[Resolved] Selecting alternate entries

markepic

I am doing a simple SELECT query on mysql, but want to know how to select every other entry from the database (alternate entries) ie rows 1, 3, 5, 7, etc not 1, 2, 3, 4...

Is there a mysql query for this? Or do I have to pick out alternate entries in my while loop (if so how do I do this?). The basic code I am using is below.

$query = "SELECT title FROM dvddetail
	WHERE forswap='2' ORDER BY swapDateTime ASC
                LIMIT 0, 10;";
   	$result = mysql_query($query) or die(mysql_error());


while($row = mysql_fetch_array($result))
{
$title = $row['title'];

            echo $title; 
            }

markepic

Ok, I have had a good think (now my brain hurts...) and have worked out how to do it in a while loop. (I can put an integer that goes up by 1 in each loop and then use an if statement to get rid of even number entries. seems ok...)

However, it would be simpler to get every other entry out of the mysql db in the first place; is this possible? Sorry if this is obvious!

hwttdz

It seems to me you have a few options
1) initalize your loop at 1 and increment by 2 instead of one, that will give you all the odd numbers
2) make an even loop, initalize at zero or 2 as the case may be and increment by 2 dropping all the values from the table
3) what you said with an if will work

hope that helps a bit.

Installer

Here's an easy way to do alternating stuff:

$switch = true;
while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($result)) { 
    if ($switch = !$switch) {
        $title = $row['title']; 
        echo $title;
    }  

}

markepic

thanks, installer, that's very tidy.