user-edit.php – settings registered – _POST[val] not in HTTP Request

I changed the first part of the update_user_meta() function to check for the correct http request. what i have above reflects the values (erroneously) of the _GET req i’d mentioned. oddly, I don’t notice any remarkable changes in the way it’s functioning:

    public function zto_membergroup_members()
    {
        $zto_helpers = new Zto_Helpers();
        if ($_POST['action'] == 'updated') {

• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust.

I think I’m on the right track, but still stuck. I discovered that when “the form” (the Settings API registered fields) work as desired, the following is what’s put in wp_usermeta. The first line shows results of a user joining one member group. the second is accompanied by a screenshot:

# member of one group:
a:1:{s:20:"zto_membergroup_four";s:1:"1";}

# member of three groups:
a:3:{s:19:"zto_membergroup_two";s:1:"1";s:21:"zto_membergroup_three";s:1:"1";s:20:"zto_membergroup_four";s:1:"1";}

When the data isn’t processed as I want, the following is what I’m getting (first row, then second after second submission, and so on adding more multi-dimensional arrays):

_{Note that the sub-array is present but empty the first submission resulting in a:6 instead of a:5, then a:6 is filled on second submit:}

#FIRST _REQUEST
a:6:{s:19:"zto_membergroup_one";s:0:"";s:19:"zto_membergroup_two";s:0:"";s:21:"zto_membergroup_three";
s:0:"";s:20:"zto_membergroup_four";s:0:"";s:20:"zto_membergroup_five";s:0:"";i:0;N;}

#SECOND _REQUEST
a:6:{s:19:"zto_membergroup_one";s:0:"";s:19:"zto_membergroup_two";s:0:"";s:21:"zto_membergroup_three";s:0:"";
s:20:"zto_membergroup_four";s:0:"";s:20:"zto_membergroup_five";s:0:"";i:0;a:6:{s:19:"zto_membergroup_one";s:0:"";s:19:"zto_membergroup_two";s:0:"";s:21:"zto_membergroup_three";s:0:"";s:20:
"zto_membergroup_four";s:0:"";s:20:"zto_membergroup_five";s:0:"";i:0;s:0:"";}}

What I am expecting is a sort of combination of the two, as in the data in the db would be an array of length 5 (not multi-dimensional), like so:

a:5:{s:19:"zto_membergroup_one";s:0:"";s:19:"zto_membergroup_two";s:0:"";s:21:"zto_membergroup_three";s:0:"";
s:20:"zto_membergroup_four";s:1:"1";s:20:"zto_membergroup_five";s:0:"";}

I haven’t solved anything of course. Merely wanted to show what I’m getting. I guess the first sample (with the single key/ value pair serialized) is my goal since that’s what works. I’m not looking for an answer to give me the store the array w/ 5 members, regardless of their value. The point is to allow users to define his/ her membership in 1 or more of 5 member groups.

RE: THE _POST / _GET Requests described in the o/p:
As far as I can tell, these fields will never process using my conditional logic– as it is, as shown above– looking for a _POST value, because _POST is empty by the time the code gets to the update function, but I could be wrong. Despite the username, sadly I am not a master of Ajax.

Also, while debugging, I see that the _POST values are placed in a cache array, so they aren’t just disregarded. I guess it’s progress to understand that. Though that’s a mere observation (i wouldn’t say “i understand it” yet). I regret I didn’t note the name/ settings page / line where the _POST values are stored elsewhere (maybe wp-settings): I assume that’s the WP way of handling this type of Request, but I’m not familiar enough to just get it yet.

Thank you!

EDIT: One last thing. I realize I could have achieved this in probably under 30 minutes using a plugin like Advanced Custom Fields (which I did, in fact), but I don’t want that. I don’t like the way ACT adds the meta key/ value pairs. I’m sure there’s a way to get it to enter then as serialized, but I don’t care. That’s not interesting or useful to me at all to use a plugin to achieve what the CMS was developed to be able to do for a person who knows PHP (even a little bit of PHP), it seems more than lazy and … i can’t think of the word I’d want to use. Just lame. haha. I don’t mean to insult anyone by saying that. I was the same way w/ guitar. That’s why I was a good musician. Investing the time to learn to do something correctly tends to return a better value.

• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust. Reason: code and illustration
• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust. Reason: alignment
• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust.
• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust.
• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust. Reason: addendum

The following is the solution to prevent the wp_usermeta.meta_value from becoming an infinitely long multi-dimensional array; to handle the issue issue i encountered with the serialized data. Note the dynamic value in the foreach() loop:

<?php
    $user_membership = get_user_meta($user_id, 'zto_membergroup');
    $zto_helpers = new Zto_Helpers();
    $user_membership = wp_parse_args($user_membership, $zto_helpers->zto_membergroup_defaults());
    if(is_array($user_membership) && !empty($user_membership[0])){
        $default_membership = $user_membership;
        // echo '<br>var_dump(default_membership): '.var_dump($default_membership);
        $user_membership = $default_membership[0];
        $user_membership = array_merge($user_membership, $default_membership);
    }
    else {
        $user_membership = wp_parse_args($user_membership, $zto_helpers->zto_membergroup_defaults());
    }
    $membergroup = get_option('zto_membergroup');
    $zto_helpers = new Zto_Helpers();
    if ($membergroup) {
        $membergroup = wp_parse_args($membergroup, $zto_helpers->zto_membergroup_defaults());
    } else {
        $membergroup = $zto_helpers->zto_membergroup_defaults();
    }
    
    
    $array0 = $user_membership;
    if(!empty($array0[0])) {
    $array1 = array_slice($array0, 0, count($array0) - 1, true); 
$userInputArray = array('one', 'two', 'three', 'four', 'five');

// Initialize the filter key array
$filterKeys = array();

// Loop through the user input values
foreach ($userInputArray as $uiKey => $uiVal) {
    // Add the filter key if it matches the key in the nested array
    if (isset($array0[0]["zto_membergroup_$uiVal"]) && $array0[0]["zto_membergroup_$uiVal"] === '1') {
        $filterKeys[] = "zto_membergroup_$uiVal";
    }  
}

// Get the filtered array with the dynamic keys
$array2 = array_filter($array0[0], function($key) use ($filterKeys) {
    return in_array($key, $filterKeys);
}, ARRAY_FILTER_USE_KEY);
 
    // Merge the two arrays
    $user_membership = array_merge($array1, $array2);
}
 
?>

• This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by ajaxStardust.