Alternative to "SELECT *"

[max2474]

Am having lots of questions pop up, so am posting them as I think them..hope you don't mind

Having read that ideally, you should not use SELECT * and specify which columns you want instead, e.g.

SELECT column1, column2 FROM...

I have successfully changed all my coding accordingly with one exception:

while ($gptp <=5)
	{
	$gptplan="plan".$gptp;
	$gptget = mysql_query("SELECT * FROM $gptplan
		WHERE userid = '$gptuser' AND email = '$gptemail' LIMIT 1");
		while($row = mysql_fetch_array($gptget))
		{
			$_SESSION[plantot][$gptp]=$row[plantot];
			$_SESSION[plannew][$gptp]=$row[plannew];
			$gptlvl=1;
			while ($gptlvl <=9)
			{
				$gpttot="lvl".$gptlvl."tot";
				$gptnew="lvl".$gptlvl."new";
				$_SESSION[gpttot][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gpttot];
				$_SESSION[gptnew][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gptnew];
				$gptlvl++;
			}
		}
	$gptp++;	
	}

Any ideas how I could work this one? Or am I allowed to occasionally have an exception to the rule?

[NogDog]

Looks to me like you use 4 columns -- just look at which array indexes are used with $row -- so you could make them the columns used in your SELECT. (Note that if those are the only 4 columns in that table, then it's not bad performance-wise to just use "*", though that makes your source code a bit less readable.)

[Dasher]

Are these ;

$_SESSION[gpttot][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gpttot];
$_SESSION[gptnew][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gptnew];

supposed to be

$_SESSION[gpttot][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[gpttot];
$_SESSION[gptnew][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[gptnew];

[NogDog]

Are these ;

$_SESSION[gpttot][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gpttot];
$_SESSION[gptnew][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[$gptnew];

supposed to be

$_SESSION[gpttot][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[gpttot];
$_SESSION[gptnew][$gptp][$gptlvl]=$row[gptnew];

I didn't notice that before, but probably explains the OP's question: it looks like the table must have a bunch of columns with names like lvl1new, lvl1tot, lvl2new, lvl2tot, etc.... Now I'm sort of leaning toward a DB redesign to move those enumerated columns into one or more separate tables with a foreign key into the main table.

[max2474]

Thankyou for your help.

NogDog - you are correct. There are approx 18 columns being called in each table (5 of them) out of 20 columns. The other 2 being my verification (userid and email)

It would be possible to list them all in the SELECT, but would make reading very difficult. If I am calling all but two of the columns, would that be acceptable use of the *?

I have heard of foreign keys before, but as yet have had no introduction, so do not understand them yet.


As an additional question, I am also going to have to set all the lvl1new, lvl2new etc... to 0 upon each login. Is there any way of doing this as within the original query, or do I have to run it as a separate UPDATE query? (which is what i am expecting)

[cnatrainings]

having lots of questions pop up, so am posting them as I think them..hope you don't mind

Having read that ideally, you should not use SELECT * and specify which columns you want instead

By
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[max2474]

interesting cna....? :/

[NogDog]

interesting cna....? :/

Would you like some ketchup with that spam?

(I've reported the post in question, so hopefully before long late-comers to this thread will wonder what you were talking about.)