require_once() in a class - php

I noticed that if I declare a function inside a class method that has the same name as a outside function I get a error:
function a(){
...
}
class foo{
public function init(){
function a(){ // <- error
...
}
...
}
}
this however would work:
function a(){
...
}
class foo{
public static function a(){
...
}
}
Can I include a set of functions that act as static methods for this class using require_once or something like that?
require_once('file.php'); after class foo{ doesn't work...

PHP allows to nest function declarations in others, but it doesn't actually have nested functions. They always end up in the global scope. So the a() that you define in your init method clashes with the already defined function a().
The static function a() is associated with the class namespace, even if it behaves like a function, not a method.
Invoking a require_once statement in a class definition is not possible. The PHP syntax does not allow for it. Class definitions are special scopes / language constructs, that only allow function or variable declarations within the immediate parsing level. - So PHP does not allow for that (classes and their methods must be declared at once, not assembled), and there are no really nice or advisable workarounds for what you want.

If your class structure allows, you can split the class into several different classes which are part of an inheritance chain:
class foo1 {
public static function a() {}
}
class foo extends foo1 {
public static function b() {}
}
Alternatively, you can use __callStatic() if you are willing to take the performance hit. (Requires PHP 5.3; though if you only need non-static methods, __call is available from 5.0.) Smarty 3 does this IIRC.
class foo {
private static $parts = array('A', 'B');
public static __callStatic($name, $arguments) {
foreach (self::$parts as $part) {
if (method_exists($part, $name)) {
return call_user_func_array(array($part, $name), $arguments);
}
}
throw new Exception();
}
}
class A {
public static function a() {}
}
class B {
public static function b() {}
}
PHP 5.4 will supposedly include traits, which are a more straightforward way of including external code in a class:
class foo {
use A, B;
}
trait A {
public static function a() {}
}
trait B {
public static function b() {}
}

To answer the question: you should first check whether or not the function a has already been implemented by using function_exists:
class foo{
public function init(){
if(!function_exists('a')):
function a(){ // <- will only be declared when it doesn't already exist
...
}
endif;
...
}
}
However, consider this as a very bad coding practice. It will get a mess pretty soon as you have no idea of what's going on exactly and what function will be used. I'd say you'd be better off using a subclass and require_once the appropriate subclass.

Assuming not defining the second "a" method is not acceptable, you'll need to move it outside the init method.
It sounds like your require_once call is the problem (definitely should not be called inside the class). Could you post a full sample including your require_once call that isn't working ?

Related

Making a method in PHP automatically run some code after being called. Possible?

I'm not really sure if what I am looking for has a name, so it has been a bit difficult for me to search for, so I apologise if what I am asking has already been answered here before.
The situation is that I have an abstract class which has, of course, many other classes which extend it.
The abstract method in the abstract class is called run() and all of the extending classes define this method.
My problem is that I want to call some common code after the run() method has been called, but I want to know if there is a better way to do this.
I could of course just paste my common code into each and every extending class's run() method, but if I do that then it would be a lot of work for me to make simple changes from that point onward.
I could also put my common code into a method in the parent class and then call if from the extending class's run() method with $this.
But my question is, is there a better way to do this, or do I have to either use the $this keyword or paste in the code into each class's?
Here is a small example of what I want to do with my current idea:
abstract class Parent_Class {
public abstract function run();
protected function common_code() {
// Common code here
}
}
class Child_Class {
public function run() {
// Code here
// I want some common code to run after the run method has been called
$this->common_code(); // Is this the best way to do it?
}
}
Or is it possible to somehow tell the class that when the run() method has been called to automatically run the common_code() method?
A far simpler way to do this would to simply have a third method which calls run() and then calls common_code(). Subclasses can then override run() all they want.
abstract class Parent_Class {
public abstract function run();
protected function common_code() {
// Common code here
}
protected function start() {
$this->run();
$this->common_code();
}
}
class Child_Class {
public function run() {
// Code here
}
}
Based on Bradley Forster answer, you can define the method as protected, so when it's called from outside the class, you can intercept the event with php magic __call metod because
__call() is triggered when invoking inaccessible methods in an object context.
and then you can execute that method from the __call function
class A {
public function __call($method, $args){
if(!method_exists($this, $method))
throw new Exception("Call to undefined method ".__CLASS__."::$method()");
echo "doing something BEFORE function 'run' execution\n";
$retval = call_user_func_array(array($this, $method), $args);
echo "doing something AFTER function 'run' execution\n";
return $retval;
}
protected function run() {
echo "function 'run' executed\n" ;
}
}
$a = new A;
$a->run();
The answer given by Amber is nice and simple. But requires you to put your data in run() but call start(). Here is an alternative that allows you to have your code $a->run() in all your scripts, and $a->run() with your common code, but encapsulated in a namespace.
File hooks.php
<?php
// File: hooks.php
namespace hook;
class processHooks {
public function __construct() { /* Fatal Error without constructor */ }
protected function processHooks($_c, $method, $args) {
/* Swap the next two callbacks to run your custom code after */
call_user_func_array("\hook\\{$_c}::{$method}", $args);
return call_user_func_array(array($_c,$method), $args);
}
}
class A {
public function foo() {
echo 'Doing code stuff BEFORE calling child function....<br>';
}
}
File regular_file.php
<?php
// File: regular_file.php
include "hooks.php";
class A extends \hook\processHooks {
/* All that is required is this function
* and the function with common code to be protected
*/
public function __call($method, $args) {
self::processHooks(__CLASS__, $method, $args);
}
protected function foo() {
echo 'Method is called....<br>';
}
}
$a = new A();
$a->foo();
This works beacause method foo of class A in regular_file.php is protected, so it's not callable outside the class, so calling it triggers PHP magic method __call
__call() is triggered when invoking inaccessible methods in an object context.

