One menu for all pages

I usually just have them with the .inc extention, no need for the .php at the end.

 

Which means that your includes are sent as plain text. If you contain sensitive data like SQL data, usernames or passwords, you'll have just given a cracker access to your site.

Of course, I did forget to mention that includes should be kept outside the Web (or www or html_public) directory for precisely this reason.

 

oh right, never knew that. Thanks. Good job they arnt then

 

To any reading all of these posts with a little bit of apprehension: Server Side Includes are VERY easy!

Design your site the way you want it. Then cut and paste your common menu items, etc into a text file or blank html file. Replace the cut content with the server prompt that calls up the file you just created. On your server, you may need to set up a .htaccess file. All you do is create a new file in your public folder and name it .htaccess Then add the commands as mentioned in the previous thread. Or, perhaps your server has an "Add Apache Handlers" function. To be sure, contact your server tech support.

Once all of this is done, the only thing you need to do is update your ONE file as needed, and every single page on your site will be updated with that content. SSI's are the best thing I have ever used with regard to site maintenance.

 

So you are saying outsiders have access to the contents if they are plain text? I am assuming this would be a problem in a server-side language like PHP where your username and password are not normally seen. Would a person then see the name of the file somehow and then simply type in it's address directly? How could they do this?

I have not yet used SSI's containing PHP code, but have considered it.

 

If you're going to use PHP's include function to hold sensitive data, such as MySQL calls, save the file with the .php file extension.

 

Wow... I'm sorry for posting in this aged thread.. but still I can't stop this...

The informations here are really great and I think it will help people for years.
If it is organized in a website it will be a great one in itself
Thanks web guru Dan specially.. as you are simply great.

Thank you all
Vijay

 

Don't worry about it. There's a reason why I have this thread linked in my signature - I think it's useful to others - especially those that are learning.

 

Are .shtml pages any less SEO friendly?

If my pages are .shtml and someone types domainname.com/ will the homepage still appear?

Also i dont seem to understand how using .htaccess i can make .shtml look like .html. Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

fuzz

 

No, they're not less friendly, and yes the home page will still appear.

As has been said time and time and time again (oh wait, that was another thread), the file extension does not matter.

With regard to .htaccess, this might come in handy: http://www.web-wise-wizard.com/server-side/apache-mod-htaccess-tutorial.html

 

very useful article, but i HAVE A QUESTION? How do we define the $Document_root var, or just please explain that last sentence?

 

It's been pre-defined by the language itself. In other words, just drop it in and give it a go.

For example,

<?php include($DOCUMENT_ROOT . "/includes/menu.inc.php"); ?>

Code (markup):

Would look for a PHP file called "menu.inc.php" at www.example.com/includes/menu.inc.php regardless of what page the menu is being called from (such as www.example.com or www.example.com/category/sub-category/page.php for instance). It's basically a nice shortcut and an easy way to avoid having to type out the complete URL path for the included file.

 

well, you suggest to be doing this when your website grows and you have to create new directories, and cannot access the root from those new ones with the include server side. I get it.

Well what is the .inc extension?

 

It's short for "include" - basically it's an easy way to remember that it's an included file, rather than a template file, or a script.

 

very useful information Dan, you deserve some reputation

 

Hello Dan Schulz, and thanks!

Actually today I was playing with includes and didn't add the .php at the end - and get what happened. I was able to see the content. Thanks for help.

I was lucky to find this article on time.

cheers

 

You're welcome.

 

This should have been your thread, not mine.

 

Hey, I just figured people would find it useful, so I linked to it in my signature. I never figured it would last THIS long.

 

If you have used include file then this also makes the page more maintainable.