RE: [PHP-DEV] autoloading and undefined class constants

> per the manual, exceptions thrown in an autoload method are swallowed, > and an E_ERROR is triggered by php. > > http://us2.php.net/manual/en/language.oop5.autoload.php I have read that note before, and wondered exactly what it was referring to since you can throw exceptions within an autoloader and catch them (or have your exception handler do whatever it needs to do with them). <?php function autoloader($className) { echo "autoloading" . PHP_EOL; throw new Exception("Fail"); } spl_autoload_register("autoloader"); try { // Exception $obj = new NonExistentClass; } catch(Exception $e) { echo "caught" . PHP_EOL; } try { // Exception $const = constant("NonExistentClass::NON_EXISTENT_CONSTANT"); } catch(Exception $e) { echo "caught" . PHP_EOL; } try { // Fatal error $const = NonExistentClass::NON_EXISTENT_CONSTANT; } catch(Exception $e) { echo "never happens" . PHP_EOL; } ?> Will output: autoloading caught autoloading caught autoloading PHP Fatal error: Undefined class constant I would expect accessing a constant directly to behave as constant() does at the moment .... and I would expect constant() to behave as the manual says it does (and return NULL for non existent class constants instead of throwing E_ERRORs). Ben Bidner +61.7.3161.2000 (office) | +61.7.3009.0651 (fax) | +61.4.3201.5362 (mobile) http://www.vuetec.com/