Marvel Chronology Project

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 1:46 am**

Glad to see the forum back online, but the search is still broken!

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 11:40 am**

Alas, the search may be over, unless some enterprising niece or nephew out there wants to take a deep dive into it.

The search program was originally written by Jimmy Petersson in an old-old version of python to build a script in an old, old version of php, and I've learned enough about php to cobble together updates, as we've changed the structures of the listings. But that older version of php is no longer available, and I don't have the time to devote to rewrite it for php 7.0, which is what the site operates under now (and at some point in the not distant future, you can expect us to migrate to php 8.0).

If some enterprising soul wants to develop something, I'll be glad to send you the source code that we've been using to scrape the data and build a search database (but be forewarned: you need to know a little bit about python, and more than a little bit about php). Barring that, it may be a fond farewell to the search.

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:18 pm**

Here's some of the relevant parts:

Code: Select all

Search for characters:
<FORM METHOD="get" ACTION="xzsearchthemcp.php">
<INPUT TYPE="text" SIZE="20" NAME="searchForCharacters">
<INPUT TYPE="submit" VALUE="Search">
</FORM>
Go to comic:
<FORM ID="comicform" METHOD="get" NAME="gocomic" ACTION="xzsearchthemcp.php">
<INPUT TYPE="text" SIZE="20" NAME="searchForComic" ID="comic" VALUE=""/>
<INPUT TYPE="submit" VALUE="Go">
</FORM>

...more to come

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:19 pm**

Code: Select all

<?php
$figure = $_GET["figure"];
$searchForFigures = $_GET["searchForCharacters"];
$searchForComic = $_GET["searchForComic"];
$comic = $_GET["comic"];
include("mcpfunctions.php");
if($figure != NULL)
   getFigure($figure);
elseif($searchForFigures != NULL)
   searchForFigures($searchForFigures);
elseif($searchForComic != NULL)
   searchForComic($searchForComic);
elseif($comic != NULL)
   getComic($comic)
?>

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:21 pm**

Code: Select all

function openConnection() {
   $host = "blahbahblah";
   $login = "blahblahblah";
   $dbname = "blahblahblah";
   $password = "blahblahblah";
   $db = mysqli_connect($host, $login, $password, $dbname) or errorManagement();
   return $db;
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:22 pm**

Code: Select all

function errorManagement($db = "") {
   if (!empty($db)) {
      if ($db->connect_errno) {
         echo "<p>Failed to connect to MySQL: ({$db->connect_errno}){$db->connect_error}</p>";
      }
   }
   echo "<p><a href=\"javascript:history.go(-1)\">Back</a><p>";
   exit();
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:23 pm**

Code: Select all

function searchForComic($comic) {
   $db = openConnection();
   $comic = $db->real_escape_string($comic);
   $sql = "SELECT * FROM mcp_comics WHERE abbreviation='{$comic}' ORDER BY appendix,figid,entry_index";
   $result = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
   publishComic($result, $db);
   $result->close();
   $db->close();
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:24 pm**

Code: Select all

function searchForFigures($searchString) {
   $db = openConnection();
   $searchString = $db->real_escape_string($searchString);
   $sql = "SELECT name,link,dimension FROM mcp_figures WHERE search_name LIKE '%{$searchString}%' OR name LIKE '%{$searchString}%'";
   $result = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
   echo "<p>Results for '{$searchString}':</p>";
   while($figureobj = $result->fetch_object()) {
      if($figureobj->dimension != "standard") {
         echo "<a href=\"{$figureobj->link}\">{$figureobj->name} ({$figureobj->dimension})</a><br>";
      }
      else {
         echo "<a href=\"{$figureobj->link}\">{$figureobj->name}</a><br>";
      }
   }
   $result->close();
   $db->close();
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:25 pm**

Code: Select all

function getFigure($index) {
   $db = openConnection();
   $index = $db->real_escape_string($index);
   $sql = "SELECT * FROM figures3 WHERE ind IN ({$index})";
   $result = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
   if($figureobj = $result->fetch_object()) {
      echo str_replace("\'", "\"", $figureobj->html);
      echo str_replace("\'", "\"", "{$figureobj->list}</b>");
   }
   else
      echo "Could not find the figure.<br>";
   echo "<p>";
   $result->close();
   $db->close();
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:25 pm**

