Class output question

Sharif

Is it bad to echo things directly from a class? Like for a class that holds errors, is it bad to echo the customer errors in the class or should it be done with the variable that holds the object? for example:

ex 1:

class MyClass
{
function db_error()
{
     $message = 'yo';
     echo $message;
}
}

$var = new MyClass;
$var->db_error();

ex 2:

class MyClass
{
function db_error()
{
     $message = 'yo';
}
}

$var = new MyClass;

Which method is better? If method 2, how am I supposed to echo a variable from a function in a class, $var->db_error()->message wont work...

drawmack

except in the case of an output handeler class the answer is yes. Keep track of the last error generated with an error property and then when using the class you can handle the error properly.

Weedpacket

class MyClass
{
function db_error()
{
     $message = 'yo';
     return $message;
}
}

$var = new MyClass;
$error_message = $var->db_error();

echo $error_message;

Not echoing the message within the class itself (unless you provide a method specifically for the task) gives the programmer using the class the freedom to do what they want with the message: echo it, format it then echo it, write it to a file, stick it in a database, ignore it...

drawmack's idea is better idea than mine.

drawmack

In practice I use two variables for the error one with a number and one with the text, that way when programming I can detect the error programatically by the number which is much easier then parsing the text. For an example of this see: http://www.phpbuilder.net/board/showthread.php?s=&threadid=10267611