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Variables are containers
which hold values. This is
useful when you need to use
the same piece of
information several times,
or on several different
pages, because it enables
you to easily pass
information between
functions and documents,
which is a big part of
having a dynamic web page.
A variable is a name that
you choose beginning with a
dollar ($) sign. You set the
variable with the assignment
operator, otherwise known as
the equals (=) sign.
$name =
"Kali";
$age = 21; |
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You can then call on the
variable later in the
script. Here is an example.
<?php
$name =
"Kali";
$age = 21;
print("Hi
there, my
name is
$name. I am
$age years
old.");
?> |
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The script above will then
print out:
Hi there, my name is Kali. I
am 21 years old.
When naming variables, make
sure that it uses only
letters, numbers and the
underscore (_) character,
and no spaces. It also
cannot begin with a letter,
so
$4bottles is not
valid, but
$four_bottles is.
Remember that variable names
are case sensitive.
So how would you use
variables? A good example is
with a HTML form that
gathers user input, then
uses that input on another
page, like a guestbook does. |
