[Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

April 18, 2008

This is a question that arises from time to time from a variety of sources, but is still a little tricky to answer.

The idea is, we have a set of data in a table - text and url and want to display these links in a table.

So what's so hard about this?

Well lets collect the data first (I won't bother with a database for brevity, but the principal is the same:

<?php
$links = array
(
array('text' => "one",      'href' => "one.php"),
array('text' => "two",      'href' => "two.php"),
array('text' => "three",    'href' => "three.php"),
array('text' => "four",     'href' => "four.php"),
array('text' => "five",     'href' => "five.php"),
array('text' => "six",      'href' => "six.php"),
array('text' => "seven",    'href' => "seven.php"),
array('text' => "eight",    'href' => "eight.php"),
array('text' => "nine",     'href' => "nine.php"),
array('text' => "ten",      'href' => "ten.php"),
array('text' => "eleven",   'href' => "eleven.php"),
array('text' => "twelve",   'href' => "twelve.php"),
array('text' => "thirteen", 'href' => "thirteen.php"),
);
?>

Now given $columns - being the number of columns we want to render these links in, can you come up with a simple loop to display them cleanly, with the same number of cells (<td>...</td>) per row.

The final solution should be (assuming $columns = 4)

<table>
<tr>
	<td>[url="one.php"]one[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="two.php"]two[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="three.php"]three[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="four.php"]four[/url]</td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="five.php"]five[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="six.php"]six[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="seven.php"]seven[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="eight.php"]eight[/url]</td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="nine.php"]nine[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="ten.php"]ten[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="eleven.php"]eleven[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="twelve.php"]twelve[/url]</td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="thirteen.php"]thirteen[/url]</td>
	<td> </td>
	<td> </td>
	<td> </td>
</tr>
</table>

Hint: Look at the % operator.

For the more experience programmers, can you modify your original source to accept a flag $across that if true, renders as above, and if false renders as below:

<table>
<tr>
	<td>[url="one.php"]one[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="five.php"]five[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="nine.php"]nine[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="thirteen.php"]thirteen[/url]</td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="two.php"]two[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="six.php"]six[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="ten.php"]ten[/url]</td>
	<td> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="three.php"]three[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="seven.php"]seven[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="eleven.php"]eleven[/url]</td>
	<td> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
	<td>[url="four.php"]four[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="eight.php"]eight[/url]</td>
	<td>[url="twelve.php"]twelve[/url]</td>
	<td> </td>
</tr>
</table>

Remember, the input array is formatted as an associated array as supplied, and you have one controlling variable: $columns which controls the number of columns to display. This will be from 1 to (say) 20.

Brownie points and scooby snacks will be awarded to clean, efficient (and obviously working) code.

Will · April 18, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

I had a go at it:

It can be viewed at: www.thecrimelife.net/tablecomp.php

By adding a 'col' variable into the URL you can change the amount of columns(leaving it will make it 4); eg:

http://www.thecrimelife.net/tablecomp.php?col=6

The source; (Just the PHP part)

<?php
$links = array
(
array('text' => "one",      'href' => "one.php"),
array('text' => "two",      'href' => "two.php"),
array('text' => "three",    'href' => "three.php"),
array('text' => "four",     'href' => "four.php"),
array('text' => "five",     'href' => "five.php"),
array('text' => "six",      'href' => "six.php"),
array('text' => "seven",    'href' => "seven.php"),
array('text' => "eight",    'href' => "eight.php"),
array('text' => "nine",     'href' => "nine.php"),
array('text' => "ten",      'href' => "ten.php"),
array('text' => "eleven",   'href' => "eleven.php"),
array('text' => "twelve",   'href' => "twelve.php"),
array('text' => "thirteen", 'href' => "thirteen.php"),
);
if ($_GET['col']==0) {
$columns=4;
} else {
$columns=$_GET['col'];
}
$size=count($links);
$rows=ceil($size/$columns);
echo "<table border='1'>";
$num=0;
for ($r=0;$r<$rows;$r++)
{
echo "<tr>";
for ($c=0;$c<$columns;$c++)
{
echo "<td>";
if (isset($links[$num])) {
echo '[url="'.$links[$num]['href'].'"]'.$links[$num]['text'].'[/url]'; 
} else { echo " "; }
echo "</td>";
$num++;
}
echo "</tr>";
}
echo "</table>";
?>

It could probably me more efficient but it works; and the syntax is valid: http://validator.w3.org/check?uri=http://www.thecrimelife.net/tablecomp.php

Might as well try the other one now.

April 18, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

Not bad at all... Not quite the expected solution, but functional (which is always a bonus)... Well done.

