Reading, adding, writing xml...unexpected result

[traq]

something like this should work:

<?php

/**** NOT TESTED  ****/

$insertcount = $_POST["newcount"];
$insertquote = $_POST["iquote"];
$insertref = $_POST["iref"];

$file = '../sidebar.xml';
$xml = simplexml_load_file($file);

/************************************************
I assume "newcount" is the id for the new entry?
is this submitted by the user?
if so, it could be better handled by PHP to avoid
duplicate ID's:

// find the last entry 
// (assuming entries are all in numerical order,
//  starting with # 1)
$last = count(xml->myquote);
// assign next entry number
$insertcount = $last + 1;
************************************************/ 

// this line assumes <sidebar> is your xml root
// add a new <myquote> entry
$newItem = $xml->addChild('myquote');

// add a new <id> to the new <myquote>
$newItem->addChild('id', $insertcount);
// add a new <thequote>
$newItem->addChild('thequote', $insertquote);
// add a new <reference>
$newItem->addChild('reference', $insertref);

// convert the $xml object to an xml string
// and save it to the sidebar.xml file
$xml = $xml->asXML($file);

?>

Edit:

Basic reading of your xml file (also not tested, but I use this method often):

<?php

$file = '../sidebar.xml';
$xml = simplexml_load_file($file);

foreach($xml->children() as $myquote){
    echo '
        <hr>
        id: '.$myquote->id.'<br>
        the quote: '.$myquote->thequote.'<br>
        reference: '.$myquote->reference;
}

/****************************************
if you wanted to list the entries in reverse order (e.g.,
most recent first), you could use this instead:

$i = count($xml->myquote)-1;
for($x=$i;$x>=0;$x--){
    echo '
        <hr>
        id: '.$myquote[$x]->id.'<br>
        the quote: '.$myquote[$x]->thequote.'<br>
        reference: '.$myquote[$x]->reference;
}

//  ! EDIT: fixed index references !

****************************************/

?>

Edit:

//ok this is where I get lost...I need to put each of the elements of the array

No, you don't - I think that's where your confusion is. simplexml_load_file() already put everything into a simplexml object (not an array, but imagine it like an array). Nothing more to set up. You can just start using it, as in my example above.

[I am Abby]

So your top bit of code there gets the form elements and adds it to the existing xml? If so, I didn't think you could do that...I thought you had to read, add to, write?

[traq]

simplexml_load_file() reads the existing xml file and turns it into a simplexml object (which is ready for us to manipulate).

the ->addChild() statements add the new info (in this case, your $_POST info) to the simplexml object.

->asXML() converts the simplexml object into an xml string (and writes it to file, too, if a file path is included).

[I am Abby]

Wow!

You guys were so right...this is so much easier than creating a DOMDocument.

[I am Abby]

Is there an easy way to delete an entry?

[traq]

there's no simplexml function, but you can use unset():

<?php

$xml = simplexml_load_file('file.xml');
unset($xml->node->to_delete);
$xml = $xml->asXML;

?>

Include any applicable indices, or you may end up losing ALL nodes that match the path you enter.

[I am Abby]

So, all I would have to do is run everything through a foreach...find the one I don't like and unset() it.

Thanks.