help with dbase/forms/sql

[craftgirl]

Hi, I'm new to HostMonster and I'm sort of overwhelmed trying to figure out how to create my forms. I currently have a couple of forms in FrontPage, however, HM does not support FP forms, correct? I would really appreciate if anyone has some info or can tell me where to find the info on how to get my forms up and running. On one form I want to collect data and send to a dbase, and for the other, I simply want data sent to my email. Please help:eek:

[sjlplat]

I have a form mailer available for download on my website at http://www.myphpscripts.net/scripts.php called Mailcode. It can be customized to your needs for sending data to email.

What type of data are you looking to collect in a database? I may be able to build an application for you.

[craftgirl]

The first form which will have data sent to a dbase will have fields: First Name, Last Name, Address, City, State of Providence, PostalCode, Home Phone, FAX, Email address, Confirm Email address, User Name, Password, and Confirm password. They would then click a radio button or something to that effect that says, Yes I would like to receive specials via email.

The second form is simply a feedback form with fields: Comments, Category (Website, Products, Service), Contact Info such as Name, Phone, FAX, and Email address. This info will be sent to me via email.

Part of my problem is I don't even understand how to use the SQL Dbase feature on the cpanel.

Any info you can provide would be great. Thanks.:)

[sjlplat]

My Mailcode script can do everything you need for the form mailer. You can simply download it, install it, add the form fields you want, and edit the form layout to match your website.

The database form is pretty straight forward. I'll work on a script with a self installer and you can test drive it.

Once the form has been submitted to the database, how do you plan to retrieve that data?

[sdasevne]

I currently have a couple of forms in FrontPage, however, HM does not support FP forms, correct?
Whether they "support" them or not, I have a website, bible7.net, that has hundreds of FrontPage forms that email me answers to Bible study questions. I've not tried sending the responses to a database, but sending them to an email address works fine. I'd suggest you try them first before going through a lot of unnecessary work changing them.

[craftgirl]

I'm not sure how to retrieve it. Any suggestions? I am like so new to HostMonster, and I'm trying to get the feel of what to do, but I still feel a bit confused and sometimes don't know what I'm suppose to do. I thank you for helping. Does this mean I can use my forms that are created in FrontPage, but I have to create the database using SQL in HM? And I'm not sure what the next steps are -- signed confused craftgirl.

[sjlplat]

I can build an administration panel to retrieve, add, edit, and delete entries in the database. Additionally, I can allow users to unsubscribe themselves. Give me an idea of what you would like to do and I should be able to build whatever you need.

It sounds like you want a subscriber database. How exactly would you like your data displayed?

Hostmonster does support Frontpage extensions, so I would assume your Frontpage form mailer will work. However, keep in mind that web-based forms are used to send spam, and unless you provide some level of protection from automated spambots, you are likely to receive spam in your email.

[craftgirl]

Yes, it is a subscriber database that I want to use with a form called "email signup" created in FrontPage. I guess I miswrote, yes, I understand HM support FP extensions, but not an Access database which is what I have. That means I can use my FP form, correct? But what I then need is a dbase created in SQL through HM, is that correct?

The fields in my form are: FirstName, LastName , StreetAddress, SuiteApt, City, StateOrProvidence, PostalCode, Country, HomePhone, FAX, EmailAddress, Re-enterEmailAddress (to confirm) Password, and Confirm Password. I have a radio button to click that says "Yes, I would like to receive month specials via email."

[sjlplat]

Ok, I see. You have a Frontpage form that submits data to an Access database. It is possible to convert that form to use a MySQL database, but in all honesty, it would be easier to create a new form and write a PHP script to manage the MySQL database.

[craftgirl]

Ok, how do I create a new form and write a PHP script to manage the MySQL database? I'm not sure where to start? Meaning, I create the new form using what? And where do I write the PHP script? Sorry for the "dumb" questions, but I'm new to this side of things. Thanks.:o

[sjlplat]

There's nothing dumb about your questions. Everyone starts somewhere! :)

I use Notepad++ to write all my scripts. It's a free source code editor available for download at http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net

I started learning PHP from the tutorials at http://www.tizag.com and code examples from http://www.php.net

For web forms, I started with http://www.kirupa.com

For CAPTCHA I used the source code at http://www.white-hat-web-design.co.uk

Hope this helps. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask.

[craftgirl]

Thanks for all your help. I found some good help on www.twebma.com/php and have now created a dbdase in MySQL and have created a table. Not sure how to do the rest, but I'm reading and checking out all the helpful links people have sent me. The big question is how do I link my dbase to the form?

[nerdykit]

The big question is how do I link my dbase to the form?

Take a look into the code of some simple existing mysql program in php.

The command to start with is mysql_connect find that, and work from there, you'll figure it out.

[craftgirl]

sjlplat, I like the idea of using Notebook++ and have taken a look at at http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net but how do I download it? It's a little confusing to me. thanks.

[sjlplat]

sjlplat, I like the idea of using Notebook++ and have taken a look at at http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net but how do I download it? It's a little confusing to me. thanks.

You can download the zip or executable at http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=95717&package_id=102072

Oops, just noticed I gave you the wrong URL for Tizag. Go to http://www.tizag.com for PHP and MySQL tutorials. They're very easy to understand, and they walk you through the basics step-by-step.