Tech Why isnt this code pulling the CCBill affiliate ID?

[Publisher Bucks]

I'm using the following php code, which I was under the impression should allow me to pull the &PA=AFFILIATEID from a standard CCBill link:

http://refer.ccbill.com/cgi-bin/clicks.cgi?CA=XXXXXX-0000&PA=AFFILIATEID

<?php
$affiliateCode = isset($_GET['PA']) ? $_GET['PA'] : '';
?>

Then using the following to try and display the code in index.php (just a normal html page with .php extension:

<?php echo $affiliateCode; ?>

But it isn't working, what am I missing please?

I notice when you use CCBill links there is a redirect to the main https://www.domain.com of the site, is there a way to capture the affiliate code prior to the redirect happening (or an easier way I'm missing)?

Thanks for any advice, feedback, solutions

[Klen]

Are you pulling ccbill link from browser bar or from variable ?

[redwhiteandblue]

Those $_GET params are only available to the script that they are applied to, i.e. refer.ccbill.com/cgi-bin/clicks.cgi - they are not available to the script it redirects to. That would be a massive massive security and privacy flaw, if one script could read another script's parameters!

[Publisher Bucks]

Originally Posted by Klen

Are you pulling ccbill link from browser bar or from variable ?

From the browser but I guess it could also be pulled from code within the tour itself?

[Publisher Bucks]

Originally Posted by redwhiteandblue

Those $_GET params are only available to the script that they are applied to, i.e. refer.ccbill.com/cgi-bin/clicks.cgi - they are not available to the script it redirects to. That would be a massive massive security and privacy flaw, if one script could read another script's parameters!

Ah okay, any suggestions on how I can get that parameter or set it on another area of the site tour?

[Klen]

Originally Posted by Publisher Bucks

From the browser but I guess it could also be pulled from code within the tour itself?

Just to confirm, when you click on h*tp://refer.ccbill.com/cgi-bin/clicks.cgi?CA=XXXXXX-0000&PA=AFFILIATEID, it loads your site with your code, correct ?

[redwhiteandblue]

Originally Posted by Publisher Bucks

Ah okay, any suggestions on how I can get that parameter or set it on another area of the site tour?

CCBill doesn't pass the parameters through so the only way you can possibly get them is by looking at the referrer string ($_SERVER["http_referer"]) but that would be terribly unreliable since whether the referrer string is present depends on many things including the level of privacy set in the user's browser.

You would have to take a different approach and get affiliates to send traffic to a landing page on your site which captures the params, constructs the CCBill URL with them and then redirects to it, which will then redirect the user back to your home page.

[fuzebox]

Sometimes I think you're just lazy and don't want to use the correct resources, and then you post something like this and I realize you don't even have a grasp of the basic fundamentals of how the web works.

[Publisher Bucks]

Originally Posted by Klen

Just to confirm, when you click on h*tp://refer.ccbill.com/cgi-bin/clicks.cgi?CA=XXXXXX-0000&PA=AFFILIATEID, it loads your site with your code, correct ?

it does yes.

Correction, it credits the sale to the AFFILIATEID, it doesn't show the actual affiliate ID anywhere in the page code.

[Publisher Bucks]

Originally Posted by redwhiteandblue

CCBill doesn't pass the parameters through so the only way you can possibly get them is by looking at the referrer string ($_SERVER["http_referer"]) but that would be terribly unreliable since whether the referrer string is present depends on many things including the level of privacy set in the user's browser.

You would have to take a different approach and get affiliates to send traffic to a landing page on your site which captures the params, constructs the CCBill URL with them and then redirects to it, which will then redirect the user back to your home page.

Gotcha, so basically i'd have to do something along the lines of a clicks.php which then redirects to the site instantly and carry the affiliate ID across to both the URL and the additional field where I want it to appear?

[The Porn Nerd]

I have a headache from reading all this shit.