Member Avatar for jay64

Hi, I am very new to PHP, teaching myself at the moment. I am using online tutorials to teach myself, so I am at their mercy of what information they provide. I have found some decent scripts, but they don't show me how to link them together.
I am trying to teach myself how to make a database using PHP and MySQL. I have a server that is hosting the website I am going to try to use this on. The server claims that it supports PHP and MySQL. I using some very basic script that I found on some tutorials in order to start using it, to get a better understanding of how it works. I don't know if this makes any difference, but I am currently using Dreamweaver MX 2004 to write my code in, and to upload to the server. My first script that I tried to upload was a 'create database' script. I uploaded it to the server and then tried to open the file, and I received this error message:
'Parse error: parse error in /var/www/html/db/create_befit_database.php on line 20'
I haven't been able to find what a parse error means. I will attempt to include the script that I used, but this is my first time, so forgive me if I mess it up. I obviously took out the actual data from the host/username/password for security reasons, but it is there in the script that I uploaded into the server. Line 20 appears to me to be the closing html tag. This seems to be such a basic script that it is frustrating that I am already getting an error. I did notice that when I was inputing the connect information, dreamweaver had a pop up suggesting how to finish the code I started writing, and it was a little different then the code the tutorials had used. The tutorials had used quotes around the host/username/password names, but dreamweaver seemed to suggest using brackets, and they suggested inputing the ftp folder name. Sorry if this is just rambling, but I'm trying to include as much details as possible. Thanks in advance for any input in this. Here is my attempt at including the script.

<html>
<body>
<?php
$con = mysql_connect("Host", "username", "password" 
);
if (!$con)
  {
  die('Could not connect: ' . mysql_error());
  }// Create database
if (mysql_query("CREATE DATABASE testhouses_db",$con))
  {
  echo "Database created";
  }
else
  {
  echo "Error creating database: " . mysql_error();
 
?>
</body>
</html>
  • 2 Contributors
  • 5 Replies
  • 87 Views
  • 12 Hours Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by buddylee17
Member Avatar for jay64

Update: this is the version of PHP and MySQL being used by the server:

Your site comes with PHP 4.3.2 and MySQL 3.23.


Don't know if that makes a difference or not, but I read something about PHP 4 being dead, so thought I would at least include the information.

Member Avatar for buddylee17

You should contact the host and find out if you have any sort of db admin tool. My host has phpMyAdmin. This allows you to interact directly with the db instead of writing php scripts, uploading them to the ftp, then running them once with no way (except for writing another script to query the db and display the results) of seeing if the data was entered the way you wanted it to be. If you don't have an admin tool you should be able to configure mysqlcc (open source tool by SourceForge.net) to directly interact with the db.

As for the parse error, you never closed the loop at the end.

echo "Error creating database: " . mysql_error();

?>

should be:

echo "Error creating database: " . mysql_error();
}
?>
Member Avatar for jay64

Buddylee, Thanks for catching that open loop at the end. I just copied and pasted it off one of the tutorials, so I missed that entirely. I will check and see if that works now.
As far as my host having a db admin tool, I will check into it. But I do want to try to learn all the ins and outs, so if there is also a way to write a script to query the db and display the results, I want to know how to do that too. However, I know it will be a lot easier to just use an admin tool.

Member Avatar for jay64

Ah yes. Now I remember seeing this. This was part of the introduction email they sent me a very long time ago. At the time I had no idea what MySQL even was, so I guess it didn't even register in my head. Good call Buddylee!

================
MYSQL DATABASE:
================
- Login to your site's Control Panel, click "MySQL Password" to create your database password for the first time.
- Now you can access your database admin screen by going to "Database Manager", use the following:
Username: xxxxxxx
Password: type the password you created in the previous step (even though you use the same ID to login to both the Control Panel and MySQL, the passwords don't have to match).
- Your database will contain no tables or fields which must be created by you. Knowledge of database functions is recommended.

Member Avatar for buddylee17

Glad to help.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.