dynamically generating a multidemensional array

I have an array which is dynamically generated by parsing a web page:
titles Array
(
[0] => bookmarks
[1] => New Folder
[2] => New Folder2
)
and I want to insert html links into another, nultidemensional array
which is based on the first array:
$dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]]=$link;

However this only works if the titles array has exactly 3 members.

So I made this switch:
$num=sizeof($titles);
switch($num){
case 1:
$dl[$titles[0]][]=$link;
break;
case 2:
$dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][]=$link;
break;
case 3:
$dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]][]=$link;
break;
}

This works pretty good as long as I expand the switch to have more cases
than largest possible size for the titles array. However, I can't help
feeling that there must be a better way, something which would custom
generate the multidemensional array each time I insert data into it.

This is rediculous, but it might give you the idea of what I am looking
for:
foreach($titles as $title){
$dl.="[$title]";
}

$dl[]=$link;

Is this possible in PHP ?

red

Red wrote:

> I have an array which is dynamically generated by parsing a web page:
> titles Array
> (
> [0] => bookmarks
> [1] => New Folder
> [2] => New Folder2
> )
> and I want to insert html links into another, nultidemensional array
> which is based on the first array:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]]=$link;
>
> However this only works if the titles array has exactly 3 members.
>
> So I made this switch:
> $num=sizeof($titles);
> switch($num){
> case 1:
> $dl[$titles[0]][]=$link;
> break;
> case 2:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][]=$link;
> break;
> case 3:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]][]=$link;
> break;
> }
>
> This works pretty good as long as I expand the switch to have more cases
> than largest possible size for the titles array. However, I can't help
> feeling that there must be a better way, something which would custom
> generate the multidemensional array each time I insert data into it.
>
> This is rediculous, but it might give you the idea of what I am looking
> for:
> foreach($titles as $title){
> $dl.="[$title]";
> }
>
> $dl[]=$link;
>
> Is this possible in PHP ?
>
> red

http://www.php.net/foreach

C.J.

.oO(Red)

>This is rediculous, but it might give you the idea of what I am looking
>for:
>foreach($titles as $title){
>$dl.="[$title]";
>}
>
>$dl[]=$link;
>
>Is this possible in PHP ?

Yep.

1) With eval(), but you don't really want this (too slow):

$key = '';
foreach ($titles as $title) {
$key .= "['$title']";
}
eval("\$dl{$key}[] = \$link;");


2) With a function that iterates over the titles and creates the nested
array structure on-the-fly, looks more complicated than eval(), but is
faster:

setValue($dl, $titles, $link);

function setValue(&$tree, $key, $value) {
$current = &$tree;
for ($i = 0; $i < count($key); $i++) {
$subkey = $key[$i];
// create subtree if it doesn't exist yet
if (!isset($current[$subkey])) {
$current[$subkey] = array();
}
// move one level further down the tree
$current = &$current[$subkey];
}
// finally store the value
$current[] = $value;
}

HTH
Micha

"Red" <groups@reenie.org> wrote in message
news:YxzSc.21613691$Of.3600283@news.easynews.com.. .
> I have an array which is dynamically generated by parsing a web page:
> titles Array
> (
> [0] => bookmarks
> [1] => New Folder
> [2] => New Folder2
> )
> and I want to insert html links into another, nultidemensional array
> which is based on the first array:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]]=$link;
>
> However this only works if the titles array has exactly 3 members.
>
> So I made this switch:
> $num=sizeof($titles);
> switch($num){
> case 1:
> $dl[$titles[0]][]=$link;
> break;
> case 2:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][]=$link;
> break;
> case 3:
> $dl[$titles[0]][$titles[1]][$titles[2]][]=$link;
> break;
> }
>
> This works pretty good as long as I expand the switch to have more cases
> than largest possible size for the titles array. However, I can't help
> feeling that there must be a better way, something which would custom
> generate the multidemensional array each time I insert data into it.
>
> This is rediculous, but it might give you the idea of what I am looking
> for:
> foreach($titles as $title){
> $dl.="[$title]";
> }
>
> $dl[]=$link;
>
> Is this possible in PHP ?
>
> red

Easy.

$dl = $link;
foreach(array_reverse($titles) as $title) {
$dl = array( $title => $dl );
}

Michael Fesser wrote:

> .oO(Red)
>
>
>>This is rediculous, but it might give you the idea of what I am looking
>>for:
>>foreach($titles as $title){
>>$dl.="[$title]";
>>}
>>
>>$dl[]=$link;
>>
>>Is this possible in PHP ?
>
>
> Yep.
>
> 1) With eval(), but you don't really want this (too slow):
>
> $key = '';
> foreach ($titles as $title) {
> $key .= "['$title']";
> }
> eval("\$dl{$key}[] = \$link;");
>
>
> 2) With a function that iterates over the titles and creates the nested
> array structure on-the-fly, looks more complicated than eval(), but is
> faster:
>
> setValue($dl, $titles, $link);
>
> function setValue(&$tree, $key, $value) {
> $current = &$tree;
> for ($i = 0; $i < count($key); $i++) {
> $subkey = $key[$i];
> // create subtree if it doesn't exist yet
> if (!isset($current[$subkey])) {
> $current[$subkey] = array();
> }
> // move one level further down the tree
> $current = &$current[$subkey];
> }
> // finally store the value
> $current[] = $value;
> }
>
> HTH
> Micha
Wow. It took me two days to figure out what I needed, I don't think I
could ever have figured that out. Thanks, it works great.

red