Storing database records into array

Question

I would want to create an array that will hold records retrieved from a database using a query of SELECT statement.

The records to be retrieved have multiple fields such as lastname, firstname, mi and 20 more fields. What would be the best approach on coding this function?

alright i have followed what prisoner have given below.. the next question is how do i search through this kind of array using queries? for example i want to search for a username..

Answer 1

<?php

// run query
$query = mysql_query("SELECT * FROM table");

// set array
$array = array();

// look through query
while($row = mysql_fetch_assoc($query)){

  // add each row returned into an array
  $array[] = $row;

  // OR just echo the data:
  echo $row['username']; // etc

}

// debug:
print_r($array); // show all array data
echo $array[0]['username']; // print the first rows username

Answer 2

You shouldn't search through that array, but use database capabilities for this
Suppose you're passing username through GET form:

if (isset($_GET['search'])) {
  $search = mysql_real_escape_string($_GET['search']);
  $sql = "SELECT * FROM users WHERE username = '$search'";
  $res = mysql_query($sql) or trigger_error(mysql_error().$sql);
  $row = mysql_fetch_assoc($res);
  if ($row){
    print_r($row); //do whatever you want with found info
  }
}