Various functions provided in both php and HTML to overcome the problems presented by HTML being stateless?

Answer 1

The best method for overcoming HTML's stateless-ness (?) is by storing information in the $_SESSION variable. Another popular (although less secure) method is with the $_COOKIE variable.

Using the $_SESSION variable:

The $_SESSION variable is a way to maintain session specific information. While any kind (or amount) of information can be stored, I personally only use it to store a user's ID, which I can reference to grab things like site permissions from a database record. This keeps unnecessary server overhead down. The session is destroyed as soon as the user's browser is closed.

Reserved Variable: http://www.php.net/manual/en/reserved.variables.session.php

Session Reference: http://au2.php.net/manual/en/refs.basic.session.php

Session Functions: http://au2.php.net/manual/en/ref.session.php

Using the $_COOKIE variable:

The $_COOKIE variable allows you to store an associative array of values on a user's PC. This information is not destroyed when the user closes their browser and remains persistent until either the cookie expires (can be set for up to 1 year) OR the user clears their browser history and settings. DO NOT store account information such as usernames, ID's and passwords in a cookie.

Reserved Variable: http://www.php.net/manual/en/reserved.variables.cookies.php

W3Schools Tutorial: http://www.w3schools.com/PHP/php_cookies.asp