A simple page switching PHP app?

[couzin2000]

I'm fairly new to PHP, but I'm learning fast. I'm presently hard-coding a web page, and for page-switching I'm using a FORM menu made of images. Then I send the request to the next page, and it loads the new page with a require function.

Here's what the code looks like so far (excerpts):

<form action="welcome.php" method="get">
<input class="welcome_menu_button" type="image" src="menu_news_glow.gif" alt="News &amp; Press Releases" name="i" value="news" />
<input class="welcome_menu_button" type="image" src="menu_bio_glow.gif" alt="Band" name="i" value="band" />
<input ...

[...]

<div class="welcome_main">
<?
$i = $_GET['i'];
switch ($i) {
case 'news':
require ('/news/news.php');
break;
case 'band':
require ('band.php');
break;
case 'disco':
require ('/disco/index.php');
break;
case 'dates':...

default:
require ('main.php');
}
?>
</div>

Now, this works... when I use Mozilla's Firefox. For some reason, when using IE6, it doesn't work at all. The default page does not load. The selector will not work either.

Could this be because the "require" is not used properly by IE and I need to use something else?
Or could this be because I've got, on the other pages that load up, another div container?
Or could this be caused by bad CSS, though I hardly have anything yet. Technically, even only the XHTML I'm using should definitely work.
Also, just so you know, my page filename extensions are all .php.

If anybody can clue me in, I'd like some help please!
Thanks in advance!

[Rodney_H_]

Edit: I think the problem is the way that IE vs. Firefox passes over the values using get.

This is FireFox: http://127.0.0.1/php/welcome.php?i.x=50&i.y=26&i=news

And THIS is IE: http://127.0.0.1/php/welcome.php?i.x=57&i.y=38

It doesn't seem to pass the 'i' value over in IE cos it passes the x and y value of the images over instead. Therefore, If you are using the get method anyway, I would move the images out of the form and try this :

<a href="welcome.php?i=news"><img src="1.gif" alt="News" height="100" width="100" /></a>
<a href="welcome.php?i=band"><img src="2.gif" alt="Band" height="100" width="100" /></a>
<a href="welcome.php?i=disco"><img src="3.gif" alt="Disco" height="100" width="100" /></a>
<a href="welcome.php?i=main"><img src="4.gif" alt="Main" height="100" width="100" /></a>

Then, on your welcome page, I would try this:

<?php
// create function
function findPage($i){
switch ($i) {
	case 'news':
		require ('inc/news.php');
		break;
	case 'band':
		require ('inc/band.php');
		break;
	case 'disco':
		require ('inc/disco.php');
		break;
	default:
		require ('inc/main.php');
	}
}
?>

<div class="welcome_main">
<?php
// if no 'i' value in url string
if (!isset($_GET['i']) {
require ('inc/main.php');
} 
// else there is 'i' value in url string, so call function:
else {
// call funtion
findPage($_GET['i']);
}
?>
</div>

[Rodney_H_]

Because IE has that issue, this will work: Put each image in it's own form, and then create a hidden field with the value for that button. For example:

<form action="welcome.php" method="get">
<input type="image" src="news.gif" alt="News" />
<input type="hidden" name="i" value="news" /> 
</form>

<form action="welcome.php" method="get">
<input type="image" src="band.gif" alt="Band" /> 
<input type="hidden" name="i" value="band" />
</form>

<form action="welcome.php" method="get">
<input type="image" src="disco.gif" alt="Disco" /> 
<input type="hidden" name="i" value="disco" />
</form>

I tested this and it works in both, IE and FF.

[couzin2000]

Thanks guys... I will try both these methods and see what will work. Probably a form problem from the XHTML, but hey - I wanna learn, so both are valid.

Thanks again!

[Rodney_H_]

Not a form problem. An IE problem! But, anyway... good luck... 😃