[RESOLVED] htmlentities ENT_QUOTES param not working

[Jasp182]

It should be simple, right? I want htmlentities to translate all HTML characters including single and double quotes. Double quotes works by default as well as when I add the second parameter ENT_QUOTES to the htmlentities call. Single quotes do not get translated in either scenario.

I'm using PHP 4.3.9 on FC3.

Do I have to use a specific character set to accomplish this? Would that be an additional parameter to htmlentities or something I set in a config file for php or apache?

[Rodney_H_]

Can you post the actual code you are using? And an example string that you are passing through??

[Jasp182]

Rodney H. wrote:

Can you post the actual code you are using? And an example string that you are passing through??

Here's one example:

$tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($title), ENT_QUOTES);

I'm posting an array in an html form, and my "$title" string is coming from that array. I'm also doing the same thing directly in my queries in another function in this class:

foreach($update_keys as $track_number)
{
        $queries[]='UPDATE discog_tracks SET title="'.trim(htmlentities($arg_tracks_update[$track_number]), ENT_QUOTES).'" WHERE track_number='.(int)$track_number.' AND release_id='.$release_id.' LIMIT 1';
}

I tested both these cases with test" and test' as well as several other test cases, and at no point were my single quotes translated. When I pass the html entity equivalent, everything displays fine on my site (the single quote kills a javascript argument I use to display an overlib popup).

Thanks,
Rich

[laserlight]

As far as I know, what you have tried should work on PHP 4.3.9

Have you tried a simpler test, e.g.

<?php
$str = "\"Sophie's world\"";
echo htmlentities($str, ENT_QUOTES);
?>

[Jasp182]

laserlight wrote:

As far as I know, what you have tried should work on PHP 4.3.9

Have you tried a simpler test, e.g.

<?php
$str = "\"Sophie's world\"";
echo htmlentities($str, ENT_QUOTES);
?>

A million thank yous....this totally led me to my solution.

Your suggestion worked...on a raw string it was fine, so my problem is obviously the variable I'm operating on. In my class, I was using the $key=>$value output of a foreach() loop. Since $value is a copy of the original value, htmlentities isn't treating it the same for whatever reason (would you consider this a bug in the htmlentities function?). Anyway, instead of using $value, I use $array[$key], and it works (since this is the original variable and not a copy).

Bad code:

foreach($arg_tracks as $track_id=>$title)
{
    if(strlen(trim($title))>0) 
    {
        $tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($title), ENT_QUOTES);
    }
}

Good code:

foreach($arg_tracks as $track_id=>$title)
{
    if(strlen(trim($title))>0) 
    {
        $tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($arg_tracks[$track_id]), ENT_QUOTES);
    }
}

Thanks again,
Rich

[laserlight]

Since $value is a copy of the original value, htmlentities isn't treating it the same for whatever reason (would you consider this a bug in the htmlentities function?).

No, it is a bug with your code 😃

Take a look at your 'bad code':
$tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($title), ENT_QUOTES);

Notice that htmlentities($title) is used. Hold on, you want to use htmlentities($title, ENT_QUOTES)!

It so happens that ENT_QUOTES was interpreted as the (optional) character list supplied to trim(), so PHP didnt report anything out of place. I too didnt notice it earlier.

[Rodney_H_]

laserlight wrote:

No, it is a bug with your code 😃

Take a look at your 'bad code':
$tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($title), ENT_QUOTES);

Notice that htmlentities($title) is used. Hold on, you want to use htmlentities($title, ENT_QUOTES)!

It so happens that ENT_QUOTES was interpreted as the (optional) character list supplied to trim(), so PHP didnt report anything out of place. I too didnt notice it earlier.

Man, I must say you are good, laserlight, to have found it. Nice one!

[Jasp182]

laserlight wrote:

No, it is a bug with your code 😃

Take a look at your 'bad code':
$tracks[$track_id]=trim(htmlentities($title), ENT_QUOTES);

Notice that htmlentities($title) is used. Hold on, you want to use htmlentities($title, ENT_QUOTES)!

It so happens that ENT_QUOTES was interpreted as the (optional) character list supplied to trim(), so PHP didnt report anything out of place. I too didnt notice it earlier.

LMAO. Can I have my dunce cap, please?