When I extend a class, do I call the static functions directly from a subtype or should I use parent:: each time?

When I defined a function in a supertype and called without parent:: it gave me and error teling me it's undefined function. I am wondering if I should use parent:: each time or if I am doing something wrong somewhere else.
I have a class, named core, which has an escape() function for escaping strings
I am trying to call this function from subtypes.
all methods are static.
Right now I don'T think static methods are inherited. I call all the static superclass methods with
parent::mystaticmethod()
now. Because static methods are not inherited.
use parent:: only when you are going to override function in your child class
Best way to explain this is this example:
class Parent {
function test1() {}
function test2() {}
function __construct() {}
}
class Child extends Parent {
function test1() {} // function is overrided
function test3() {
parent::test1(); // will use Parent::test1()
$this->test1(); // will use Child::test1()
$this->test2(); // will use Parent:test2()
}
function __construct() {
parent::__construct() // common use of parent::
... your code.
}
}
Practical example (static methods):
class LoaderBase {
static function Load($file) {
echo "loaded $file!<br>";
}
}
class RequireLoader extends LoaderBase {
static function Load($file) {
parent::Load($file);
require($file);
}
}
class IncludeLoader extends LoaderBase {
static function Load($file) {
parent::Load($file);
include($file);
}
}
LoaderBase::Load('common.php'); // this will only echo text
RequireLoader::Load('common.php'); // this will require()
IncludeLoader::Load('common.php'); // this will include()
Output:
loaded common.php!
loaded common.php!
loaded common.php!
Anyways using parent:: is more useful in non-static methods.
As of PHP 5.3.0, PHP implements a feature called late static bindings which can be used to reference the called class in a context of static inheritance.
More information here http://php.net/manual/en/language.oop5.late-static-bindings.php

self:: vs className:: inside static className methods in PHP

I guess there may not be any difference but personal preference, but when reading various PHP code I come across both ways to access the methods class.
What is the difference:
class Myclass
{
public static $foo;
public static function myMethod ()
{
// between:
self::$foo;
// and
MyClass::$foo;
}
}
(Note: the initial version said there was no difference. Actually there is)
There is indeed a small diference. self:: forwards static calls, while className:: doesn't. This only matters for late static bindings in PHP 5.3+.
In static calls, PHP 5.3+ remembers the initially called class. Using className:: makes PHP "forget" this value (i.e., resets it to className), while self:: preserves it. Consider:
<?php
class A {
static function foo() {
echo get_called_class();
}
}
class B extends A {
static function bar() {
self::foo();
}
static function baz() {
B::foo();
}
}
class C extends B {}
C::bar(); //C
C::baz(); //B
With self you can use it within the class and with the "MyClass", as you have, you can reference it externally:
$instance = new Myclass();
$variable = $instance::$foo

call a static method inside a class?

