Creating arrays dynamically using PHP - php

Question

Hey folks, please lend a hand to a PHP beginner. I'm trying to put a load of dynamically created variabled into an array to re-read later, reason is a SOAP message sent is a mess and im trying to create a less complicated array:
$placea = "place a";
$placeb = "place b";
$myarray = array();
echo "<pre>";
print_r($myarray);
echo "</pre>";
what i want to be able to do:
Array
(
[0] => [Place A] => Array
(
[0] => [Accommodation] => Array
(
[RoomId] => 001
[RoomAvail] => true
[Date] => 12.04.2011
)
[1] => [Accommodation] => Array
(
[RoomId] => 002
[RoomAvail] => true
[Date] => 12.04.2011
)
) Array
(
[1] => [Place B] => Array
(
[0] => [Accommodation] => Array
(
[RoomId] => 101
[RoomAvail] => true
[Date] => 12.04.2011
)
[1] => [Accommodation] => Array
(
[RoomId] => 102
[RoomAvail] => true
[Date] => 12.04.2011
)
)
)
how would i write that out in php? sorry if its bleek and/or the array structure is incorrect

Answer 1

So you just need to use the array initializer repetitively.
If you want to initialize an array in PHP with some values, say 1 through 4, you make a call like:
$foo = array(1, 2, 3, 4);
And if you want to make an associative array, where you store some key/value pairs, you make a call like:
$foo = array('key' => 'value', 'other key' => 'other value');
But you can of course nest calls, and mix and match layers of associative and non associative arrays to achieve something like your example, e.g.:
$foo = array(
'Place A' => array(
// note use of first array on the next line is
// to generate structure like [0] => 'Accomodation' => ...
array('Accomodation' => array(
'RoomId' => '001',
'RoomAvail' => true,
'Date' => '12.04.2011')
)),
array('Accomodation' => array(
'RoomId' => '002',
'RoomAvail' => true,
'Date' => '12.04.2011')
))
),
'Place B' => array(
array('Accomodation' => array(
'RoomId' => '101',
'RoomAvail' => true,
'Date' => '12.04.2011')
)),
array('Accomodation' => array(
'RoomId' => '102',
'RoomAvail' => true,
'Date' => '12.04.2011')
))
)
);
This will very nearly produce what you're looking for, to make it replicate exactly what you have you would wrap each 'Place A' with an array and each "place" would get its own assignment to some variable $foo (I assumed this wasn't actually what you wanted and wrote something maybe slightly more intuitive).

Answer 2

If you want to have a 'less complicated' array, you have a two arrays, one fore place a and one for place b and then merge them using array_merger() http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.array-merge.php.
Study up on the array functions control structures in the manual. Many different ways of achieving bloated arrays uglying up your code.

Answer 3

This would dynamically create an array.
foreach($soapResponse as $key1 => $value1){
foreach($value as $key2 => $value2){
// $key1 = Place A or B
// value1 = array of values
$arrayResponse[$key1][$key2] = $value2;
}
}