SQL query runs in database, but in PHP says "undefined index"

Question

I have a query like this:

SELECT COALESCE(MAX(german),"DEFAULT") from translate_content WHERE english = :englishContent0 UNION ALL
SELECT COALESCE(MAX(german),"DEFAULT") from translate_content WHERE english = :englishContent1 UNION ALL
SELECT COALESCE(MAX(german),"DEFAULT") from translate_content WHERE english = :englishContent2

With the idea that if a value is not found then it will return the value "DEFAULT". My problem is that this query works fine when I run it directly in the database, but when I try it in PHP I get an error saying "undefined index: "german".

I am using MySQL and PHP 5.5.11. I'm sorry if this isn't enough information, but I don't know what else to provide (but ask and I will deliver!)

I should probably state that the column "german" definitely does exist in the table "translate_content", and I have tried encapsulating the column names in back ticks. The problem only seems to arise when I use the COALESCE function, but I'm at a loss as to how it can work when I copy and paste it into the database, but not when I run it directly from PHP :/

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thanks.

Show us the code where you execute the queries (the php code). — Epodax
– Epodax, Commented Sep 22, 2015 at 12:26
You probably need to use as <column alias> to give the column a name that can then be referenced in PHP. — Gordon Linoff
– Gordon Linoff, Commented Sep 22, 2015 at 12:26
@GordonLinoff - thank you! I knew it must be something trivial, but of course it's only obvious once you know it. Thanks for the fast reply :) — user3640967
– user3640967, Commented Sep 22, 2015 at 12:30

Rahul · Accepted Answer · 2015-09-22 12:34:21Z

2

use a column alias like

SELECT COALESCE(MAX(german),"DEFAULT") AS Column1

BTW, your query can be modified using a IN operator like below and no need of using UNION ALL

SELECT COALESCE(MAX(german),"DEFAULT") AS some_column
from translate_content WHERE english IN (:englishContent0,:englishContent1,:englishContent2)

answered Sep 22, 2015 at 12:34

Rahul

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user3640967 Over a year ago

Thanks - I have just tried this thanks to Gordon's suggestion and it works :) I actually can't use IN in this instance due to the way the queries are generated, but thanks for the tip!

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