how do i call a static method from another method inside the same class?
$this->staticMethod();
or
$this::staticMethod();
self::staticMethod();
More information about the Static keyword.
Let's assume this is your class:
class Test
{
private $baz = 1;
public function foo() { ... }
public function bar()
{
printf("baz = %d\n", $this->baz);
}
public static function staticMethod() { echo "static method\n"; }
}
From within the foo() method, let's look at the different options:
$this->staticMethod();
So that calls staticMethod() as an instance method, right? It does not. This is because the method is declared as public static the interpreter will call it as a static method, so it will work as expected. It could be argued that doing so makes it less obvious from the code that a static method call is taking place.
$this::staticMethod();
Since PHP 5.3 you can use $var::method() to mean <class-of-$var>::; this is quite convenient, though the above use-case is still quite unconventional. So that brings us to the most common way of calling a static method:
self::staticMethod();
Now, before you start thinking that the :: is the static call operator, let me give you another example:
self::bar();
This will print baz = 1, which means that $this->bar() and self::bar() do exactly the same thing; that's because :: is just a scope resolution operator. It's there to make parent::, self:: and static:: work and give you access to static variables; how a method is called depends on its signature and how the caller was called.
To see all of this in action, see this 3v4l.org output.
This is a very late response, but adds some detail on the previous answers
When it comes to calling static methods in PHP from another static method on the same class, it is important to differentiate between self and the class name.
Take for instance this code:
class static_test_class {
public static function test() {
echo "Original class\n";
}
public static function run($use_self) {
if($use_self) {
self::test();
} else {
$class = get_called_class();
$class::test();
}
}
}
class extended_static_test_class extends static_test_class {
public static function test() {
echo "Extended class\n";
}
}
extended_static_test_class::run(true);
extended_static_test_class::run(false);
The output of this code is:
Original class
Extended class
This is because self refers to the class the code is in, rather than the class of the code it is being called from.
If you want to use a method defined on a class which inherits the original class, you need to use something like:
$class = get_called_class();
$class::function_name();
In the later PHP version self::staticMethod(); also will not work. It will throw the strict standard error.
In this case, we can create object of same class and call by object
here is the example
class Foo {
public function fun1() {
echo 'non-static';
}
public static function fun2() {
echo (new self)->fun1();
}
}
call a static method inside a class
className::staticFunctionName
example
ClassName::staticMethod();

Stacking Static Classes in PHP

Is there a way to make a static class where it has another static class as a member?
E.G. Parent_Class::Child_Class::Member_function();
If you mean nested classes, no. I believe they were going to be introduced at one point but ended up getting dropped.
There is namespace support, however, if that's what you're after.
No.
However, you could use one of PHP's magic methods to do what you want, perhaps:
class ParentClass {
public static function __callStatic($method,$args) {
return call_user_func_array(array('ChildClass',$method),$args);
}
}
class ChildClass {
public static function childMethod() {
...
}
}
ParentClass::childMethod($arg);
Yes, you can have nested static classes in PHP, but it's not pretty, and it takes a bit of extra work. The syntax is a little different than you have.
The trick is to statically initialize the outer class and create a static instance of the inner class.
You can then do one of two things, both are illustrated below.
refer to a static instance of the inner class (child class is actually a misnomer, because there is no inheritance relationship.)
create a static accessor method for the instance of the inner class (this is preferable because it allows for discovery.)
class InnerClass {
public static function Member_function() {
echo __METHOD__;
}
}
class OuterClass {
public static $innerClass;
public static function InnerClass() {
return self::$innerClass;
}
public static function init() {
self::$innerClass = new InnerClass();
}
}
OuterClass::init();
OuterClass::$innerClass->Member_function();
OuterClass::InnerClass()->Member_function();
No, classes are not first-class citizens in PHP so they can't be stored in variables.
You could sort of make a pass through function in your outermost class
class Parent_Class
{
public static $childClass;
public static function callChildMethod( $methodName, array $args=array() )
{
return call_user_func_array( array( self::$childClass, $methodName ), $args );
}
}
class Child_Class
{
public static function hello()
{
echo 'hello';
}
}
Parent_Class::$childClass = 'Child_Class';
Parent_Class::callChildMethod( 'hello' );
PHP does not support nested classes in any form (static or otherwise).

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