Looking For A Data Output Program Need something to format MySQL data for display

[mrdee 1]

I was wondering if anyone could put me into the right direction:

 

I use a great program called Simfatic Forms to create web forms.

The program is quite flexible and allows you to create forms which can then email the submitted data to you, and.or save them in a MySQL database or a file and it also has some possibilities of generating a Thank you page and a page with the submitted data, but then you have to click through to confirm the entry.

 

It is excellent for creating a wide range of forms, but what I am now looking for, since my PHP programming skills are more than basic, is a program (preferably freeware) to process the data which the form has submitted to a MySQL database for display to the screen and other things, eg. in the case of making a from for a petition, the list of people who signed the petition has to be displayed, so, is there a program which can help me take the contents of the database and format them, and then give me the code to display them online?

 

It would also be good if the program had additional features, like banning IP addresses and other things you can do with submitted data in a MySQL database.

 

I have tried a Google search, but I probably can't find the proper words to ask my question, as so far it has yielded no satisfactory results.

 

If anyone can give me some advice as to what I am looking for, I'd be extremely grateful.

 

Thank you very much in advance.

[Rigaudon 0]

It is excellent for creating a wide range of forms, but what I am now looking for, since my PHP programming skills are more than basic, is a program (preferably freeware) to process the data which the form has submitted to a MySQL database for display to the screen and other things, eg. in the case of making a from for a petition, the list of people who signed the petition has to be displayed, so, is there a program which can help me take the contents of the database and format them, and then give me the code to display them online?
It would also be good if the program had additional features, like banning IP addresses and other things you can do with submitted data in a MySQL database.

Well, if you wanted something specifically formatted, you'd have to write that code yourself. If you're just looking for output or a list of everything in a database, use PHPmyAdmin.

IP banning wouldn't be too difficult with a mySQL database; simply make a table of banned IP's and add them to it. In the header of every page, write some code that says "if the IP is one of the banned IP's, then redirect somewhere".

[mrdee 1]

First of all, thank you for your reply.The advice you are giving has only one problem for me: as I said, my knowledge/skills are not sufficient to do that.I looked in PHPMyAdmin, and one thing caught my eye: "CREATE VIEW".I assume that is what you would suggest I use, but when i clicked on "CREATE VIEW", I was already stuck, I didn't know what to fill in in the fields, and then, the next hurdle for me would be how to convert that view to HTML or PHP so I could display it online.That is exactly why i am looking for a program which could do the task for me.

[Rigaudon 0]

I don't think you'll be able to find a better program for display than PHPmyAdmin, but it's mainly for an admin's own purposes, and not for public view, so I guess I kinda misunderstood.Well, actually, I don't think there exists such a program that does what you're looking for because learning how to use such a program would be more difficult than learning MySQL. MySQL is actually a VERY simple language. If you already know PHP, then mySQL will be extremely easy.I can recommend some places to learn mySQL if you need it.

[mrdee 1]

Well, yes, that would help too.Any opportunity for learning more about PHP/MySQL is fine for me.Thank you for you rhelp.

[truefusion 3]

From the topic title alone i would have suggested PHPMyAdmin; however, from the starting post i would say that what you are looking for is generally not something that you can find online that will fit all your needs (though you could find something that can help you achieve your goal, i.e. do most of the work for you, mostly backend work, but not all). PHPMyAdmin is a PHP frontend to MySQL databases. In other words, it allows you to alter, delete, edit, create rows and tables from an already existing MySQL database, and do other things, but it in no way will handle any form input (except from PHPMyAdmin itself) or act as an IP management system for you. What you are looking for is generally done from scratch. You could probably find a generic PHP database management script (API) that would allow you to manage (edit, insert, delete, et cetera) information with a MySQL database, but i don't know of any (since i tend to build my own). You can use any obvious keywords from this post to search for a script

 

I looked in PHPMyAdmin, and one thing caught my eye: "CREATE VIEW".

I assume that is what you would suggest I use, but when i clicked on "CREATE VIEW", I was already stuck, I didn't know what to fill in in the fields, and then, the next hurdle for me would be how to convert that view to HTML or PHP so I could display it online.

That is exactly why i am looking for a program which could do the task for me.

To clarify, a "View" in MySQL, if i understand it correctly, is simply a temporary representation of the data accessed by a query.

[mrdee 1]

OK, I see.Thanks for your input too, Truefusion.However, form input can go off the list, as i said, I have a very good program for generating web forms, which can save the data in a database or in a file, email the results to me etc.The main thing I need is something that helps me to display the results of the inputs properly on a web page.(Eg. when I have done a from for a petition, i want to be able to put the list of people who signed the petition online).

[Rigaudon 0]

I personally learned mySQL from lynda.com videos. It costs money for a subscription, but I think they give free trials, and you can just download all the videos you need and watch them later.If you don't want to use lynda, then you can try some other sites like w3schools, although I personally don't think they cover the information in enough detail.Here's an overview:You want to be able to know to (in order):1) Make a connection.2) Select a database.3) Query the database.4) Retrieve information from the database.5) Close the connection.When working with mySQL, you should know CRUD (Create, Read, Update, and Delete).Good luck learning!