Class instantiation in codeigniter

And also understand that a call to

PHP Code:

$this->load->library('lib_name'); // or load->model('lib_name'); 


instantiates the class using new.

The instance created is added to the controller and is accessed using

PHP Code:

$this->lib_name->some_method();
//or
$this->lib_name->some_property; 


anywhere the controller is in scope.

In a case where the controller is not in scope a reference to can be obtained using get_instance() eg.

PHP Code:

$CI =& get_instance(); 


The Utilizing CodeIgniter Resources within Your Library section of the documentation explains this very well.

It may be useful to know that classes instantiated using the loader ($this->load->...) are singletons.