Laravel 4: Use URI placeholders and query strings in form - php

Question

I'm working on a website that searches a database of organizations. On the search page, there are two search fields: one for searching by record name, and one searching the organization's subjects.
Now, normally, I would have no problem setting up placeholders in my URIs.
Route::get('/search/{name}', function($name)
{
//code...
});
And I use the post route to attach the parameters
Route::post('/search', array( 'as' => 'results', function()
{
$string = Input::get('search');
return Redirect::to("/search/$string");
}));
And the Laravel form would have no problem...
<h4>Search by Name</h4>
{{ Form::open(array('url' => "search") )}}
<p>
<div class="input-group input-group-lg">
<span class="input-group-btn">
{{ Form::button('Search', array('class' => 'btn btn-default', 'type' => 'submit'))}}
</span>
{{ Form::text('search', '', array('class' => 'form-control', 'placeholder' => 'Search by name')) }}
</div>
</p>
{{ Form::close() }}
But how do I attach a query string to this part?
{{ Form::open(array('url' => "search") )}}
How I would like my code to behave is when a query string is present, it searches by subject, not name. Doing this:
{{ Form::open(array('url' => "search/?subject=true") )}}
Doesn't actually attach it to my url.
The one thing I could do is just have a hidden input that tells the code to search by subject and not name, but that would mean any users who go to the url again will get different results. I don't want that behavior.
Any help? Laravel documentation doesn't help and I can't seem to find anyone online with the same problem.
[edit]
I found the trick to putting it into the url is by attaching the query string on the Route::post() like so:
$string = Input::get('search');
$subject = Input::get('subject');
return Redirect::to("/search/$string?subject=$subject");
But then Laravel gives me a NotFoundHttpException even after I change the final route to
Route::get('/search/{name}?subject={subject}', function($name, $subject)

Answer 1

Try
Route::get('/search',function($name)
{
//code...
if(Input::has('subject'))
$subject = Input::get('subject');
...
});

Answer 2

Laravel Router system already adds all of your non-route parameters as queries, so if you have a router:
Route::get('/search/{name?}', ['as' => 'search', function($name)
{
//code...
}]);
And you do
return Redirect::route('search', ['name' => 'laracon', 'subject' => 'true']);
It will redirect to:
http://server/search/laracon?subject=true
And
return Redirect::route('search', ['subject' => 'true']);
To
http://server/search?subject=true
And, of course, inside your router you have access to both of them:
Route::get('/search/{name?}', ['as' => 'search', function($name)
{
var_dump(Input::get('name'));
var_dump(Input::get('search'));
}]);