PHP replace string after using file_get_contents

Question

Hi I am looking to replace words in an html email I am loading via file_get_contents

Here is my code:

<?

$message = file_get_contents("http://www.MYwebsiteExample.com/EmailConfirmation.php");


$message =  preg_replace('/SAD/', "HAPPY", $message);
// Also tried this below and it does not work either
 $message = str_replace('/SAD/', "HAPPY", $message);

?>

I am hoping to find all the patters of SAD (case sensitive) and replace them with HAPPY. For some reason if I use file_get_contents it doesn't seem to be working.

Thanks

UPDATE: Jan 22, 2013

Actually, sorry Correction when I add the $ it does not work. Its not necessary for my code. I can do a work around but this does not work below:

$message = str_replace("$SAD", "HAPPY", $message); /// does not work. Not sure why
$message = str_replace("SAD", "HAPPY", $message); /// without the $ it does work.

What does "it doesn't seem to be working" mean? Are you getting errors? Unexpected results? — Mike Brant
– Mike Brant, Commented Jan 22, 2013 at 19:07
what does var_dump($message); output? You might not even be getting any results. allow_url_fopen might be set to off. — user1592648
– user1592648, Commented Jan 22, 2013 at 19:09
ok I made an update. It won't work with the $ and not sure why. It's not necessary for my code but just curious as to why not. — Papa De Beau
– Papa De Beau, Commented Jan 22, 2013 at 19:14
The file you're pulling in is a HTML file, and there might actually be no literal "SAD" in it anywhere. There might be, for example, <span class="firstletter">S</span>AD. If this is the case, you would need a different regexp, or better still, use DOM manipulation. — LSerni
– LSerni, Commented Jan 22, 2013 at 19:14
Also, you had better use explicit PHP tags - <?php, not <?. Just to pick up a good habit ;-) — LSerni
– LSerni, Commented Jan 22, 2013 at 19:15

Community · Accepted Answer · 2017-05-23 11:53:46Z

9

$message = str_replace("$SAD", "HAPPY", $message);

needs to be:

$message = str_replace('$SAD', "HAPPY", $message);

Otherwise PHP will interpret it as the variable $SAD. See this post for an explanation on the difference between single and double quotes.

edited May 23, 2017 at 11:53

CommunityBot

11 silver badge

answered Jan 22, 2013 at 19:14

user1592648

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4 Comments

Nate Cook Over a year ago

Or maybe just $message = str_replace('SAD', 'HAPPY', $message);? Not super clear why that dollar sign is in there...

Papa De Beau Over a year ago

YOU GOT IT. That worked. I will mark the answer correct when it allows me to. You rock. Thank you so much!

user1592648 Over a year ago

@lserni I think OP is trying to replace template variables in a file which happen to have the format of a PHP variable. Should be using a template variable like %{SAD} for example instead.

Papa De Beau Over a year ago

Thank you S&B! I mean @cryptic. S&B = Smart & Beautiful. :) Much appreciated!

Community · Accepted Answer · 2023-11-14 22:24:31Z

3

You shouldn't use regular expressions for this; it's simple string replacement:

$message = strtr($message, array(
    '$SAD' => 'HAPPY',
));

Btw, if you use "$SAD" for the search string, PHP will try to evaluate a variable called $SAD, which doesn't exist and will throw a notice if your error_reporting is configured to show it.

edited Nov 14, 2023 at 22:24

CommunityBot

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answered Jan 22, 2013 at 19:14

Ja͢ck

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4 Comments

Papa De Beau Over a year ago

You're answer worked as well @Jack. Thank you. What is the downfall of using a regular expression as opposed to the string replacement?

Ja͢ck Over a year ago

@PapaDeBeau Regular expressions are more powerful but take up more resources and can be slower in execution. Besides that, programming is all about developing a sense of finesse for making something work as simple as possible :)

Lightningsoul Over a year ago

@jack I am inclined to use the second part of your statement as a claim for my company. renoi.de/en :D

Ja͢ck Over a year ago

@Lightningsoul go for it :)

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