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How can I transform a PHP Function's MySQL Loop in to an HTML custom markup tag?

I have a MySQL While Loop in a PHP Function. Basically, block code so if need be, can be reused without any user errors.

This is for client implementation though. I want to make this process as easy as possible for the client to add PHP functions without having to learn PHP, but also be able to be inserted in to a textarea via my CMS backend.

I already have custom markup code using preg_replace, but that involves the function's content to be set as a variable. With the way I have my MySQL while loop currently set, it only displays the first row when/if I replace the echo with a variable. I don't know enough about preg_replace to know if I can use it without a variable.

MySQL While Loop/PHP Function (example):

function myPageList($var1,$var2) 
{
    global $dbc;

    $query = "SELECT page_url, title, desc FROM pages ORDER BY nav_order ASC";
    $query_result = @mysql_query($query, $dbc);

    while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($query_result)) 
    {
        $page = $row['page_url'];
        $title = $row['title'];
        $desc = $row['desc'];
        echo "content goes here";
    }
}

Custom Markup (end result):

[myPageList]

Whether I add on to the code I currently have or use something totally different, in the end I need an HTML safe custom markup for a PHP function.

Please let me know if you need more details on this.

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so basically you're trying to implement your own templating system? – Marc B Nov 22 '12 at 17:46
Mhmmmz. Doing database calls inside of functions are new to me. So if I can't make this in to simple markup for the client to add manually, I might just make a trigger that if they select, it automatically adds function to the page. – Tony Nov 26 '12 at 0:00

1 Answer

up vote 0 down vote

Here's a quick and somewhat dirty way to output to html tags. htmlentities is used to escape what comes from the db which helps prevent xss issues. If you want to use textareas then add the tags in place of the table markup.

Ideally you should look at separating markup from the code, take a look at the MVC design pattern for example. I hope this helps you.

function myPageList($var1,$var2) {
global $dbc;
$query = "SELECT page_url, title, desc FROM pages ORDER BY nav_order ASC";
$query_result = @mysql_query($query, $dbc);

//begin table
echo '<table>';
  while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($query_result)) {

    $page  = htmlentities($row['page_url']);
    $title = htmlentities($row['title']);
    $desc  = htmlentities($row['desc']);

    //produce table row
    echo '<tr>';
    echo '    <td>'.$page.'</td>';
    echo '    <td>'.$title.'</td>';
    echo '    <td>'.$desc.'</td>';
    echo '</tr>';

  }
 //end table
 echo '</table>'; 
}
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