While updating the genpets.com site I decided I wanted to add a forum, of course, not a real one as I don't have enough free time to police it. So I needed to create and code something that would look real, which means it would have to update all by itself.

The first trick to that was date control, if all the dates are set for this week, that's not going to do me much good a year from now is it?

I started out writing some longer if statments but then as I read more about the date commands in PHP I realized it could subtract the dates (or add) all on it's own, without having to be told HOW. (IE september 3rd minus 5 days, we'd have to tell the system to update the month to august)

Here's a little snippet of code I used, it works great, so feel free to cut and paste.

// this simple code controls how the dates work on the page. it subtracts days to make it appear the site is always being updated.
//it is also 'smart' so if it subtracts say 5 days from october 2, it will make it september... cool eh?

$date = date('m/d/Y', strtotime("-0 days"));
$date3 = date('m/d/Y', strtotime("-3 days"));

$date10 = date('m/d/Y', strtotime("-10 days"));

$date1 = date('m/d/Y', strtotime("-1 days"));

you don't have to subtract days either, you could subtract a month or year, or whatever suits your fancy, yes it will compensate for leap year etc...

THE LIVING DEAD DOLL ART SHOW: RESURRECTING DESIGNER TOYS
Halloween, there couldn’t be a more appropriate night to debut the first-ever Living Dead Dolls Art Show. The internationally anticipated show premieres October 31, 2006 at New York's famous designer toy gallery "The Showroom NYC". Previously, all Living Dead Dolls have been designed by Ed Long, Damien Glonek and Michael "Mez" Markowitz; this upcoming art show invites over 100 artists to design, interpret and explore their own dark vision of the Living Dead Dolls.

Invited artists have been selected from numerous fields and disciplines, the list is a veritable Who's Who of notoriety and talent; Ed, Damien & Mez creating one-of-a-kind originals, other contributing artists include: Michael Dougherty, artist and screen writer on Superman Returns and X Men 2; comic book legend Simon Bisley; gothic artist and musician Voltaire; toy development power house Inu Art Studios; Oblongs TV show creator and artist Angus Oblong; famous Japanese designer Hiddy; Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle writer, creator and artist Kevin Eastman and many more. (edit: by many more they mean nameless folks like myself)

The one-of-a-kind morbid masterpieces will be on display and for sale at the gallery from 11/1/06 to 11/14/06. A special, invitation only, VIP opening-night gala will be held on October 31st, Halloween night.

About Living Dead Dolls: Brought forth from the twisted minds and tortured souls of Ed Long, Damien Glonek and Michael "Mez” Markowitz, the Living Dead Dolls brand has grown to be a creepy collectable of worldwide fame. With over 60 unique characters, 6 different doll lines, apparel, games, stationary, glassware, trading cards and more, Living Dead Dolls has infested the hearts and minds of many building a large international fan following. For more information go to www.livingdeaddolls.com.

About the Gallery: The Showroom NYC is the premiere designer toy gallery; hosting internationally covered events for today’s hot new designs working in toy-related mediums. Located at 117 Second Avenue, for further information visit http://www.theshowroomnyc.com.