random rows (asp -> php)?

[Anon]

Hi!

I'm moving from ASP -> PHP and converting all my sites, but I have no qlue how to convert the code below where I'm getting three random rows from a table. The important is that they never show the same row at the same time.
Otherwise...
"SELECT * FROM table ORDER BY rand() limit 1";
...had worked fine.

<%
Randomize Timer
intRnd = (Int(Rnd * recset.RecordCount))

Set rs = Server.CreateObject("ADODB.Recordset")
Sql = "SELECT * FROM table"
rs.Open Sql, conn, 3, , adCmdText

rs.Move intRnd
	Response.Write rs("header")
rs.MoveNext

If rs.EOF = True Then rs.MoveFirst
	Response.Write rs("header")
recset.MoveNext

If rs.EOF = True Then rs.MoveFirst
	Response.Write rs("header")

rs.Close
Set rs = Nothing

%>

This in PHP????

[[deleted]]

First, If there are less than 3 records, this ASP code will print records twice/thrice.

Second, manuals really are your friends, I keep telling everybody, but nobody listens.. 🙂

All this ASP code does is move to a random record in the resultset,
print the current record,
move to the next record,
If there is no next record, move to the first record,
print the current record,
move to the next record,
If there is no next record, move to the first record,
print the current record.

So it prints a sequence of three records from a random starting location.
(it does not print three random records)

In PHP, use mysql_data_seek to move to a random record in your resultset.
print the record.
Check if the current record is the last record (mysql_num_rows())
If it is the last record, mysql_data_seek() to the first record

etc.

[jariizumi]

This may sound stupid, but why doesn't

SELECT * FROM table ORDER BY rand() limit 3;

work? I'm confused... Doesn't this give you three random rows?

[[deleted]]

Actually that would work, but only MySQL 3.23 supports "order by rand()"

[tobbe]

I already tried to set the limit to 3, but that will print out the same row tree times, if I take the limit away it will print out all rows atop of each other because I have it in a layer ...that's locks funny :-). I will have to try the first answer to this quiz ...( how I now do that...am I a newbie to php? ...oh yeh ;-) )