[RESOLVED] Multicol, Alt Row Color - How do I get remainder to follow suite?

[Svoboda]

Okay, I've fiddled with this for two days now and can't seem to get the code to work how I want it to. It does work and gets the display that I want, but when a row has a remainder, they do not follow suite.

My code does three things: 1) Creates a new table when the first letter in the last name changes, 2) separates the table into three columns and 3) alternates the row colors.

My Code:

<?

$rownum = 1;
$displaycols = 3;
$column = 0; 

while ($row = mysql_fetch_array ($result)) 
{ 

$currentletter = substr($row['lname'], 0, 1);
$rowcolor = (($rownum % 2) == 0) ? "evenrow" : "oddrow";

if ($lastletter <> $currentletter) { 
$column = 0;
echo("<table class=\"tablehead\" cellpadding=\"3\" cellspacing=\"1\">");
echo("<tr class=\"stathead\" style=\"background:#000066\"><td colspan=\"3\"><a name=\"{$currentletter}\">{$currentletter}</a></td></tr>");
}

if ($column == 0) { 
echo("<tr class=\"$rowcolor\" valign=\"top\">"); 
} 

echo("<td width=\"33%\"><div><a href=\"player.php?playerid={$row['playerid']}\">{$row['lname']}, {$row['fname']}</a></div></td>");   

$column++;

if ($column == $displaycols) {
echo("</tr>"); 
$column=0;   

$rownum++;   

} 

$lastletter = substr($row['lname'], 0, 1);

}

echo "</table>";

?>

My Screenshot:

[bpat1434]

Well, when you close the row so that you make a new table, you want to see if $columns != $displaycols. If so, then you need to take $displaycols, subtract the $columns count, then add 1 and use that number as the "colspan" attribute to the <td> element.

[Svoboda]

Can you give me an example programatically? I just gave that a shot, but the colspan numbers never worked out. I figured it went right on the outside of the loop since that would be next after there were no more results from the database, no?

See the code below.

if ($column != $displaycols) {
$colspan = $displaycols - $column + 1;
echo("<td colspan=\"$colspan\">&nbsp;</td></tr>");
}

[FusionComputers]

It looks to me like the issue is that your code doesn't output empty cells when it runs out of names in a row. I'm working on an example now.

[Svoboda]

FusionComputers wrote:

It looks to me like the issue is that your code doesn't output empty cells when it runs out of names in a row. I'm working on an example now.

Yes, I do believe that is the issue as well. I just can't seem to find a way to make it do that. I've probably tried about 20 different things, but nothing seems to work.

[FusionComputers]

I've come up with

<?php

$rownum = 1; 
$displaycols = 3; 
$column = 0; 

while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($result)) 
{
$currentletter = substr($row['lname'], 0, 1); 
$rowcolor = (($rownum % 2) == 0) ? "evenrow" : "oddrow"; 

if ($lastletter != $currentletter) {
if ($column != $displaycols && $column > 0)
{
	$tds = $displaycols - $column;
	for ($i = 0; $i < $tds; $i++)
	{
		echo "<td>&nbsp;</td>";
	}	
	echo "</table>";
}
$column = 0; 
echo("<table class=\"tablehead\" cellpadding=\"3\" cellspacing=\"1\" border=\"1\">"); 
echo("<tr class=\"stathead\" style=\"background:#000066\"><td colspan=\"3\"><a name=\"{$currentletter}\">{$currentletter}</a></td></tr>"); 
} 

if ($column == 0) { 
echo("<tr class=\"$rowcolor\" valign=\"top\">"); 
} 

echo("<td width=\"33%\"><div><a href=\"player.php?playerid={$row['playerid']}\">{$row['lname']}, {$row['fname']}</a></div></td>");    

$column++; 

if ($column == $displaycols) { 
echo("</tr>"); 
$column=0;    

$rownum++;    

}

$lastletter = substr($row['lname'], 0, 1); 

}

echo "</table>"; 

?> 

Give it a shot, then screen an example... It doesn't fix the last row in the list, but I have an idea as to how we can do that.

[Svoboda]

That did it!

And here is what I added after the loop to fix the last row as well!

if ($column != $displaycols) {
$colspan = $displaycols - $column;
echo("<td colspan=\"$colspan\">&nbsp;</td></tr>");
}

Man, I owe you majorly!

[FusionComputers]

No problem. Was interesting for me to try to figure that out. Something for the toolbox.

Don't forget to mark this as resolved.

[Svoboda]

Done!