I had this problem with 1.7.7, then decided to revert to 1.7.4, which I had installed some time ago but never actually used. Same symptoms.
Using Chrome, browse to localhost/readmusic.html :-
<html>
<head><title>Access the MUSIC Database</title></head>
<body onLoad="document.logon.user.focus();">
<form name="logon" action="readmusic.php" method="POST">
<p>Username: <input name="user" type="text"></p>
<p>Password: <input name="pswd" type="password"></p>
<p>Or just click <input type="submit" value="Go"> for anonymous access</p>
</form>
</body>
</html>
I just click Go, just to see what happens when readmusic.php is invoked:-
<?php
//Get the supplied name and password
if (!empty($_POST[user])) {
$user = $_POST[user];
} else {
// print "You forgot your name!"; // This check and the next made redundant by anonymous user feature.
// exit;
}
if (!empty($_POST[pswd])) {
$pswd = $_POST[pswd];
} else {
// print "You forgot your password!";
// exit;
}
// Open the connection
$conn = mysql_connect("localhost", $user, $pswd) or die(mysql_error());
Etc, Etc
I get this:-
Notice: Use of undefined constant user - assumed 'user' in C:\xampp\htdocs\readmusic.php on line 4
Notice: Use of undefined constant pswd - assumed 'pswd' in C:\xampp\htdocs\readmusic.php on line 10
Notice: Undefined variable: user in C:\xampp\htdocs\readmusic.php on line 18
Notice: Undefined variable: pswd in C:\xampp\htdocs\readmusic.php on line 18
I assume this has to be something absolutely elementary that I have missed, in the general area of telling the browser that a PHP interpreter is available "somewhere". The same code works OK on a different machine where I installed Apache and PHP separately, and had to modify a few initialisation files.