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developer_tips

Useful Helper Functions​

  • array_get($array, $index, $fallback) - if $array[$index] is set, it's returned; otherwise $fallback is returned. Particularly useful when dealing with $_REQUEST.
  • ifdef($constantName, $fallback) - if a constant is defined with name $constantName, it's returned; otherwise $fallback is returned.

Tips​

  • Remember the empty() function can handle non-set array elements without erroring. So we can do if (empty($_REQUEST['something'])) will efficiently test whether the element is non-set, blank string, false, null, zero etc.
  • Don't include a close-php tag at the very end of a file. Can cause problems with outputting whitespace.
  • Turn off any editor settings that will auto-adjust the indentation/whitespace throughout every file. Makes pull requests very messy. Only change the lines you change.