Скачать или смотреть Simplifying Your PHP Code: A Practical Guide to Cleaner Coding

Discover how to simplify your PHP code for better readability and efficiency. Learn the best practices for checking numeric values in POST requests.
---
This video is based on the question https://stackoverflow.com/q/62846335/ asked by the user 'missingtickets31' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/13725418/ ) and on the answer https://stackoverflow.com/a/62846527/ provided by the user 'Nigel Ren' ( https://stackoverflow.com/u/1213708/ ) at 'Stack Overflow' website. Thanks to these great users and Stackexchange community for their contributions.

Visit these links for original content and any more details, such as alternate solutions, latest updates/developments on topic, comments, revision history etc. For example, the original title of the Question was: Is there any way to simplify this PHP code?

Also, Content (except music) licensed under CC BY-SA https://meta.stackexchange.com/help/l...
The original Question post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license, and the original Answer post is licensed under the 'CC BY-SA 4.0' ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... ) license.

If anything seems off to you, please feel free to write me at vlogize [AT] gmail [DOT] com.
---
Simplifying Your PHP Code: A Practical Guide to Cleaner Coding

As a beginner in programming, especially in PHP, it is common to face challenges in writing clean and efficient code. You might find yourself wondering if there’s a better way to simplify your code to enhance its readability and performance. Recently, a question arose regarding a piece of PHP code that checks if two variables—year and mileage—are numeric. Let’s dive into this problem and learn how to streamline the process.

The Problem

The original code checks if the values from a form submission (specifically year and mileage) are numeric, using separate variables to store intermediary results. Here is the initial code provided by a beginner:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

As you can see, the code appears a bit lengthy and might not be the most efficient way of implementing this check. Below, we will explore how to simplify this code.

The Solution

1. Streamline Variable Assignment

Instead of assigning values to multiple variables, we can directly use the is_numeric() function within our conditional statement. This reduces the amount of code we need to write, making it easier to read and manage.

2. Using Logical Operators

The original code used the logical AND operator (&&) to check if both variables were non-numeric. However, if the intention is to identify if either value is not numeric, we should use the logical OR operator (||). This makes the code more robust and aligned with the goal of validating the input.

3. Updated Code Example

Here’s the simplified version of the code that incorporates these enhancements:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Key Changes

Removed intermediate variables $a, $b, $c, and $d, which were unnecessary.

Directly checking the numeric status of $_POST['year'] and $_POST['mileage'] within the if statement itself.

Used logical OR (||) to check if at least one of the values is not numeric.

4. Flexibility with PHP's Null Coalescing Operator

If you want to ensure that the code runs even when the $_POST values are not set, you can use the null coalescing operator (??). Here's how:

[[See Video to Reveal this Text or Code Snippet]]

Conclusion

Writing clean and efficient code is essential, especially as you progress in your programming journey. The simplified version of your PHP code not only reduces its length but also enhances clarity, making it easier to read and manage. By directly using logical checks in conditionals and minimizing unnecessary variable assignments, you can significantly improve the quality of your code. Keep experimenting and simplifying, and you'll find yourself writing better code in no time!