New syntax for multidimensional array loop with foreach View as Markdown

I'd thought this would have been solved by allowing the list statement in
foreach (
http://nl3.php.net/manual/en/control-structures.foreach.php#control-structures.foreach.list
)

Doesnt that solve your problem already?

Kind regards,

Robin Speekenbrink

2013/6/27 Florin Patan florinpatan@gmail.com

On Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 4:10 PM, Christian Stoller stoller@leonex.de
wrote:

Hi internals,

during my current work I had an idea for shorter array iteration with
foreach. I haven’t seen such a syntax until now, but I think it is easy to
understand ;-)

Maybe you know the case where you have to iterate over all values of a
2D (or more) array:

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray) {
foreach ($innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}
}

The new syntax could make it shorter and faster to write... but maybe
it's a bit too confusing?

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}

If the keys aren't needed, you can shorten it to:

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $innerArray as $value) {
$count += $value;
}

What do you think?

--
Christian Stoller
LEONEX Internet GmbH

Hi,

Quick question, how would the engine then treat this case:

$array = array();
$array['level1.1']['level2']['level3'] = 'value';
$array['level1.2'] = new StdClass();

foreach($array as $level1 as $level2 as $level3) { ... }

Best regards

Florin Patan
https://github.com/dlsniper
http://www.linkedin.com/in/florinpatan

2013/6/27 Florin Patan florinpatan@gmail.com

On Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 4:10 PM, Christian Stoller stoller@leonex.de
wrote:

Hi internals,

during my current work I had an idea for shorter array iteration with
foreach. I haven’t seen such a syntax until now, but I think it is easy to
understand ;-)

Maybe you know the case where you have to iterate over all values of a
2D (or more) array:

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray) {
foreach ($innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}
}

The new syntax could make it shorter and faster to write... but maybe
it's a bit too confusing?

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}

If the keys aren't needed, you can shorten it to:

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $innerArray as $value) {
$count += $value;
}

What do you think?

--
Christian Stoller
LEONEX Internet GmbH

Hi,

Quick question, how would the engine then treat this case:

$array = array();
$array['level1.1']['level2']['level3'] = 'value';
$array['level1.2'] = new StdClass();

foreach($array as $level1 as $level2 as $level3) { ... }

When I get this right it would fail. As far as I see this is equivalent to

foreach ($array as $level1) {
foreach ($level1 as $level2) {
foreach ($level2 as $level3) {
// ..
}
}
}

So I'd say they should behave the same.

I for myself find this proposal at least interesting. I don't know how many
foreach-chains I see every day :(

Regards,
Sebastian

Best regards

Florin Patan
https://github.com/dlsniper
http://www.linkedin.com/in/florinpatan

--

--
github.com/KingCrunch

Hi internals,

during my current work I had an idea for shorter array iteration with
foreach. I haven’t seen such a syntax until now, but I think it is easy to
understand ;-)

Maybe you know the case where you have to iterate over all values of a
2D (or more) array:

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray) {
foreach ($innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}
}

The new syntax could make it shorter and faster to write... but maybe
it's a bit too confusing?

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}
What do you think?

How would a break or continue on this behave? Would it end the inner or
the outer circle?

I guess that the usage of continue/break with specific number is the best
in this case...
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray
as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
if ($count % 2 == 0) { // for instance...
break 2; // End loop
} else if ( $count % 3 == 0 ) {
break; // End inner loop
} else if ( $count % 4 == 0) {
continue 2; // Continue outer loop
}

continue; // Continue inner loop
}

Personally, this syntax (the multi-dims loop) seems unreadable...

--
Ralf Lang
Linux Consultant / Developer
Tel.: +49-170-6381563
Mail: lang@b1-systems.de
B1 Systems GmbH
Osterfeldstraße 7 / 85088 Vohburg / http://www.b1-systems.de
GF: Ralph Dehner / Unternehmenssitz: Vohburg / AG: Ingolstadt,HRB 3537

On Thu, Jun 27, 2013 at 4:10 PM, Christian Stoller stoller@leonex.dewrote:

The new syntax could make it shorter and faster to write... but maybe it's
a bit too confusing?

$count = 0;
foreach ($array as $key => $innerArray as $innerKey => $value) {
$count += $value;
// and do something with $key and $innerKey
}

I'm against this feature. It makes the code marginally shorter, but a good
bit less readable. Combined with the break/continue issue, I don't think we
gain anything by introducing this syntax.

+1

Let me add to this:

While the pattern pattern exists often there are things to be done in
the outer iteration, too. So I think the pure form ofthis double-foreach
is not as common as it might seem ...

And you can write
foreach ($array as $i) foreach ($i as $innerKey => $value) {
}
it is not that much longer, but way more explicit on what is going on,
visually parsing the suggested form needs more concentration.

johannes