Code to send user info to database

[Michelle Whelan <webmaster@dirtjobs.com>]

Hi all, 

I'm just starting out with writing PHP and would like to get help with writing the code for my forms to have the data sent to a database.  Here is one of my forms:

<?php
if ($submit == "Submit"){ 
  echo "Your listing has been submitted"; 
  echo "Go back <a href="Homewww.dirtjobs.com/index.php>Home</a>";
  echo "<a href="Add">www.dirtjobs.com/havedirt.php>Add another listing</a>";
} 
else{ 
  echo ' 

<form method="post" action=".php" name="">

<table width="100%">
<tr><td><img src="images/xhavedirt.gif" width="191" height="40"></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><&nbsp;</td></tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>WHAT TYPE OF DIRT?</font>
  
<SELECT NAME="needdirtype">
<option value="clean">CLEAN DIRT FOR FINISH GRADING
<option value="minus">DIRT WITH 6" MINUS ROCKS
<option value="rocks">DIRT WITH ROCKS
</SELECT></td>
</tr>

 
<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>APPROXIMATE QUANTITY OF DIRT IN YARDS:
<input type="text" size="7" maxlength="7" name="noyards">Yards</font></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><&nbsp;</td></tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="red"><b><u><i>*MANDATORY*</font></b></i></u></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>CONTACT NAME:</b></font>
<input type="text" size="25" maxlength="25" name="contactname"></td>
</tr>
 
<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>CONTACT PHONE NUMBER:</b>
<input type="text" size="3" maxlength="3" name="areacode"> 
<input type="text" size="3" maxlength="3" name="prefix"> 
<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"> - <input type="text" size=4" maxlength="4" name="suffix"></td>
</font></tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>ZIP CODE:</b>
<input type="text" size="5" maxlength="5" name="zip code">
<br>
<i>(Jobs are sorted by zip code to find other jobs in the area)</i></font></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>JOB EXPIRATION DATE:</b></font> 
<input type="text" size="12" maxlength="12" name="expdate">
<br>
<i>(If no date is listed, jobs will be removed in 60 days.)</i></font></td>
</tr>

<tr><td>&nbsp;</td></tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="blue"><b>(*Optional)</b>/font></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>EMAIL ADDRESS:</b></font>
<input type="text" size="30" maxlength="30" name="email"></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>CITY OF JOB LOCATION:</b></font>
<input type="text" size="30" maxlength="30" name="jobcity"></td>
</tr>

<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>JOB CROSS STREETS:</b></font>
<input type="text" size="58" maxlength="58" name="xstreets"></td>
</tr>
 
<tr><td><font face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif, Verdana" size="2" color="#FFFFFF"><b>JOB EXPIRATION DATE:</b>
<input type="text" size="12" maxlength="12" name="exp.date">
<br>
<i>(If no date is listed, jobs will be removed in 60 days.)</i></font></td>
</tr>

<tr><td>&nbsp;</td></tr>

<tr><td><center><input type="submit" name="submit" value="Submit"></input>&nbsp
<input type="reset" name="reset" value="Clear"></input></center></td>
</tr>
</table>

I imagine the code is probably somewhat simple, but I have read tutorial after tutorial etc. and am getting nowhere for the past two weeks.  

This is also the first time I have ever posted to a mailing list so I apologize if my request is incorrect in format.  

Thanks so much, 

Michelle