RE: [PHP-WIN] reading input from a magnetic stripe and then parsing it to a MySQL database for querry?

-----Original Message----- Eh?? Well first off I wouldn't be using php to do it... I'd use a language such as C++ or VB to do it, given you're probably wanting to communicate with a serial/parallel/usb port to drive the reader and extract the (probably) binary data from a card swipe, I don't know how well (if at all) PHP would do this. Then you just parse it using either a pattern matching (Perl-like?) parser if it's a complicated pattern, or a simpler bit by bit analysis if it's something simple (such as an ID number). Then insert the data to whatever DB you like. Don't know the in's and out's of DB access from C++ etc but I'd imagine there will be a dll or something that already takes the hard work out of this. That is what I imagined... --------------------- Sorry if this is a bit vague, but it matches the question! :) All I'm saying is, choose a programming language that is more suited to this. Are you trying to secure a website with a card swipe or something?... That would likely involve the PHP script running at the same time as the card swipe happening. And having the card swipe attached to the web-server. More details are really needed. -- NOT AT ALL.. Thanks.. what I am trying to do actually is maintain bank accounts through a secure server. What needs to happen is to allow users to access their bank accounts over the Internet, but through a card swiping system. Yeah.. NOT SO FUN TO ACCOMPLISH it.. but Thanks anyways for your response Ross.. Mentor Mala