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Date: Thu, 15 Aug 2024 08:09:49 -0500
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Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] Should there be a `get_declared_enums()` function ?
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From: larry@garfieldtech.com ("Larry Garfield")

On Wed, Aug 14, 2024, at 8:51 PM, Juliette Reinders Folmer wrote:
> L.S.,
>
> I just noticed the following, which struck me as weird/inconsistent:
>
> There are four different OO structures in PHP:
> 1. Classes
> 2. Interfaces
> 3. Traits
> 4. Enums
>
> For all four, an `*_exists()` function is available, i.e. 
> `class_exists()`, `interface_exists()`, `trait_exists()` and 
> `enum_exists()` [2].
>
> But only for three out of the four, a `get_declared_*()` function 
> exists.
> There is `get_declared_classes()`, `get_declared_interfaces()`, 
> `get_declared_traits()`, but no `get_declared_enums()` [2].
>
> I'm aware that enums are internally considered classes and that 
> `get_declared_classes()` will retrieve them [1], but the same could be 
> said about interfaces and traits, yet they do have their own 
> `get_declared_*()` function.
>
> Should a `get_declared_enums()` function be added ?
> And should the `get_declared_classes()` function be adjusted to exclude enums ?
>
> I did check the enum RFC [3], but I couldn't find any mention or 
> discussion about this in the RFC.
>
> Smile,
> Juliette
>
>
> 1: https://3v4l.org/0ub6I
> 2: https://www.php.net/manual/en/ref.classobj.php
> 3: https://wiki.php.net/rfc/enumerations

Conext: I can't remember the last time I used get_declared_classes() (thanks to autoloading and class_exists() it's a kinda pointless function), so when we were working on enums it never occurred to us to think about it.  It wasn't a deliberate decision to omit, as far as I recall.

I think I'd be open to adding it; my concern would be the overlap with get_declared_classes(), which as you note currently would include enums, and changing that is a BC break (even if a tiny one that I doubt would impact anyone).

--Larry Garfield