[apache] mod_rewrite
 

I'm having trouble with mod_rewrite and htaccess.. here's what I'm trying to do:

I'm trying to write up an .htaccess file that will allow me to set up static URLs that convert to dynamic URLs.

http://www.blahblah.com/gallery/3/39820
rewrites to
http://www.blahblah.com/gallery.php?id=3&pic=39820

Honestly, I don't have anything because I don't know if what I have has anything to do with that I'm trying to accomplish. I need some guidance!

Hmmm...although I've never used mod_rewrite, it looks like it shouldn't be too hard if you're familiar with regular expressions. Here's some sample code for the .htaccess file that may or may not work, but might point you in the right direction:

RewriteEngine on
RewriteLog logs/rewrite
RewriteLogLevel 9
RewriteRule ^/gallery/([0-9+])/([0-9+])$ /gallery.php?id=$1&pic=$2

The log level of 9 is excessive (use 1 or 2, if any), but will help you figure out why things are working the way they are.

Does the regexp make sense to you or should I explain what it's doing?

RewriteEngine on
RewriteRule ^gallery/([0-9]+)/([0-9]+)$ gallery.php?id=$1&pic=$2

Will work, the slash at the start of cthulu's breaks it (did for me anyway).

Thanks for the correction. I really should test things out before I post them :)

BTW, the regexp that I used is pretty broad,...it could easily be more restrictive if you know the possible range of numbers that you'll be matching, eg - between a one and twenty digit numeral.

I've never messed with mod_rewrite, but it looks like some cool stuff.

Thank you... I will try this out

Just curious, but what's the benefit of a directory-like structure as opposed to a querystring-based page?

I notice CNN has the directory structure request as well.

Long query strings are ugly and they reveal quite a bit about your server structure. Using mod_rewrite also allows you to change your back end script without changing the links on your pages.