Parse error: parse error, unexpected $ in /home/joe/public_html/weddingdirectory/include/common.php on line 172

This site was working fine - but suddenly it has disappeared and gives the above error.

I've emptied the cache and the templates_ c folder

suggestions of how to get this site online would be appreciated.

The error: Parse error: parse error, unexpected $ in...

has a couple of causes I'm aware of:

1) incorrect number of curly braces { } in the PHP code.
2) extra whitespace at the beginning or end of the script file.
3) incorrect file encoding.

Solutions

1) Check that the correct number of opening and closing braces are present in the code.
2) Delete any extra whitespace at front or end of your PHP file.
3) Open the file in notepad or similar and save as ANSI or UTF-8 as the case permits.

HIH

did you do any changes in core files?