Is there a shorthand for conditional assigning in PHP

Question

I have the following (simplified) code-fragment where I want to assign a value to variable $shell or $hole, depending on a certain condition ($ringIndex===1)

foreach($rings as $ringIndex=>$ring) { $polygon = $this->getPolygonFromRing($ring); if($ringIndex===1) { $shell = $polygon; } else { $hole = $polygon; } .... }

I don't want to use an extra variable ($polygon) if it is not necessary

I thought maybe something like this would work:

foreach($rings as $ringIndex=>$ring) { ($ringIndex===1?$shell:$hole) = $this>getPolygonFromRing($ring); ... }

Barmar · Accepted Answer · 2017-06-26 21:30:46Z

You can use a variable variable.

foreach($rings as $ringIndex=>$ring) { ${$ringIndex===1?'shell':'hole'} = $this->getPolygonFromRing($ring); .... }

However, I'll add my general advice: Any time you find yourself needing variable variables, you should almost always be using an array instead. If the variables are like $foo1, $foo2, etc. then it should be an indexed array, but in your case it should probably be an associative array with keys shell and hole.

I originally came up with yours, then realized it could be combined like this.
Brilliant (but potentially dangerous) shortcut and also great advice in the edit.

spiral_generator · Accepted Answer · 2017-06-26 21:18:38Z

foreach($rings as $ringIndex => $ring){ $var = $ringIndex === 1 ? 'shell' : 'hole'; $$var = $this->getPolygonFromRing($ring); }

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