Force download of variable contents with 'fake' filename?

[gregchet]

Is there an easy way to store the contents of a variable in a fake filename and prompt the user to download? There's a field in a database that holds a complete HTML file, and I'd like to be able to have a download link the user could click on that would pull the database field, store the contents in a 'file', and then prompt them to download that file... without the file actually existing, if that makes sense.

Like so...

---

User clicks a "download" link (download.php?id=1)

(select content_to_get from table where id = '1')

(assign results to $content_to_get variable)

(store $content_to_get in fake_filename.txt)

have a download prompt popup for fake_filename.txt

---

I realize that I could ACTUALLY store the information in a file on the server and then prompt them to download that, but I'd really rather have it as a 'virtual file' if it's possible.

[NogDog]

Assume that $text has been populated with the text to be downloaded:

<?php
// do whatever you do to populate $text, then...
header('Content-Type: text/plain');
header('Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="fake_file_name.html"');
header('Content-Transfer-Encoding: binary');
header('Cache-Control: must-revalidate, post-check=0, pre-check=0');
echo $text;
exit;
?>

[gregchet]

Thanks a lot, that's exactly what I was looking for!