Can I use HTTP POSTs? Is there a better alternative?

Question

I am use to php development in general and I am use to getting a lot done by making a POST to a php file. However I have not seen people using $_POST in WordPress. I have seen one discussion about someone wanting to create new posts on their blog using $_POST, and they were directed to a more secure system. (Perhaps I misunderstood the conversation though.)

I would still like to use $_POST simply as a part of the user interface.

If it is possible and not a horrible idea to use $_POST what do I need to know to make $_POST work well with WordPress? Are there rules about making a $_POST, or how redirecting so that nothing interferes with WordPress behavior? Are there any other special considerations?

Answer 1

WordPress is an HTTP/PHP web application. The ordinary rules of HTTP and PHP apply, and work. WordPress itself uses $_POST and $_GET more times than I can count. If you want to pass information from one page to another-- say from a form to a search handler-- you have to use one or the other.

There are some helper functions like add_query_arg() that might be applicable but as written your question is too broad to allow for specifics.

Answer 2

It's worth mentioning that if you're implementing your own $_POST/GET variables, make sure you avoid conflicts with built-in WordPress ones:

array(
    'm',
    'p',
    'posts',
    'w',
    'cat',
    'withcomments',
    'withoutcomments',
    's',
    'search',
    'exact',
    'sentence',
    'calendar',
    'page',
    'paged',
    'more',
    'tb',
    'pb',
    'author',
    'order',
    'orderby',
    'year',
    'monthnum',
    'day',
    'hour',
    'minute',
    'second',
    'name',
    'category_name',
    'tag',
    'feed',
    'author_name',
    'static',
    'pagename',
    'page_id',
    'error',
    'comments_popup',
    'attachment',
    'attachment_id',
    'subpost',
    'subpost_id',
    'preview',
    'robots',
    'taxonomy',
    'term',
    'cpage',
    'post_type',
    'post_format',
)