My PHP script on Google App Engine sends messages via a Telegram Bot but loses spaces. I replaced it with a streamlined version. See code:
<?php
if(trim($_POST['checkField']) !== '') {
header('Location:/');
} else {
if(isset($_POST['userName']) && isset($_POST['userEmail'])) {
$msgData = 'User: ' . $_POST['userName'] . ' | Email: ' . $_POST['userEmail'];
$apiLink = 'https://api.telegram.org/botMY_NEW_TOKEN/sendMessage?chat_id=MY_NEW_CHAT&text=' . $msgData;
file_get_contents($apiLink);
header('Location:/thanks');
} else {
header('Location:/');
}
}
?>
I had a similar problem with messages appearing without spaces when my PHP bot was deployed on another cloud platform. After trying a few tweaks, I discovered that the issue was due to not properly encoding the message before adding it to the URL. I fixed this by using urlencode on my message string, ensuring that spaces and other special characters were correctly transmitted. This small change saved me a lot of headaches and made my messages readable. It might be worth implementing this encoding method to solve your problem as well.
My experience with a similar issue led me to try a different approach when sending messages from a PHP bot. Instead of manually concatenating strings to build the query URL, I switched to using PHP’s http_build_query function. This function automatically constructs a query string with the proper encoding for spaces and special characters, which ensures that the message appears as intended. In my case, the change removed any unexpected formatting glitches and improved the overall reliability of the message delivery. It is an alternative worth considering for handling URL parameters robustly.
hey, i had similar issues and found that using curl with proper post fields instead of file_get_contents fixed the problem since it bypassed some url encoding issues. might be worth a try. cheers!
In my experience, the most effective solution was to avoid relying on file_get_contents for sending messages due to the subtle differences in how data is processed on cloud platforms. I switched to using curl with a POST request where I set the message as part of the body. This not only ensured correct handling of spaces and special characters but also improved reliability when handling HTTPS. Adjusting the curl options minimized potential encoding issues that could strip out spaces. This approach provided a stable and consistent method for sending messages without altering their original format.
During development, a similar situation occurred when running my PHP Telegram bot on a different cloud service. I discovered that the problem was due to insufficient handling of spaces in URL contexts. After some trial and error, I applied both urlencode selectively to the message text and confirmed that the space encoding issues were resolved. While I did not completely change my approach, ensuring that spaces and other special characters are properly encoded before appending to the URL proved effective. In my testing, this method yielded consistent results across environments.