Question

I am creating a sign up script, in the past i have used a sign up form with a processing file that inserts it and then that leads to the members area. Is there a way on pressing the submit button i can create the account and give any error messages right away instead of using a process php file? It will be helpful if i can get a sample code as i am sort of new to this.

I am new to programming so ajax/javascript are something i am not well versed with right now, is there a way i can do simple on same page verification like http://www.foursquare.com/signup does

Thanks.

Clarification:

I am looking to create a sign up script that will show errors on the same page. A process very similar to foursquare.com/signup

Answer 1

Yes, you can do this. The way to do it is by using JavaScript validation. Take a look at jQuery, a javascript library, and its many plugins that do validation (like this one: http://docs.jquery.com/Plugins/validation)

Javascript is a scripting language that your browser executes. You can do the validation on the browser side, without uploading anything to the PHP server component.

One critical thing to note is that you CANNOT rely on Javascript to do all your validation. Someone malicious can circumvent your client-side logic. So make sure to replicate all the validation logic on the server side.