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Date: Tue, 03 Feb 2026 16:13:26 +0100
To: Vadim Dvorovenko <vadim.dvorovenko@gmail.com>
Cc: internals@lists.php.net
Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] [RFC] Pipe to return
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From: tim@bastelstu.be (=?UTF-8?Q?Tim_D=C3=BCsterhus?=)

Hi

Am 2026-01-31 06:52, schrieb Vadim Dvorovenko:
> Introducing Pipe to return RFC
> 
> https://wiki.php.net/rfc/pipe_to_return
> 
> In short, RFC proposes piping expression result to `return` to be used 
> together with pipe operator to reduce cognitive load

Thank you for your RFC. I appreciate how well-written it is and how 
carefully you followed the suggested template.

That said, I agree with the others that I find the proposal a step 
backwards in terms of readability. Having the `return` at the start of 
the line is a clear indicator that the function ends there and it is 
only a “single bit” of information I have to keep in mind while I 
continue reading until I find the semicolon ending the statement. It is 
also consistent with how assignments - the other primary use case for 
pipes - start with the target variable and the equals before the “pipe 
expression”. I think it would not be wrong to think of `return` as 
“assigning to the return value”.

While it is true that no one is forced to use the new syntax, I will 
inevitably come across it in libraries that decide to use it, thus I 
will be forced to know that it is a thing and to understand what it 
does. And of course all IDEs and static analyzers will need to learn 
about it as well.

For these reasons, I don't believe it meets the cost-benefit ratio.

Best regards
Tim Düsterhus