#40886 [Opn->Bgs]: static methods assigned to instances

ID: 40886 Updated by: cellog@php.net Reported By: andrea at 3site dot it -Status: Open +Status: Bogus Bug Type: Class/Object related Operating System: Windows XP SP2 PHP Version: 5.2.1 New Comment: this bug really shows how one person's bug is another person's feature. :) the syntax $a->method() allows you to call a static method of the class that $a is an instantiated object of, something I find useful for objects that contain static methods in a parent/child inheritance hierarchy. Using $a->method(), I don't need to do hackery to figure out which class "$a" is in order to call one of its static methods. Consider the alternative: <?php call_user_func_array(get_class($a), 'method', $args); ?> The above is the only alternative (save using reflection, which is even more verbose and inefficient) to: <?php $a->method($arg1, $arg1); ?> Which syntax do you prefer? The big difference between php 4 and php 5 is that a method declared as "static" does not have $this set. You'll get a fatal error, in fact, if you try to use $this in a static method. Why do you care so much about whether it's called with class::method() or $this->method()? You can't have two methods with the same name, one static and one non-static, so there is no possibility of accidentally calling the wrong one. If you are wanting absolutely "perfect" OO, there are plenty of other languages that will provide exactly the straightjacket and punishment you desire. If you want to code efficient, easy to maintain, working programs, use PHP. Previous Comments: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [2007-03-22 12:28:44] andrea at 3site dot it Derick, this is a bug (any Object Oriented logic). There's something wrong in your static keyword implementation, at least for methods that uses static keyword. This my last call and this is my last example: <?php class ExampleClass { public $StaticExample; public final function __construct(){ // bye bye public *parameter* $this->StaticExample = create_function('$never', 'return "welcome PHP5 ambiguity";'); } public final static function StaticExample(){ echo "StaticExample", "<br />"; } } $test = new ExampleClass(); ExampleClass::StaticExample(); exit($test->StaticExample()); ?> What does static keyword mean for PHP 5 developers? If this is an expected behaviour you should explain them in documentation page. Regards (I'll never open again this *bug*) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [2007-03-22 12:18:16] derick@php.net Thank you for taking the time to write to us, but this is not a bug. Please double-check the documentation available at http://www.php.net/manual/ and the instructions on how to report a bug at http://bugs.php.net/how-to-report.php ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [2007-03-22 12:15:28] derick@php.net Not enough information was provided for us to be able to handle this bug. Please re-read the instructions at http://bugs.php.net/how-to-report.php If you can provide more information, feel free to add it to this bug and change the status back to "Open". Thank you for your interest in PHP. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [2007-03-22 11:29:22] daniele_dll at yahoo dot it Hi, i was talking with andrea yesterday evening and he was explaining me that stuff. I don't know if it is an expected behaviour or not, but i'm sure that somewhere there is a problem! Infact, if it is an expected behaviour the static keyword loss it meanings and, probably, slowdown the php page compilation/execution, but if it is normal documentation should be fixed because it says a totally different stuff. However, to get back to the problem, the manual says, as should be: "A member declared as static can not be accessed with an instantiated class object" Because is a non sense say that something is static and after let to the code to call it as non static ------------------------------------------------------------------------ [2007-03-22 11:19:48] andrea at 3site dot it This cannot be an expected behaviour because in this way a static method is exactly the same of a generic public method. Static parameters aren't (correctly) usable with instances so why static methods should be assigned? If this is an expected behaviour please tell us what do You think static keyword means and explain them correctly on documentation page. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ The remainder of the comments for this report are too long. To view the rest of the comments, please view the bug report online at http://bugs.php.net/40886 -- Edit this bug report at http://bugs.php.net/?id=40886&edit=1