note 72508 deleted from function.empty by didou

Note Submitter: Stephen ---- I wanted to correct a couple of errors in some earlier user notes, regarding which is better, using empty() within an if clause to be evaluated, or using only the variable. E.g.: if (!$blah) versus if (empty($blah)) or if ($blah) versus if (!empty($blah)) First, one person noted that empty() is basically worthless because you don't need it to do the above functionality. However, I think this is wrong for 2 reasons: 1. It is needed for arrays and (I think) objects 2. empty() is actually FASTER than using just the variable. You might think that it would be slower because it looks like a function, but it is actually a language construct. Apparently it is optimized. It is at least 10% faster, sometimes nearly 20% faster. Second, one person claimed that if you don't use empty, and just test the variable, you will get an E_WARNING error. I don't know if this used to be true, but for me in PHP 5.2, it only generates an E_NOTICE. I hope this clears up somebody's confusion.