php/mysql database searching

Question

Can anyone see why the code below is not working? Is it because of the deprecated sql syntax? I'm stumped with this one.

<?php
mysql_connect("localhost",$username,$password);  
@mysql_select_db($database) or die( "Unable to select database");

$usersearch=$_POST['search'];
$query="SELECT * FROM tracks WHERE 'artist' LIKE '%$usersearch%'";  
$result=mysql_query($query);

$num=mysql_numrows($result); 

mysql_close();

while($row = mysql_fetch_array($result, MYSQL_ASSOC)) {

echo $row["artist"]." | ".$row["name"];
echo "<br>";

}  

?>

What doesn't work? Have you checked your error log? What errors do you get? What steps have you taken to troubleshoot this? — John Conde
– John Conde, Commented Feb 27, 2013 at 15:14
First of all, don't use '@', it's a bad practice. Also, please specify, what output you get. Have you tried print_r($row);? what does it say? Finally, yes, mysql_ is deprecated, but it still works though — Serge Kuharev
– Serge Kuharev, Commented Feb 27, 2013 at 15:15
John, it's for a school project - i know it doesn't work because when i type a listed artist from the database into the searchbox it just returns a blank page. What's an error log? — maccame
– maccame, Commented Feb 27, 2013 at 15:16
Since you found your answer, please mark it as accepted. Thanks! :) — Austin Burk
– Austin Burk, Commented Dec 18, 2013 at 15:20

F__M · Accepted Answer · 2013-02-27 15:15:31Z

4

First, do not use mysql_* please. This extension is deprecated as of PHP 5.5.0. http://php.net/manual/en/function.mysql-query.php

You can use mysqli_query() or PDO::query().

answered Feb 27, 2013 at 15:15

F__M

1,5883 gold badges21 silver badges34 bronze badges

Sign up to request clarification or add additional context in comments.

Comments

sgulseth · Accepted Answer · 2013-02-27 15:43:13Z

1

Probably beacuse you have single quotes(') and not ` when selecting your table. And as pointed out don't use mysql_* use PDO or mysqli, even if its just a school project(old habits die hard). Also you could add

mysql_query($query) or die($mysql_error());

This will probably point out whats wrong..

and for last, please escape dynamic input variables

answered Feb 27, 2013 at 15:43

sgulseth

213 bronze badges

1 Comment

maccame Over a year ago

sgulseth - you fixed it!! it was the quote marks around artist - i have taken them out and its searching, many many thanks EVERYONE for suggestions.

Community · Accepted Answer · 2020-06-20 09:12:55Z

0

add to the top of page:

 error_reporting(E_ALL);
 ini_set("display_errors", 1);

and open the page in an browser. are there any errors?

change (this mutes errors)

@mysql_select_db($database) or die( "Unable to select database");

to :

mysql_select_db($database) or die( "Unable to select database");

A word of advice though, better to use the MySQLi or [PDO_MySQL][3] instead of mysql_connectsince it will soon be deprecated:

Warning

This extension is deprecated as of PHP 5.5.0, and will be removed in the future. Instead, the MySQLi or PDO_MySQL extension should be used. See also MySQL: choosing an API guide and related FAQ for more information. Alternatives to this function include:

mysqli_connect()

you can find more info of how to use them on this answer.

UPDATE

check if you get an empty result, add :

$num=mysql_numrows($result); 
if ($num === 0) echo "Empty result"

and open the page again. if the page is still blank, change:

echo $row["artist"]." | ".$row["name"];
echo "<br>";

to:

vardump($row);

UPDATE 2

If you did get Empty result, than add

echo $query;

and try to open the page and run the query manually

edited Jun 20, 2020 at 9:12

CommunityBot

11 silver badge

answered Feb 27, 2013 at 15:17

Kuf

17.9k7 gold badges69 silver badges91 bronze badges

4 Comments

maccame Over a year ago

Thanks, i've made the changes - no reported errors - just a white screen

maccame Over a year ago

Kuf, i don't know which php version it's on a school server? I am getting an empty result returned?

Kuf Over a year ago

sorry, i don't follow, did you get "Empty result"?

maccame Over a year ago

Still completely blank after vardump

Collectives™ on Stack Overflow

php/mysql database searching

3 Answers 3

Comments

1 Comment

4 Comments

Your Answer

Hot Network Questions

Collectives™ on Stack Overflow

3 Answers 3

Comments

1 Comment

4 Comments

Your Answer

Sign up or log in

Post as a guest

Related