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CI and PHP6 - Problems?
#1

[eluser]CreedFeed[/eluser]
Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe one of the things being removed from the proposed or current development of PHP6 is going to be the assignment by reference...

$CI =& get_instance();

If that is true, then when PHP6 is released, CI would not work right?

I'm currently looking into a framework to use for some applications I'm going to be writing and the only thing holding me back from CI right now is this issue. Can anyone shed some light on this issue?

I've read other threads which explicitly said CI would not be updated to PHP5 so I'm wondering if CI will ever be updated to work with other future versions of PHP?
#2

[eluser]Rob Stefanussen[/eluser]
Unless I am mistaken, return by reference is going to be removed, not assign by reference.
#3

[eluser]CreedFeed[/eluser]
Sorry I meant return by reference in my initial post. The info is here:

http://www.php.net/~derick/meeting-notes...-behaviour
#4

[eluser]Michael Wales[/eluser]
Regardless, how fast do you really think the up-take on PHP6 is going to be? It probably won't be released for a few years and if history repeats itself, PHP5 will still be installed on every server for another 5-6 years.
#5

[eluser]Rob Stefanussen[/eluser]
Good point...
#6

[eluser]coolfactor[/eluser]
The point about "CI not be updated for PHP 5" is inaccurate. CI works fine on PHP 5, it just doesn't require PHP 5... that is, it doesn't use any PHP 5-only syntax, such as method chaining and the more advanced object architecture. PHP 6 is a long ways off from being supported on any wide scale, and CI isn't static.. it will adapt to the market.
#7

[eluser]CreedFeed[/eluser]
[quote author="coolfactor" date="1190886925"]The point about "CI not be updated for PHP 5" is inaccurate. CI works fine on PHP 5, it just doesn't require PHP 5... that is, it doesn't use any PHP 5-only syntax, such as method chaining and the more advanced object architecture. PHP 6 is a long ways off from being supported on any wide scale, and CI isn't static.. it will adapt to the market.[/quote]

Note that I never said it didn't work in PHP5. I know it works just fine in PHP5... my comments, which you even quoted, was CI wasn't being updated to PHP5... and my question was since the developers have said they wouldn't update it to PHP5, can we expect the same when PHP6 is finally rolled out? That is all I simply meant. I'm not here trying to bring back the "why not update to PHP5" argument. I've lurked these forums for awhile and read through all those discussions. I don't like the fact that it won't be updated to PHP5 but I'm not complaining about that. CI is a great framework and I personally like it. All my intentions were in this thread was to find out if we can expect updates to CI for future versions of PHP or not.

Like it or not, PHP6 has been announced and it's been said that they are depreciating the =& return by reference. Seeing as that is how most of the framework and it's libraries are coded, it would seem that CI wouldn't work with PHP6. Saying "well that's a long way off" does not address the fact that PHP6 is coming and currently CI would not be compatible with it.

Also, if I'm wrong with this (that CI would not be compatible with the proposed specs of PHP6) please let me know. This is why I did make this thread.
#8

[eluser]Michael Wales[/eluser]
I don't think anything is hard fact, it's simply how things are right now.

Right now, it's not being upgraded to PHP5, because PHP4 is still vastly used.

By the time PHP6 even thinks it might possibly, maybe, be released in the next 6 years, PHP4 should be phased out (Zend's already put a stop-date on support).

This will give the CI developers a transition time, in which they can determine whether supporting PHP4 is still a relevant feature of the framework and upgrade to PHP5-only if they feel the need.

I'm sure the same will happen with PHP6. It's not going to be an instantaneous upgrade when PHP6 is released - for the first 2 years of PHP6's life cycle the only people using it will be curious developers, you simply won't see it on a shared hosting provider.

As PHP6 becomes more popular, and becomes available on shared hosting, the developers will then analyze the situation and determine whether to support it or not.

It's all relative to the situation, and although it's great for curiosity's sake, it really doesn't matter for 3-4 more years, at least.
#9

[eluser]coolfactor[/eluser]
Quote:=& return by reference

That is not return by reference, it is assign by reference.

Code:
$var1 =& $var2;  // assign by reference

function & get_var()   // return by reference
{

}
#10

[eluser]Derek Allard[/eluser]
<offical position>
For the record, CodeIgniter will 100% absolutely positively be updated to run on whichever PHP versions are on the market.

Right now, PHP4 is still dominant, and PHP5 is a reality. Since CI is central to us selling our products and services, we need to be able to sell them in the real world, so I can assure you that when PHP4 isn't being used anymore, we'll make a big deal about how the next version of CI won't support PHP4, and it'll get moved up from there.

Also, just for technical accuracy, I don't think we said that CI would not update to PHP5 ever... rather that compatibility with PHP versions that are currently on the market remain a high priority for us.
</offical position>

<unoffical position>
I like PHP5. I build my personal and client apps for PHP5 only, and don't even bother testing on PHP4. There is nothing to stop any CI developer from doing the same, and I know that many of us do. If I had my way then PHP4 would just go away tomorrow. I can assure you that would make my life easier...

For the record, I haven't even looked at PHP6 in passing yet.
</unoffical position>




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