Download Counter

[Ardi]

Hi, I'd like to set up a script that would let the user download a file on my site.

so the link would like like,

download.php?id=23

the catch is, i don't want the user to be redirected to the next page, i want the user to be able to download the zip file as soon as that link is clicked.

I also want to use php so i can eep track on which are the most popular file downloads.

How would I be able to do this? Im not quite sure on how to do it using this method.

Thanks

[Elledan]

RE: Starting download from the same page

This isn't possible from the same page. A possibility would be to open a small new window in which you load the download.php page. After the download has started, this window can be closed.

RE: Counting the number of downloads

A way to accomplish this is by using an (my/postgre)SQL database in which you update one table every time a file is being downloaded.

Like this:
> The new window opens, 'download.php' is being loaded
> On the server, the ID of the file which is being downloaded gets passed to a piece of code which does the following:
*Get the value of the column 'totaldownloads' WHERE ID='$id' and increase it by 1 (i.e. $var++)
*Update the column 'totaldownloads' WHERE ID='$id' and insert the updated value in the right cel

--------------------------------------------------------

That's about it. If you've any questions, don't hesitate to ask them.

[TWTCommish]

I'd go about it a different way - I'd create a table to store all instances of downloads. Everytime the page is loaded, an SQL query is executed logging the user's IP address, time of day, and, of course, an ID number pertaining to the file.

That way, when you want the number of total downloads, a simple SELECT COUNT(fileid) will do the trick, and you have more data than you'll ever need.

I learned this from Kevin the hard way - incrementing like that can be risky business if site traffic increases.

As for the redirection: if you redirection exactly to the file (IE: www.page.com/file.zip), it should simply stay at that exact page and present a popped-up "Save As" box.