Why not use assertions for input validation?

Hi, An article was recently published in Linux Journal entitled Real-World PHP Security. Assertions are mentioned in the article as a way to enforce validity of input. I didn't even realize that php had assertions so I investigated a little further ... PHP docs on the assert function (http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.assert.php) states "Assertions should not be used for normal runtime operations like input parameter checks" which contradicts the Linux Journal article. An article in the user contributed notes (http://www.sitepoint.com/article/1008/) also states not to use assertions in production. What is it about assertions that makes them unsuitable for production use? Thanks! -- Fraser Campbell <fraser@wehave.net> http://www.wehave.net/ Georgetown, Ontario, Canada Debian GNU/Linux