Your thoughts on include()

[jessjenn]

I'm wondering if it's efficient processing wise to have large includes files attached to pages. For example, I have this php include file that it all it has are custom string functions. Now, some pages in my apps use most of these functions, while others use only a few, and some use just one. For the pages that use only a few of these functions of this include file, is it worth including that include file? Is it better to just copy that function needed from the include file and put it in the page and don't include the file?

Wondering what you guys think is best. By the way, these string functions are related, so I don't want to split them apart. There's still quite a few of them, and I'm worried about processing time.

Thanks!

[swr]

Is your site actually slow? Is most of the slowness due to includes, as opposed to (for example) database queries?

I think you may be trying to optimize things that don't actually need to be optimized.

Honestly, I'd buy a bigger server before I resorted to what you're suggesting. Maintaining duplicated code is a nightmare. Every time you make a change you have to hunt down all of the copies and change them, too. I don't care if it makes your site twice as fast (it won't), it's not worth it.