Simple Blog System

A Simple Blog System is a foundational web application that allows users to create, publish, and view textual content, commonly referred to as "blog posts" or "articles." The primary goal is to demonstrate the basic principles of web development, including user input, data storage, and dynamic content display.

Core Components and Functionality:

1. Post Creation: Users (typically an administrator or author) can create new blog posts. This usually involves a form where they input a title, content, and potentially other metadata like author, date, or tags.
2. Post Display: Visitors to the blog can view a list of published posts, usually in reverse chronological order. Clicking on a post often leads to a dedicated page showing the full content.
3. Data Storage: Posts need to be stored persistently. For a simple system, this can be achieved using:
* File-based Storage: Saving posts as JSON, XML, or plain text files on the server. This is straightforward for small systems but less scalable than databases.
* Database Storage: Using a relational database like MySQL or PostgreSQL, or a NoSQL database like MongoDB. This is the standard for most production-level applications due to its scalability, flexibility, and robust data management features.
4. Backend Logic (PHP's Role): PHP acts as the server-side scripting language, handling requests from the web browser. Its responsibilities include:
* Processing form submissions (e.g., saving a new post).
* Retrieving posts from storage.
* Rendering dynamic HTML content based on the stored data.
* Performing validation and basic security checks.
5. Frontend (HTML/CSS): HTML provides the structure of the web pages (forms, post listings, individual post views), while CSS is used for styling and presentation.

How it Works (Simplified Flow):

1. User visits the blog: The browser sends a GET request to the PHP script (e.g., `index.php`).
2. PHP retrieves posts: The PHP script reads existing posts from its storage (e.g., a `posts.json` file).
3. PHP generates HTML: It dynamically creates an HTML page that lists the posts and includes a form for adding new ones.
4. User adds a new post: The user fills out the form and submits it. The browser sends a POST request to the PHP script.
5. PHP processes the new post:
* It receives the form data (`$_POST`).
* Validates the data.
* Adds the new post to the existing collection.
* Saves the updated collection back to storage.
* Typically redirects the user back to the main blog page to prevent duplicate submissions (Post/Redirect/Get pattern).

This example will demonstrate a very basic file-based system using PHP to manage and display blog posts, illustrating the fundamental concepts.

Example Code

<?php

// Define the file path for storing blog posts
define('POSTS_FILE', 'posts.json');

// --- Helper Functions ---

/
 * Loads posts from the JSON file.
 * Creates an empty file if it doesn't exist.
 * @return array An array of blog posts.
 */
function loadPosts() {
    if (!file_exists(POSTS_FILE)) {
        file_put_contents(POSTS_FILE, json_encode([])); // Create empty array if file doesn't exist
    }
    $postsJson = file_get_contents(POSTS_FILE);
    return json_decode($postsJson, true); // true for associative array
}

/
 * Saves posts to the JSON file.
 * @param array $posts The array of blog posts to save.
 */
function savePosts(array $posts) {
    file_put_contents(POSTS_FILE, json_encode($posts, JSON_PRETTY_PRINT));
}

// --- Main Application Logic ---

$message = ''; // To display success/error messages

// Handle POST request for adding new posts
if ($_SERVER['REQUEST_METHOD'] === 'POST') {
    $title = trim($_POST['title'] ?? '');
    $content = trim($_POST['content'] ?? '');

    if (!empty($title) && !empty($content)) {
        $posts = loadPosts();

        $newPost = [
            'id' => uniqid(), // Simple unique ID
            'title' => htmlspecialchars($title),
            'content' => htmlspecialchars($content),
            'date' => date('Y-m-d H:i:s')
        ];

        // Add the new post to the beginning of the array (most recent first)
        array_unshift($posts, $newPost);

        savePosts($posts);

        $message = 'Post added successfully!';
        // Redirect to prevent form resubmission on refresh (PRG pattern)
        header('Location: index.php?message=' . urlencode($message));
        exit();
    } else {
        $message = 'Please fill in both title and content.';
    }
}

// Check for messages from redirection
if (isset($_GET['message'])) {
    $message = htmlspecialchars($_GET['message']);
}

// Load all posts for display
$allPosts = loadPosts();

?>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>Basit Blog Sistemi</title>
    <style>
        body { font-family: Arial, sans-serif; margin: 20px; background-color: #f4f4f4; color: #333; }
        .container { max-width: 800px; margin: 0 auto; background-color: #fff; padding: 20px; border-radius: 8px; box-shadow: 0 0 10px rgba(0,0,0,0.1); }
        h1, h2 { color: #333; }
        .post { background-color: #e9e9e9; border: 1px solid #ddd; padding: 15px; margin-bottom: 20px; border-radius: 5px; }
        .post h3 { margin-top: 0; color: #0056b3; }
        .post-meta { font-size: 0.9em; color: #666; margin-bottom: 10px; }
        .post-content { line-height: 1.6; }
        .add-post-form { margin-top: 30px; padding: 20px; background-color: #f9f9f9; border: 1px solid #eee; border-radius: 5px; }
        .add-post-form label { display: block; margin-bottom: 5px; font-weight: bold; }
        .add-post-form input[type="text"],
        .add-post-form textarea { width: calc(100% - 22px); padding: 10px; margin-bottom: 15px; border: 1px solid #ccc; border-radius: 4px; }
        .add-post-form textarea { resize: vertical; min-height: 100px; }
        .add-post-form button { background-color: #28a745; color: white; padding: 10px 15px; border: none; border-radius: 4px; cursor: pointer; font-size: 1em; }
        .add-post-form button:hover { background-color: #218838; }
        .message { padding: 10px; margin-bottom: 20px; border-radius: 4px; }
        .message.success { background-color: #d4edda; color: #155724; border-color: #c3e6cb; }
        .message.error { background-color: #f8d7da; color: #721c24; border-color: #f5c6cb; }
    </style>
</head>
<body>
    <div class="container">
        <h1>Basit Blog Sistemi</h1>

        <?php if (!empty($message)): ?>
            <div class="message <?php echo strpos($message, 'successfully') !== false ? 'success' : 'error'; ?>">
                <?php echo $message; ?>
            </div>
        <?php endif; ?>

        <div class="add-post-form">
            <h2>Yeni Gönderi Ekle</h2>
            <form action="index.php" method="POST">
                <label for="title">Başlık:</label>
                <input type="text" id="title" name="title" required>

                <label for="content">İçerik:</label>
                <textarea id="content" name="content" required></textarea>

                <button type="submit">Gönderi Ekle</button>
            </form>
        </div>

        <h2>Tüm Gönderiler</h2>
        <?php if (empty($allPosts)): ?>
            <p>Henüz hiç gönderi yok. İlk gönderiyi siz ekleyin!</p>
        <?php else: ?>
            <?php foreach ($allPosts as $post): ?>
                <div class="post">
                    <h3><?php echo $post['title']; ?></h3>
                    <p class="post-meta">Yayınlanma Tarihi: <?php echo $post['date']; ?></p>
                    <div class="post-content">
                        <?php echo nl2br($post['content']); // nl2br converts newlines to <br> for display ?>
                    </div>
                </div>
            <?php endforeach; ?>
        <?php endif; ?>
    </div>
</body>
</html>

Example Code

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