Question

i have a form that has a multiple select drop down. a user can select more than one options in the select. the name of the select is array[]; using php I call implode(",",$array)
in mysql db, it stores the field as a text in this format "places"= "new york, toronto, london" when i want to display these fields i explode the commas.

I am trying to run a report to display the places. here is my select:

"select * from mytable where db.places .. userSelectedPlaces"

how can i check toronto in lists of “places” that user selected? note “places” in the db might be either just “toronto” or it might be comma separated lists of places like “ny, toronto, london, paris, etc”.

Answer 1

If it is possible, you would be much better off using another table to hold the places that the user has selected. Call it SelectedPlaces with columns:

• mytable_id – To join back to the table in your query
• place – EG: “Toronto”

Then you can run a simple query to figure out if Toronto has been selected:

SELECT * 
  FROM mytable m
 INNER JOIN SelectedPlaces sp ON sp.mytable_id = m.id
 WHERE sp.place = 'Toronto'