Doc #65586 [NEW]: Ambiguity over "deprecation" of SoapClient::__call

From: rowan dot collins at gmail dot com Operating system: PHP version: Irrelevant Package: SOAP related Bug Type: Documentation Problem Bug description:Ambiguity over "deprecation" of SoapClient::__call Description: ------------ The manual describes the SoapClient::__call() function as "deprecated" throughout (e.g. http://www.php.net/soapclient.call), stating that one should "Use SoapClient::__soapCall instead of it." This could be read to imply that the use of "magically defined" methods on a SoapClient object is itself deprecated - since __call() will be known to PHP veterans as the mechanism used for these. However, under SoapClient::__soapCall() [http://www.php.net/manual/en/soapclient.soapcall.php] states that "Usually, in WSDL mode, SOAP functions can be called as methods of the SoapClient object." This implies the opposite - that the magic methods are the preferred mechanism. I suspect that the intention is to discourage *direct* calls to __call(), in which case perhaps the following wording would be more appropriate: > Calling this method directly is deprecated. Usually, SOAP functions can be called as methods of the SoapClient object; in situations where this is not possible or additional options are needed, use [SoapClient::__soapCall]. Examples of current wording being misinterpreted: - Bug #37355: "SOAP uses deprecated __call method by default" (Closed Not a bug) - Answer given on StackOverflow not to use direct calls http://stackoverflow.com/a/18495482/157957 [If, on the other hand, it is correct that magic calls are deprecated, the wording on http://www.php.net/manual/en/soapclient.soapcall.php should be updated to reflect that.] -- Edit bug report at https://bugs.php.net/bug.php?id=65586&edit=1 -- Try a snapshot (PHP 5.4): https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=trysnapshot54 Try a snapshot (PHP 5.3): https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=trysnapshot53 Try a snapshot (trunk): https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=trysnapshottrunk Fixed in SVN: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=fixed Fixed in release: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=alreadyfixed Need backtrace: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=needtrace Need Reproduce Script: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=needscript Try newer version: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=oldversion Not developer issue: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=support Expected behavior: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=notwrong Not enough info: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=notenoughinfo Submitted twice: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=submittedtwice register_globals: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=globals PHP 4 support discontinued: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=php4 Daylight Savings: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=dst IIS Stability: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=isapi Install GNU Sed: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=gnused Floating point limitations: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=float No Zend Extensions: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=nozend MySQL Configuration Error: https://bugs.php.net/fix.php?id=65586&r=mysqlcfg