Cannot access user's first name after simple MYSQL query

Question

I would like to have "Welcome, [user's name]!" appear on a page of my website.

I perform this query:

Option 1 I tried:

$first_name = mysql_query("SELECT first_name FROM users WHERE id = $user_id");

echo "Welcome, " . $first_name . "!";

Option 2 I tried:

$users = mysql_query("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $user_id");

    if (count($user) == 1)
    {
        // first (and only) row -- meaning only one user in this array
        $user = $users[0];

        echo "first_name: " . $user['first_name'] . "!";
    }

A row in my users table looks like this: id | first_name | last_name | email | password

I have tested and I successfully have the user's id. My SQL query is also tested and works.

This is php code inserted into HTML code.

I'm struggling in accessing the first_name of the user -- any help is appreciated!

mysql_query() returns a statement handle, not the field(s) you selected. You need to fetch a row first: php.net/mysql_fetch_assoc and note that the mysql_*() functions are deprecated/obsolete, and you should NOT be using them anymore. — Marc B
– Marc B, Commented Jul 2, 2014 at 18:32

Community · Accepted Answer · 2017-05-23 12:05:44Z

2

You forgot to fetch your results

$users = mysql_query("SELECT first_name  FROM users WHERE id = $user_id");
$row = mysql_fetch_assoc($users);
echo $row['first_name'];

FYI, you shouldn't use mysql_* functions in new code. They are no longer maintained and are officially deprecated. See the red box? Learn about prepared statements instead, and use PDO or MySQLi - this article will help you decide which. If you choose PDO, here is a good tutorial.

edited May 23, 2017 at 12:05

CommunityBot

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answered Jul 2, 2014 at 18:32

John Conde

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3 Comments

user2996892 Over a year ago

Hm, tried using this but no luck...any other suggestions?

John Conde Over a year ago

You'll need to do better when describing why this doesn't work. We can't guess what code you have. The code above is functional so if it doesn't work you're implementing it incorrectly.

user2996892 Over a year ago

Thanks, I must not be connecting to my database correctly. I'll work on it.

nosdalg · Accepted Answer · 2014-07-02 18:49:08Z

1

$userArray= mysql_query("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = $user_id");

$user=mysql_fetch_array($userArray);

If(!empty($user)){

        echo "Welcome, " . $user['first_name']. "!";

}

answered Jul 2, 2014 at 18:49

nosdalg

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