[RESOLVED] IF statement not "obeying"

Square1

Hi All:

This should be simple, but I am stumped.

			if (empty($_POST["agreementEnd"])){
				$pAgreementEnd = "0000-00-00";
			} else {
				if (strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5)) {
					$pAgreementEnd = date_format(date_create(sanitize($_POST["agreementEnd"])),"Y")."-01-01";
				} else {
					$pAgreementEnd = date_format(date_create(sanitize($_POST["agreementEnd"])),"Y-m-d");
				}
			}
			echo $_POST["agreementEnd"]."<br>";
			echo strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"])."<br />";
			echo $pAgreementEnd;

$POST["agreementEnd"]; = 2016
strlen($POST["agreementEnd"]) = 4
$pAgreementEnd = 2011-01-01

The thing is, with this code $pAgreementEnd should equal 2016-01-01!

I may need to rest my eyes on this but I cannot find the problem. Any help appreciated!

RyanMinor

Change your "5" to a "4". I assume you are trying to make sure the year value is an integer of 4 characters? With your current code, as long as the year value is less than 5 characters it will always default to the current year and 01-01.

Square1

RyanMinor;10991255 wrote:
Change your "5" to a "4". I assume you are trying to make sure the year value is an integer of 4 characters? With your current code, as long as the year value is less than 5 characters it will always default to the current year and 01-01.

That didn't work.

I have a date field. I do not want the user to just enter a year, but to enter a complete date. If the strlen = 4 (the length of a year) I want it to add "-01-01" after the year using php.

I just find it weird that strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5 is no reacting the way I would think it should when it echos "4"

bradgrafelman

The problem is with the syntax inside the if() condition:

if (strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5)) {

Look at the function call:

strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5)

In other words, you're passing the function [man]strlen/man a boolean TRUE or FALSE, not a string.

Square1

bradgrafelman;10991257 wrote:
The problem is with the syntax inside the if() condition:
if (strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5)) { 
Look at the function call:
strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"] < 5)
In other words, you're passing the function [man]strlen/man a boolean TRUE or FALSE, not a string.

I am trying the following with the same bad results:

			if (empty($_POST["agreementEnd"])){
				$pAgreementEnd = "0000-00-00";
			} else {
				$vStringLength = strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"]);
				if ($vStringLength == 4) {
					$pAgreementEnd = date_format(date_create(sanitize($_POST["agreementEnd"])),"Y")."-01-01";
				} else {
					$pAgreementEnd = date_format(date_create(sanitize($_POST["agreementEnd"])),"Y-m-d");
				}
			}

johanafm

Why not start by fixing your initial code to remove the error brad pointed out. If it's still not clear what he meant, you can always ask... But perhaps rereading his post and comparing it to the code below will make your error clear.

echo strlen(true) . PHP_EOL . strlen(false);

Square1;10991261 wrote:
I am trying the following with the same bad results:

The same result? Anyway, how about

if ($vStringLength == 4)
{
	$_POST["agreementEnd"] .= '-01-01';
}

Square1

johanafm;10991290 wrote:
Why not start by fixing your initial code to remove the error brad pointed out. If it's still not clear what he meant, you can always ask... But perhaps rereading his post and comparing it to the code below will make your error clear.
echo strlen(true) . PHP_EOL . strlen(false);
The same result? Anyway, how about
if ($vStringLength == 4)
{
	$_POST["agreementEnd"] .= '-01-01';
}

I think part of my issue is not understanding strlen properly. How can it be boolean yet give me a numeric output?

$vStringLength = strlen($_POST["agreementEnd"]);
                if ($vStringLength == 4) {

Even your answer requires, to me, does not seem boolean.

if ($vStringLength == 4)
{
	$_POST["agreementEnd"] .= '-01-01';
}

I am sorry. This is one I thought was simple but I am missing something.

johanafm

The problem is what you feed strlen, not what it returns. strlen is supposed to take a string as function argument, and it will return its length. And the first half of my response was a response to your initial post where you had screwed what you passed as function argument. The second half was in response to the post where you no longer did that.

But for clarification, here's what you did wrong, explained in detail

# this is a string - would work fine with strlen
$s = "I'm a string";

# The less than comparison operator will return a boolean value, even though the expression as
# such makes little sense. I do not know if the string is converted to 0 so that it's true or the 5 to '5' in conjunction with string comparison where 5 < I (the letter I) off the top of my head.
# of my head.
# Will work with strlen, but is rather pointless. Just like asking strlen(true) or 
# strlen(false)
$bool = "I'm a string" < 5;

# Either way, this is what you where feeding strlen, that is
strlen("I'm a string" < 5);
# is the same as
strlen($bool);
# which is either this (returns 1)
strlen(true);
#or this (returns 0)
strlen(false);

# However
strlen("I'm a string" < 5);
# is NOT AT ALL the same thing as
strlen("I'm a string") < 5;

Square1

Thank you all! it is now working