MySQL Full-TEXT Search using PHP

Full-TEXT Search PHP Best Practices

SELECT *,
MATCH(title, body) AGAINST('$keyword') AS score
FROM articles
WHERE MATCH(title, body) AGAINST('$keyword')
ORDER BY score DESC

IF YOU ARE DEVELOPING YOUR FIRST WEBSITE AND GETTING HEAVY INTO PHP AND MYSQL... THEN YOU PROBABLY ARE LOOKING FOR THE RIGHT WAY TO QUERY YOUR DATABASE TO PRESENT YOUR VISITORS WITH THE BEST QUERY RESULTS POSSIBLE FROM YOUR MYSQL DATABASE. THIS EXAMPLE IF A VERY STRAIGHT FORWARD AND EASY TO UNDERSTAND TUTORIAL WITH CODE SNIPPITS THAT YOU CAN MODIFY TO DISPLAY THE BEST POSSIBLE FULLTEXT SEARCH RESULTS USING PHP AND MYSQL.

Learning Objectives

In this tutorial, you will learn:

• How to modify your current database to accommodate Fulltext searching
• How to use a simple Full-text search to quickly gather relevant responses
• How to execute a more complex Full-text search with Boolean capabilities
• Tips on what to do, and what not to do, as well as the security implications of some of the example scripts presented.

Definitions

• MySQL – An Open Source database that is used by many PHP developers for it’s support and speed, as well as because it’s free.
• Full-text – Built in functionality in MySQL that allows users to search through certain tables for matches to a string.
• Boolean Search – A search which allows users to narrow their results through the use of Boolean operators.
• Boolean Operators – A deductive logical system by which a user can narrow results through the use of AND, OR, XOR, and other operators.

MYSQL Full-Text Search Tutorial

JT McNaught