Tag: zend framework

php coding standard and tips

It is important that developers follow a certain coding standard to help make the code readable and maintainable. These are what I gathered so far as the best coding practice:

File formatting:
– Never close php tag when using zend framework, ie, “?>”
– Use 4 space indentation as tab spacing. It is possible to configure this in many IDE.
– Maximum line length should be within the programming space in the IDE. It should be around 80 to 120 chars. This helps clarity when reading the code.

Naming Conventions:
– Class names should contain only alphanumeric chars. Underscores are used as separators between directories. For example, Zend/Xyz/Abc.php maps to Zend_Xyz_Abc class.
– Interface classes must end with the word “interface”, eg Zend_Xyz_Interface
– Try to name files in one word, ie without space, underscores or hypen (even if they are allowed), eg “OrderDetails”
– PHP files should end with .php extension. Template files should end with .phtml or .tpl (for smarty).
– Functions, methods or variables should always be named in camelcase, starting with a lowercase letter, eg “camelCase”.
– functions, methods or variables which are declared protected or private should start with a single underscore. Try to use alpha chars only without underscore.
– Always use getters and setters as a good OOP practice.
– Constants should all be in uppercase, defined using the “const” contruct. Separate each word with an underscore, ie PRICE_PER_ORDER
– Do not use short tags, ie use echo instead.

Coding Style
– For long string, concatenate them with a space before the “.” operator, ie something like this:

$sql = "SELECT id, a , b, c from table"
          . "where name = 'blarblar'"
          . "order by id asc";

$test = array('a' => 'apple',
                   'b' => 'boy');

– When defining a class and function, use one true brace, ie the brace is underneath the name. When using if, else, foreach within a function or method, the brace is written on the same line and be indented by 4 spaces.
– All switch construct must have default case.
– All document blocks must be compatible with the phpdocumentor.
– All file that contains PHP code must have a header block that contains the following information:

/**
 * Short Desc
 *
 * Long Desc
 *
 * LICENSE: license information
 *
 * @version        $Id:$
 * @since           xxxxx
 * @author         xxxxx
 */

– Every method or function must have a docblock that contains the function desc, arguments and return values. If the function or method throws an exception, use the “@throw” tag.

Did I miss out anything?

Zend QuickStart Error

If you have been following the zend quickstart tutorial at Zend site:

http://framework.zend.com/docs/quickstart

and couldn’t work out why it didn’t work… You need to check a few things. A few friends complained that the code aren’t working. How can you expect Zend to release something that is not working??!! Well, I was persuaded to go through the tutorial myself and it took me sometime to work things out. The guys expect you to know your stuff and I have to say the quick guide might not be as thorough.

If things aren’t working because the url parsing is not correct, ie the front controller is not working as expected, check if your mod_rewrite is correct. mod_rewrite works differently if you are using .htaccess, virtualhost, IIS…etc

Check out the URL Rewriter for different config at:

http://framework.zend.com/wiki/display/ZFDEV/Configuring+Your+URL+Rewriter

Then, make sure your directory structure is correct:

It should be something like this:

YourApp
_ application
____ config
____ controllers
____ forms
____ layouts
____ models
____ views
_data
_library
_public
_scripts

Also check your bootstrap.php. It should be something like this: