Using PHP to manage Navigation Links

mborish_2000

I'm somewhat confused about using PHP to manage my navigation links. From what I know about PHP, it should be possible for me to keep all of my navigation links on a separate page and parse them to their relevant HTML imbeded in my pages. Basically what I would like is all of my links related to the main navigation stored on one page and linked to their respective places on the site via PHP to save me from manually changing every relevant link in my site. I do not want to use frames!

So far, I have installed Apache and PHP on my C: drive. I am somewhat unfamiliar with the php.ini file and the conf.httpd file. I have gotten both PHP and Apache to work together on my C: drive but am not sure if everything is set up correctly for me to excute tasks such as the one described above.

Any help on this topic would be appreciated.

-Mike

leatherback

bascially, what you are looking for is:

a file: menu.php which holds all the links for your menu

and:
require_once(menu.php);
at the locations where all the links have to be inserted.

mborish_2000

Yeah, I've got a grasp of the concept. You think I should Use MySQL too? I was assuming That I could do something like this:

(conetnts of menu.php page)

(end contents of menu.php page)

(start contents of index.html page)

(end contents of index.html page)

and it would work and look like just one big html page?

Am I nuts? You think that I should implement MySQL to manage all of this stuff? Does anybody have a template or know where I can get a template? This can't be that complex or difficult. Here's a webstie that I'm sure is doing what I'm trying to do http://www.rhodeschroma.com/ Notice the links are all implemented with PHP. Here's my index. html Page www.borishrealty.com. I just don't know where to start. I tried $POST and $GET stuff but I have to admit that there's lots of variables in the php.ini file and the conf.httpd that could adversely affect my coding. Any books worth reading?

dalecosp

Are you nuts? You think I should...

Umm, nah, that's not what he thinks.

Take a look at another of his posts. You are reading his .sig ... 😉

leatherback

dalecosp wrote:
Umm, nah, that's not what he thinks.

Take a look at another of his posts. You are reading his .sig ... 😉

Hm.. I an curious.. What DO I think then!? 😃

Oh.. That's right.. Do some reading on the forum!

Mborish: THere is 60,000 (or 60,001.. I forgot) ways to skin this cat.

Basically, PhP is no more then a basic programming language, which can be used to produce HTML/XML/... output. So you can use it as you need. If you feel that a database is what you need: USe is. But there is no way of telling what you 'need to use'. That is your choice.
I am now building a website where a database is used as storage for all the pages, a layoutfile is used to generate the structuire of the site, a class is used to pull everything from the database, a CSS file is used to generate the looks of the site, a header, footer and menu file are used to generate these elements. All in all I need 6 pages together to create one HTML file. The user will not know, since all he sees is one thing: The valid HTML file.

So: Yes. What you suggested is very feasable. That is basically what I suggested, but in a different way.

E.g. look at this:


<?php

session_start();

require("/noacces/websiteconfig.php");

include($root."/checkvar.php");

require($root."/settings.php");

require($root."/tablestructure.php");

require($root."/getpage.php");

require($root."/menu.php");

require($root."/layoutfiles/kop.php"); 

require($root."/layoutfiles/scripts.php"); 

?>

</head>

<body>

<?

require($root."includes/layoutfiles/layout.php");

?>

mborish_2000

Thanks, I appreciate your help. It looks like I need to study organizational heirarchy too.

-Mike

halojoy

leatherback wrote:
- CSS file is used to generate the looks of the site
- header
- footer
- menu
to create one HTML file. User ..... sees is one thing: The valid HTML file.

<?php

// index.php
// for example, but could be any other page linkable at my website


// header.php :  first <html><head>link to CSS style sheet</head>
// then <body> start
// Logo SiteTopBanner, in short the upper part of all pages at site
include("header.php"); // can be header.html or header.tpl,  tpl = template

// menu.php : can often be 'navbar.php'   nav.php   nav = navigation of site
// this is the horisontal bar you see in most any forum, like this one, too
include("menu.php");
?>

<!--  Now using plain HTML and not echo, because this is easier for most of us  -->
<!--  index.php Main Contents - this is unique only to index.php  -->
Welcome to my website.<br>
Hope you will like it here.<br>
<br>
Your webmaster<br>
/halojoy

<?php // start php again

// The bottom part, copyright Powered by and maybe some links
// like contact and email webmaster
// but also </body></html> closing tags
include("footer.php"); // can be footer.html or footer.tpl

?>

Basically I use same setup as leatherback does but in more simplified and more common version.

There is no end to how advanced you can do anything when you start programming.
And also depends on what material you have to present, how much and
also how many visitors you will have at your website.
What is enough for a small personal homepage, will not do for a big website with
1.000 of visitors online at same time.

Nothing is wrong.
There is basically only one way 'to skin a cat' = take his skin off
But in more detailed aspect, there might be more ways than leatherback says!
Because 2 persons wouldnt do exactly the same.

Basically make a webpage for visitor is to give him some HTML.
But with php or other scripts, can be done in almost infinite number of ways.

My code above needs these elements, files or php scripts in you web directory:

index.php
header.php
menu.php
footer.php
style.css

This is also what most people would use and can settle for ( even if goal at first can be to get 10.000 users ).
This is a very common approach to using php for managing your website.

/halojoy - july 2005 upper part of sweden

"Charting the quality of forage : measuring and mapping the variation of chemical components in foliage with hyperspectral remote sensing."

Take any person involved in writing such stuff with a grain salt.
Still I think, they do eat food and drink water!
Like the rest of us ..... at least sometimes

leatherback

halojoy wrote:
"Charting the quality of forage : measuring and mapping the variation of chemical components in foliage with hyperspectral remote sensing."

Take any person involved in writing such stuff with a grain salt.
Still I think, they do eat food and drink water!
Like the rest of us ..... at least sometimes

Hey! It is not like I wrote that book for fun! 😉

Anyway.. I did get a kilo of salt, and still.. After eating it, I need to drink more. Losing myself !

AAAH

But eehh.. I'd take people who READ it with a bit more salt, if I were you!

😉

mborish_2000

Thanks guys. I'm working on it now.

halojoy

leatherback:
- It is not like I wrote that book for fun!
- I'd take people who READ it with a bit more salt, if I were you!
halojoy:
sometimes we have to do such writings - its a part of the game
only ones to read it is one professor, once, and some freak who will do further research in that field

:p
you had no good last answer in flatfile topic (Coding forum)
nice to get last word and halojoy is not easy to try to prove wrong
especially in 'his area' of interest

-----> Flatfile help: go to line in file and insert

halojoy
- does writings of his own - you can call them 'Mini-Tutorials' - with code examples
- halojoy words are very wise with some thought behind
- you have like 500 good readings - by halojoy - in this phpbuilder website