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Possible Duplicate:
!in_array use in PHP - conditional statments

I have this code that is doing opposite.

Let's assume I have array of 1,2,3,3,4,5

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

    $item = $row['item'];
    echo $item . '<br />'; // for testing
    $items[] = $row['item'];
    if (!in_array($item, $items)) {

        $output[] = $row;

        foreach ($items as $item) {
            echo 'Array thus far: ' . $item . '<br />';  // for testing
        }
    } 

}

Basically I want the array to not have duplicates. The test code should eventually print out 1,2,3,4,5.. but it actually print out 1,2,3,3,4,5 the in_array() function doesnt seem to work here with a varible?

Here is real output:

Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
American Dad!
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
American Dad!
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Avatar
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Array thus far: Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Potstickers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Array thus far: Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Array thus far: Potstickers
Potstickers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Array thus far: Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Array thus far: Potstickers
Array thus far: Potstickers
Avatar
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: American Dad!
Array thus far: Christopher Columbus
Array thus far: Avatar
Array thus far: Kung Pao Chicken
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Avengers
Array thus far: The Brak Show
Array thus far: Space Ghost: Coast to Coast
Array thus far: Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Array thus far: Potstickers
Array thus far: Potstickers
Array thus far: Avatar

There are repeat items in here I am trying to keep out of array.

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  • @KickingLettuce: why did you ask the same question again? (thanks for the heads up jeroen) Commented Oct 4, 2012 at 21:59

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
2

You are guarding insertions to $output, but you are actually printing $items which is not guarded at all.

Consider also that, depending on the expected size of the result set and the possible percentage of duplicates, it might be much faster to allow duplicates and then filter them out with array_unique (this will require additional memory and could be considered a classic time/space tradeoff).

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Comments

1

You need to push $row['item'] onto $items after you do the in_array():

while ($row = mysql_fetch_assoc($result)) {
    $item = $row['item'];
    echo $item . '<br />'; // for testing
    if (!in_array($item, $items)) {
        $output[] = $row;
        foreach ($items as $item) {
            echo 'Array thus far: ' . $item . '<br />';  // for testing
        }
        $items[] = $row['item'];
    }
}

Or you can simplify it by removing $items: 

while ($row = mysql_fetch_assoc($result)) {
    $item = $row['item'];
    echo $item . '<br />'; // for testing
    if (!in_array($item, $output)) {
        $output[] = $row;
        foreach ($items as $item) {
            echo 'Array thus far: ' . $item . '<br />';  // for testing
        }
    }
}
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1 Comment

That worked thanks! I was doing things out of sequence.

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