Query problems..

I'm having a huge problem searching through about 15 tables of my database.. my code is below. $bigarray = array("abeparts" => array("ABEPN", "CABEPN", "QUANTITY", "PRICE"), "avdelspareparts" => array("AVDELPN", "CAVDELPN", "PRICE"), "avdeltextronparts" => array("AVDELPN", "CAVDELPN", "SO", "QUANTITY", "PRICE"), "cfparts" => array("CFPN", "PEMPN", "PRICE"), "gudenparts" => array("GUDENPN", "CGUDENPN"), "heycoparts" => array("HEYCOPN", "CHEYCOPN"), "keystoneparts" => array("KEYSTONEPN", "CKEYSTONEPN", "RESALE"), "popparts" => array("POPPN", "CPOPPN", "CREATIVEPN", "CCREATIVEPN", "MARSONPN", "CMARSONPN", "GESIPAPN", "CGESIPAPN", "CELUSPN", "CCELUSPN", "AVDELPN", "CAVDELPN", "AUTOMATICPN", "CAUTOMATICPN"), "rafparts" => array("RAFPN", "CRAFPN", "SMITHPN", "CSMITHPN", "AMATOMPN", "CAMATOMPN", "RICHCOPN", "CRICHCOPN", "CONCORDPN", "CCONCORDPN", "CATAMOUNTPN", "CCATAMOUNTPN", "KEYSTONEPN", "CKEYSTONEPN", "PROMPTUSPN", "CPROMPTUSPN", "USECOPN", "CUSECOPN", "JOHNSONPN", "CJOHNSONPN", "LYNTRONPN", "CLYNTRONPN", "CAMBIONPN", "CCAMBIONPN"), "rayconparts" => array("RAYCONPN", "CRAYCONPN", "3MPN", "C3MPN", "ADAMTECHPN", "CADAMTECHPN", "AIPN", "CAIPN", "AMPPN", "CAMPPN", "AUGATPN", "CAUGATPN", "BURNDYPN", "CBURNDYPN", "LEOCOPN", "CLEOCOPN", "MILMAXPN", "CMILMAXPN", "MOLEXPN", "CMOLEXPN", "RNPN", "CRNPN", "SAMTECPN", "CSAMTECPN", "TBPN", "CTBPN"), "recoilparts" => array("RECOILPN", "CRECOILPN", "MSPN", "PRICE"), "southcoparts" => array("SOUTHCOPN", "CSOUTHCOPN", "PRICE")); $num = 0; echo "<p>Results:</p>"; while (list($key1) = each ($bigarray)) { $subquery = "SELECT DESCRIPTION, "; $subquery .= join( ", ", $bigarray[$key1]); $subquery .= " from $key1 where "; while (list($key2, $val) = each ($bigarray["$key1"])) { $subquery .= " $val like '$PARTNUM%' or "; } $subquery .= " DESCRIPTION LIKE '$PARTNUM%'"; $query = mysql_query($subquery); echo $subquery; echo '<br>'; /* while (list($key1) = each ($bigarray)) { while (list($key2, $val) = each ($bigarray["$key1"])) { $subquery = "SELECT DESCRIPTION, "; $subquery .= join( ", ", $bigarray[$key1]); $subquery .= " from $key1 where "; $subquery .= " $val like '$PARTNUM%'"; $query = mysql_query($subquery); echo $subquery; echo '<br>'; */ // now print out the form with results if ($row = mysql_fetch_array($query)) { echo "<form action=\"order.php\" method=\"POST\">"; echo "<table border=\"1\" width=\"80%\" align=\"center\"><tr>"; $mainpart = $bigarray[$key1][0]; if ($mainpart != $val) { echo "<td>$mainpart</td>"; } echo "<td>$val</td>"; echo "<td>Description</td>"; echo "<td>Price</td>"; echo "<td>Order</td>"; echo "</tr>"; do { echo "<tr>"; if ($mainpart != $val) { echo "<td>$row[$mainpart]</td>"; } echo "<td><input type=\"text\" size=\"20\" name=\"PARTCOLUMN[$num]\" value=\"$row[$val]\"</td>"; echo "<td><input type=\"text\" size=\"40\" name=\"DESCRIPTION[$num]\" value=\"$row[DESCRIPTION]\"></td>"; echo "<td><input type=\"text\" name=\"PRICE[$num]\" value=\"$row[PRICE]\"></td>\n"; echo "<td><input type=\"checkbox\" name=\"ORDER[$num]\" value=\"checked\"></td>\n"; echo "</tr>"; $num++; } while ($row = mysql_fetch_array($query)); echo "</table>"; echo "<p align=\"center\"><input type=\"submit\"></p>"; echo "</form>"; } Ok.. now, the problem is with the first one is that it does a number of queries equal to the total number of databases, with queries that look like: SELECT DESCRIPTION, RECOILPN, CRECOILPN, MSPN, PRICE from recoilparts where RECOILPN like '100%' or CRECOILPN like '100%' or MSPN like '100%' or PRICE like '100%' or DESCRIPTION LIKE '100%' The problem is, I don't know how to tell it which of those fields it matched.. I.E., if there are parts where MSPN is like '100%', I want to display the MSPN part numbers on a form. If '100%' is in the description, I want to display that. The other way I was doing it, which is commented out below, is to break each thing up into a seperate query.. and use the variable $val to keep the name of that column, and use it to print out the results... SELECT (etc) from tablename where RECOILPN like '100%' SELECT (etc) from tablename where CRECOILPN like '100%' SELECT (etc) from tablename where MSPN like '100%' so then I know which column matched, because it's the only column.. however this is terribly inefficient and takes about 35-40 seconds to do all these querys (50+).. So what I need is a way to find what column it's matching in those big querys, and assign it a variable so I can use it and the results from it in my form. Any ideas? I'm totally stumped. :( Thanks in advance, Chad Chad Day Beach Associates When I speak german... I think german in my head... but like...Do skript kiddies see a w40l3 8uncha 1's and 0's and 3's and 4's and 7's in their h34d'5 w43n t43y R +a1k1n6 ? -- SirStanley