Passing by reference deprecated?

set_value(&$variable,$value) { $variable=value; } "Warning: Call-time pass-by-reference has been deprecated - argument passed by value; If you would like to pass it by reference, modify the declaration of [runtime function name](). If you would like to enable call-time pass-by-reference, you can set allow_call_time_pass_reference to true in your INI file. However, future versions may not support this any longer. " When did passing by reference get deprecated? The documentation at <http://php.net/manual/en/language.references.pass.php> doesn't suggest what to do instead--in fact, it uses an example like the syntax above. So my next question is: would using a return value or declaring a global be the (only) other options? TIA -- CC