Code: Select all

function getComic($index) {
   $db = openConnection();
   $index = $db->real_escape_string($index);
   $sql = "SELECT * FROM mcp_comics WHERE comicid='{$index}' ORDER BY appendix,figid,entry_index";
   $result = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
   publishComic($result, $db);
   $result->close();
   $db->close();
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:26 pm**

Code: Select all

function addLinksToRaw($comicobj, $rawstr, $comics, $linkCurrent) {
   if ($rawstr == "") {
      return "&nbsp;";
   }
   $linkstr = $rawstr;
   for ( $c = 0; $c < sizeof($comics); $c += 1) {
      $ca = preg_split("/\|/", $comics[$c]);
      if (!($ca[0] == $comicobj->abbreviation && $ca[2] == $comicobj->appendix && ! $linkCurrent)) {
         $linkstr = str_replace($ca[0], "<a href=\"?comic={$ca[1]}#{$ca[2]}{$comicobj->figid}\">{$ca[0]}</a>", $linkstr);
      }
   }
   return $linkstr;
}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:28 pm**

Code: Select all

function publishComic($comic, $db) {

   $comicFound = false;
   $current_appendix = -1;
   $color = false;
   while($comicobj = $comic->fetch_object()) {
      if (!$comicFound) {
         $comicFound = true;
         echo "<table class=\"comictable\" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=4><tr><th></th><th>Previous</th><th colspan=2>Current</th><th>Next</th></tr>";
         $comicid = $db->real_escape_string($comicobj->comicid);
         $sql = "SELECT full_name FROM mcp_comics_fullname WHERE comicid='{$comicid}'";
         $result = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
         if($fullname = $result->fetch_object()) {
            echo "<b>{$fullname->full_name}</b>";
         }
         $result->close();
      }
      if( $comicobj->appendix != $current_appendix ) {
         if ($current_appendix != -1) {
             echo "<tr class=\"space_row\"><td colspan=5>&nbsp;</td></tr>";
         }
         $current_appendix = $comicobj->appendix;
         $color = false;
         echo "<tr id=\"{$current_appendix}\" class=\"comic_title_row\"><td><b>{$comicobj->abbreviation} {$comicobj->appendix}</b></td><td colspan=4>&nbsp;</td></tr>";
      }

      if( $color ) {
              echo "<tr id=\"{$current_appendix}{$comicobj->figid}\" class=\"color_row figrow\">";
      }
      else {
        echo "<tr id=\"{$current_appendix}{$comicobj->figid}\" class=\"figrow\">";
      }
      $figid = $db->real_escape_string($comicobj->figid);
      $sql = "SELECT name,link,dimension FROM mcp_figures WHERE figid='{$figid}'";
      $figresult = $db->query($sql) or errorManagement($db);
      if($figureobj = $figresult->fetch_object()) {
         if($figureobj->dimension != "standard") {
            echo "<td><a href=\"{$figureobj->link}\">{$figureobj->name} ({$figureobj->dimension})</a></td>";
         }
         else {
            echo "<td><a href=\"{$figureobj->link}\">{$figureobj->name}</a></td>";
         }
      }
      $figresult->close();

      $prev_str = addLinksToRaw($comicobj, $comicobj->previous_raw, explode("#", $comicobj->previous_comics), true);
      echo "<td>{$prev_str}</td>";

      $current_str = addLinksToRaw($comicobj, $comicobj->current_raw, explode("#", $comicobj->current_comics), false);
	  $entryindplus = $comicobj->entry_index+1;
	  echo "<td alight=\"right\">{$entryindplus}</td><td>{$current_str}</td>";

      $next_str = addLinksToRaw($comicobj, $comicobj->next_raw, explode("#", $comicobj->next_comics), true);
      echo "<td>{$next_str}</td>";

      $color = !$color;

   }
   if(!$comicFound) {
      echo "<table><tr><td>Could not find the comic.</td></tr>";
   }
   echo "</table>";

}

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:28 pm**

This worked under php 5, but php 7?

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 3:35 pm**

Which PHP version did last work ? Have you any error message pointing to the code that doesn't work ?

Edit : you just answered, php 5.0

Posted: **Thu Mar 04, 2021 4:34 pm**

No error at all, it just...doesn't work. You can try it yourself. No matter what you search for, you just get a link that takes you back to the search page.

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