I guess I'd better root out my copy now ;)

Zeggy · April 20, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

Here's my go at this:

<?php
$links = array
(
array('text' => "one",      'href' => "one.php"),
array('text' => "two",      'href' => "two.php"),
array('text' => "three",    'href' => "three.php"),
array('text' => "four",     'href' => "four.php"),
array('text' => "five",     'href' => "five.php"),
array('text' => "six",      'href' => "six.php"),
array('text' => "seven",    'href' => "seven.php"),
array('text' => "eight",    'href' => "eight.php"),
array('text' => "nine",     'href' => "nine.php"),
array('text' => "ten",      'href' => "ten.php"),
array('text' => "eleven",   'href' => "eleven.php"),
array('text' => "twelve",   'href' => "twelve.php"),
array('text' => "thirteen", 'href' => "thirteen.php"),
);

$columns = (isset($_GET['columns']))?intval($_GET['columns']):4;
$num_links = count($links);
$left_over = (ceil($num_links / $columns) * $columns) - $num_links;
$i = 0;

echo "<table>\n";
foreach($links as $l)
{
echo (($i % $columns) == 0)?"<tr>\n":"";
echo "<td><a href=\"" , $l['href'] , "\">" , $l['text'] , "</a></td>\n";
echo (($i % $columns) == ($columns-1))?"</tr>\n":"";
if ($i == ($num_links-1))
{
	for($i2 = 0; $i2 < $left_over; $i2++)
	{
		echo "<td> </td>\n";
	}
	echo "</tr>\n";
}
$i++;
}
echo "</table>\n";
?>

I'll give the harder one a try, but I'll need to rewrite my code since I used foreach.

btw, you should do more of these competitions. Gives me something to do, and it's interesting to see what other people come up with.

April 20, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

Good one Zeggy, now if you could just get rid of that second loop ... ;)

Zeggy · April 20, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

Revised code:

<?php
$links = array
(
   array('text' => "one",      'href' => "one.php"),
   array('text' => "two",      'href' => "two.php"),
   array('text' => "three",    'href' => "three.php"),
   array('text' => "four",     'href' => "four.php"),
   array('text' => "five",     'href' => "five.php"),
   array('text' => "six",      'href' => "six.php"),
   array('text' => "seven",    'href' => "seven.php"),
   array('text' => "eight",    'href' => "eight.php"),
   array('text' => "nine",     'href' => "nine.php"),
   array('text' => "ten",      'href' => "ten.php"),
   array('text' => "eleven",   'href' => "eleven.php"),
   array('text' => "twelve",   'href' => "twelve.php"),
   array('text' => "thirteen", 'href' => "thirteen.php"),
);

$columns = (isset($_GET['columns']))?intval($_GET['columns']):4;
$num_links = count($links);
$full_size = (ceil($num_links / $columns) * $columns);
$links = array_pad($links, (ceil($num_links / $columns) * $columns), "0");
$i = 0;

echo "<table>\n";
foreach($links as $l)
{
   echo (($i % $columns) == 0)?"<tr>\n":"";
   echo ($l=="0")?"<td> </td>\n":"<td><a href=\"" . $l['href'] . "\">" . $l['text'] . "</a></td>\n";
   echo (($i % $columns) == ($columns-1))?"</tr>\n":"";
   $i++;
}
echo "</table>\n";
?>

Thanks for the push in the right direction, now the code is shorter :)

Decepti0n · May 10, 2008

Re: [Competition Questions] Designing Dynamic Tables

Even though its late, thought I'd chime in with a different take on it:

ob_start();
$links = array
(
array('text' => "one",      'href' => "one.php"),
array('text' => "two",      'href' => "two.php"),
array('text' => "three",    'href' => "three.php"),
array('text' => "four",     'href' => "four.php"),
array('text' => "five",     'href' => "five.php"),
array('text' => "six",      'href' => "six.php"),
array('text' => "seven",    'href' => "seven.php"),
array('text' => "eight",    'href' => "eight.php"),
array('text' => "nine",     'href' => "nine.php"),
array('text' => "ten",      'href' => "ten.php"),
array('text' => "eleven",   'href' => "eleven.php"),
array('text' => "twelve",   'href' => "twelve.php"),
array('text' => "thirteen", 'href' => "thirteen.php"),
);

echo '<table>';
for ($count = 0, $columns = 4; $count < (ceil(count($links) / $columns) * $columns); $count++) {
echo $count % $columns == 0 ? "\n\t<tr>" : '',

"\n\t\t<td>" . (array_key_exists($count, $links) ? '[url="' . $links[$count]['href'] . '"]' . $links[$count]['text'] . '[/url]' : ' ') . '</td>',

$count % $columns == ($columns - 1) ? "\n\t</tr>" : '';
}
echo "\n</table>";

echo '<pre>' . htmlentities(ob_get_clean()) . '</pre>';

Includes easy way to see the result for no reason

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