What are the advantages of transitioning from mysql_* functions to mysqli_* functions in PHP for database interactions?

The advantages of transitioning from mysql_* functions to mysqli_* functions in PHP for database interactions include improved security, support for prepared statements to prevent SQL injection attacks, better error handling, and support for transactions.

// Using mysqli_* functions for database interactions
$mysqli = new mysqli('localhost', 'username', 'password', 'database');

// Check connection
if ($mysqli->connect_error) {
    die("Connection failed: " . $mysqli->connect_error);
}

// Example query
$sql = "SELECT * FROM users";
$result = $mysqli->query($sql);

if ($result->num_rows > 0) {
    while($row = $result->fetch_assoc()) {
        echo "ID: " . $row["id"] . " - Name: " . $row["name"] . "<br>";
    }
} else {
    echo "0 results";
}

$mysqli->close();