php display <img src /> in Joomla based on link in Database column

Question

I am trying to display an image linked to a user that is logged in based on a Joomla site.

The PHP code I am using is as follows:

<?php
$user = JFactory::getUser();

$username = $user->username;

echo '<img src="$user->picture" />'
;
?>

During my testing and troubleshooting, I tested without the image source tag and I received the call back from my database table labeled Images/LOGO.jpg which displayed as a string on my front end.

when I use the Image source again and replace $user->picture with the same string from the DB column, the image returns 100%.

By leaving the code as per above the page loads successfully but no image is returned.

Thanks,

Answer 1

The Bug is quite obvious....echo '<img src="$user->picture" />'
Did you notice anything unusual in the Snippet above?

Here is a Hint: Try this: <?php $var="test"; echo '$var'; ?>
What did you get?
Sure you got it all back as is: VERBATIM - $var instead of the expected test.
So here's the Catch:

Any variable within Single Quotes in PHP would NOT expand/evaluate to a Value...
You'd just get the Variable back: Verbatim

Rather do it like so:

    <?php
        $user       = JFactory::getUser();
        $username   = $user->username;
        // NOTICE THE DOUBLE QUOTES SURROUNDING THE "<img... />" TAG
        // THOUGH NOT SO IMPORTANT, BUT NOTICE ALSO THE BRACES AROUND
        // {$user->picture}
        echo "<img src='{$user->picture}' />";

By the way; in Joomla, you could get the User-Avatar like so:

    <?php
        // USE jimport TO PULL IN THE PROFILE PICTURE CLASS
        jimport('profilepicture.profilepicture');

        // GET THE USER OBJECT LIKE YOU ALREADY DID
        $user       = JFactory::getUser();

        // CREATE A NEW INSTANCE OF THE ProfilePicture CLASS PASSING IT THE USER ID
        $userPix    = new ProfilePicture($user->get('id'));

        // ECHO OUT THE ENTIRE HTML FOR THE USER PROFILE PICTURE
        echo $userPix->toHTML();

Cheers & Good-Luck, Mate! 💪☝️✌️