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To: internals@lists.php.net,Wes <netmo.php@gmail.com>
Message-ID: <881E738D-F30A-4CF4-8501-2B97AF9812D4@gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] [RFC][DISCUSSION] Deprecation of fallback to root scope
From: rowan.collins@gmail.com (Rowan Collins)

On 3 February 2018 08:27:18 GMT+00:00, Wes <netmo=2Ephp@gmail=2Ecom> wrote:
>Hello PHPeople=2E I just published the RFC "Deprecation of fallback to
>root
>scope"=2E
>
>It is quite a substantial change, but as you can read in the RFC, can
>be a
>(basically) transparent one=2E
>I'm referring to the possibility to shim it in userland=2E=20

I'm torn on this one=2E On the one hand, I think in hindsight this is how =
functions in namespaces should have worked when they were introduced in PHP=
 6, I mean 5=2E3=2E \foo isn't the prettiest syntax, but people soon got us=
ed to writing class names that way, including built in ones like \DateTime=
=2E It would make function autoloading simpler, lead to less ambiguous code=
, and make namespaces work consistently across token types, rather than one=
 way for classes and a different way for functions and constants=2E

On the other hand, the BC break of moving to that now (or committing ourse=
lves to in the future) is significant, and even raising a notice of whateve=
r level could be highly disruptive=2E A lot of code bases will issue this m=
essage hundreds or thousands of times; I wouldn't be surprised if just the =
code to format the string and pass it to an active error handler might resu=
lt in a measurable performance impact in some cases=2E Crucially, the propo=
sed shim can't actually be written yet, so the only way to suppress these n=
otices will be to edit every single source file, which even if perfectly au=
tomated creates a lot of noise in version control=2E

I think some less invasive way would need to be found to make existing cod=
e run the same way, without notices, before and after the change=2E For ins=
tance, if you could opt into the old behaviour by writing "import global fu=
nctions" at the top of a file, or opt into the new behaviour by writing "na=
mespace only Foo", or since autoloading is a key benefit, "namespace Foo wi=
th autoload"=2E It wouldn't be ideal, because it means the engine has to su=
pport both modes, but it would be far less painful than adding \ into thous=
ands of lines of existing code=2E

Regards,

--=20
Rowan Collins
[IMSoP]