

have a single page which pulls all the records from a MySQL database and echos them out?

Im not sure whether the pros of one out weighs the cons of the other.

If i used a file based system then it would always be correct and all I would have to do is FTP the files to their particular folder et voila. But if i wanted to change the design id have to go about altering each index.php file.

However, if i chose to use the MySQL system then i could change the design quickly and easily. but there would be a larger margin for error and inaccuracies and i couldnt have a very deep file structure.

any suggestions as to which path i should follow?

bubblenut

If you're talking about storing the image data in MySQL as a BLOB then don't, if you're going to use a database at all then store the path to the image file in a varchar. The advantage of using a database is that you're restricted to just the image. You can have a title, datestamp, description, maybe a ficility for people to leave comments about particular images, the possibilities are [almost 😉] limitless. If on the other hand you just want to display the images and you're sure that's all you're ever going to want to display then there's no need for a database, just read the filenames and display them.

Originally posted by pablodelapena
However, if i chose to use the MySQL system then i could change the design quickly and easily.

I don't quite get this comment, it should be no easier to change the design if you're using MySQL than if you're not, it's all about how you organize your code. Keep your logic seperate from your display.

If you choose not to use MySQL then

pablodelapena

no no, im sorry iw asnt clear. regardless of the storage the files are going to be FTPd to the server. What im questioning is should I have an index file within each folder which shows the contents of that fodler (much like apache) or have a single PHP file, say ViewFolder.php?FolderID=1, which gets all the images URL for fodler 1 and echos them.

As regards design. I meant as follows...

with the first diea (index per folder) if i wanted to change the layout etc id have to go throughe ach file and alter all the various tables etc etc.

however with the single php file for each folder id only have to change the one file.

As regards to comments etc. Yes I'd thought of that and was going to implement that using MySQL. I'm thinking about purely the presentation method of the thumbnails.

is that clearer?

Weedpacket

Originally posted by pablodelapena
... a single PHP file, say ViewFolder.php?FolderID=1, which gets all the images URL for fodler 1 and echos them.

It would certainly mean much less code to maintain (and eliminate massive amounts of duplication), and it would be simpler to add new folders, and change the code later. Apache's index pages (if you've got those turned on) are dynamically generated also.

pablodelapena

I realise they are dynamic, unless there is a way i could modify it, im thinking this is the only option.

An idea which struck me while walking the dog... Is there anyway a .htaccess page can do this? Or similar. could i have it take the contents of a particular folder and stick it somewhere in a template document?

My reasoning behind this is i dont want to have to hit the database time and time again.

Essentially, which method is going to be faster with say 30 images per page.