note 76292 added to function.array-shift

For those that may be trying to use array_shift() with an array containing references (e.g. working with linked node trees), beware that array_shift() may not work as you expect: it will return a *copy* of the first element of the array, and not the element itself, so your reference will be lost. The solution is to reference the first element before removing it with array_shift(): <?php // using only array_shift: $a = 1; $array = array(&$a); $b =& array_shift($array); $b = 2; echo "a = $a, b = $b<br>"; // outputs a = 1, b = 2 // solution: referencing the first element first: $a = 1; $array = array(&$a); $b =& $array[0]; array_shift($array); $b = 2; echo "a = $a, b = $b<br>"; // outputs a = 2, b = 2 ?> ---- Server IP: 81.92.200.26 Probable Submitter: 195.23.203.25 ---- Manual Page -- http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.array-shift.php Edit -- https://master.php.net/note/edit/76292 Del: integrated -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/integrated Del: useless -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/useless Del: bad code -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/bad+code Del: spam -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/spam Del: non-english -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/non-english Del: in docs -- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292/in+docs Del: other reasons-- https://master.php.net/note/delete/76292 Reject -- https://master.php.net/note/reject/76292 Search -- https://master.php.net/manage/user-notes.php