What are the advantages of using specific column names in SELECT queries instead of using '*' in PHP MySQL queries?

Using specific column names in SELECT queries instead of '*' in PHP MySQL queries has several advantages. 1. Improved performance: When you specify specific column names, MySQL only fetches the data for those columns, reducing the amount of data transferred between the database and your PHP script. 2. Better readability: By explicitly stating the columns you want to retrieve, it is easier for other developers (or even yourself in the future) to understand the purpose of the query. 3. Avoiding conflicts: If the table schema changes and new columns are added, using '*' could inadvertently fetch data you did not intend to retrieve.

<?php
// Connect to MySQL database
$servername = "localhost";
$username = "username";
$password = "password";
$dbname = "database";

$conn = new mysqli($servername, $username, $password, $dbname);

// Query database using specific column names
$sql = "SELECT column1, column2, column3 FROM table";
$result = $conn->query($sql);

if ($result->num_rows > 0) {
    // Output data of each row
    while($row = $result->fetch_assoc()) {
        echo "Column1: " . $row["column1"]. " - Column2: " . $row["column2"]. " - Column3: " . $row["column3"]. "<br>";
    }
} else {
    echo "0 results";
}

$conn->close();
?>