[RESOLVED] simpleXML parsing by attribute value

sandthipe

I have an existing XML data set and would like to parse it with PHP5 based on the value of an attribute (any attribute!). I don't want to convert all my data from an attribute-heavy structure to a more proper element-based structure if I don't have to because of the javascript I am using on the client side. Listed below is the XML structure and PHP code I have been testing.

My existing data structure looks like this:
<gallery>
<photos>
<photo
path = "sunflower01.jpg"
width = "500"
height = "375"
thumbpath = "sunflower01.jpg"
thumbwidth = "125"
thumbheight = "94">
</photo>
</photos>
</gallery>

The script is here:
<?php
$xml = simplexml_load_file("pictures.xml");
$image = $xml->xpath("/gallery/photos/photo[@path='sunflower01.jpg']");
echo $image[0]->photo@thumbpath;
?>

Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks! - Chris

dream_scape

Hi,

A couple things.

First, you're doing an XPATH query for a "photo" node, so the photo node(s) will be returned, not their parents.

And second, you access attributes in SimpleXML by using its ArrayAccess interface.

This may not be exactly it, but it will give you a better idea of what you need to do:

$xml = simplexml_load_file("pictures.xml");
$photos = $xml->xpath("/gallery/photos/photo[@path='sunflower01.jpg']");
echo $photos[0]['thumbpath'];

sandthipe

Problem solved. Your reply was just what I needed. I knew my logic had to be close, but I needed a syntax correction. Thanks, mate.