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To: Jochem Maas <jochem@iamjochem.com>
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Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] Seeking 'coalesce' php internal function
From: dante@vocalspace.com ("D. Dante Lorenso")

Jochem Maas wrote:
> point 1: regardless of how people think there should be an ifsetor()
> in the engine - the devs don't so there wont be one.
Arrrrvvhggghh!  Don't you just want to scream!

> point 2: anything trying to implement this functionality in userspace
> is a hack. (to stregethen that stance: Rasmus reiterated the point a few
> days ago [can't remember which mailinglist] that people should be 
> trying to
> write *error free* code - ergo the error suppression is not a proper 
> solution)

Ok.  You CAN NOT implement 'ifsetor/coalesce/filled' in userspace.  And 
the devs don't want it to exist ... so, WTF?
> Dante, live with the hack. :-)
Translate to: Dante, you don't need PHP to be better, adequate is good 
enough.

<soap box>
Come on devs, I'm pleading with you.  Say it isn't so.  You force me to 
write so much extra code unless this functionality exists in the core.

Explain to me how every possible thing you might want to do to an array 
gets it's own function in the language, but something as trivial as this 
gets refused so strongly!

I mean really: array_change_key_case, array_chunk, array_combine, 
array_count_values, array_diff_assoc, array_diff_key, array_diff_uassoc, ...
    http://www.php.net/manual/en/ref.array.php

You can't tell me that most if not all of these functions could not have 
been implemented in userspace?  I might use 10% of all the array 
functions, but I'd use 'coalesce' and 'filled' daily.
</soap box>

Tell me at least this much.  Can these two functions be implemented as 
an extension? From what you know about PHP internals, does what WE want 
have to be a language construct?  If I can write coalesce() and filled() 
as extensions, I'll submit a new extension/patch.  Maybe it could join 
PECL and with popularity make it's way begrudgingly into the core?

Dante