Normally k2 items have a written by (author) at the top and a read (time viewed) times at the bottom. The type of content on my site means that these should both be inside the item simailer to a youtube video. Since joomla is based off php im guessing that their is a php code that i could put in the items code exactly where i want them displayed. What is the php code i could use for this or if thats not how then how would i do it.

You can completely change the output of K2 to meet your needs. First read getk2.org/documentation/tutorials/174-templating-with-k2-and-the-concepts-of-sub-templates to get familiar with templates in K2 and Joomla! . It is important to apply your changes to overrides and not in core K2 files. Otherwise you will lose your changes in future updates.

I tried to change the position of authorship by copying and pasting the fowling code into the item where i wanted the author to be displayed: <span class="itemAuthor">
<?php echo K2HelperUtilities::writtenBy($this->item->author->profile->gender); ?>&nbsp;
<?php if(empty($this->item->created_by_alias)): ?>
<a rel="author" href="<?php echo $this->item->author->link; ?>"><?php echo $this->item->author->name; ?></a>
<?php else: ?>
<?php echo $this->item->author->name; ?>
<?php endif; ?>
</span>
This is what displays in the browser: Written by
Parse error: syntax error, unexpected $end in /home/bypassga/public_html/plugins/content/DirectPHP/DirectPHP.php(58) : eval()'d code on line 1

Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_ELSE in /home/bypassga/public_html/plugins/content/DirectPHP/DirectPHP.php(58) : eval()'d code on line 1

Parse error: syntax error, unexpected T_ENDIF in /home/bypassga/public_html/plugins/content/DirectPHP/DirectPHP.php(58) : eval()'d code on line 1
For some reason written by displays but i get errors where the author link should be.

As the message says you have a syntax error. Ensure that you are moving the whole block of code. Some parts include if and foreach statements. Make sure that you don't break them.