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Bug #16046 isset & empty parse error w/ objects
Submitted: 2002-03-13 15:30 UTC Modified: 2002-03-13 17:06 UTC
From: jabeardsley at netscape dot net Assigned:
Status: Not a bug Package: Scripting Engine problem
PHP Version: 4.1.2 OS: linux
Private report: No CVE-ID: None
 [2002-03-13 15:30 UTC] jabeardsley at netscape dot net
/*
See the script below. Passing a value returned from an object function call to isset() and empty() results in a parsing error. strlen() and other functions don't have this problem.  The code example below tests empty(). You may substitute isset() as well and get the same parse error.
This bug exists on both Apache 1.3.9/PHP 4.1.1 and Apache 1.3.23/PHP 4.1.2
*/

//first, declare a simple class with 1 function
class Foo {
	function getStr() { return "foo"; }
}

//now make an object of that class
$foo = new Foo();

/*
* now let's test empty() with just the string
* this should evaluate false, and result in "not empty" 
* being printed
*/
$fooStr = $foo->getStr();
if ( empty($foostr) ) {
	echo "empty!";
} else {
	echo "not empty!";
}

/*
* now test it using the object function call. This is the
* functional equivalent of the previous test, and should 
* result in the same result. However it results in: 
*     "Parse error: parse error, expecting `')'' "
* If you comment out this block, this script parses and
* executes successfully.
*/
if ( empty($foo->getStr()) ) {
   echo "empty!";
} else {
   echo "not empty!";
}


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 [2002-03-13 15:53 UTC] sniper@php.net
RTFM:

http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.empty.php

empty() only works with plain variables.


 [2002-03-13 16:56 UTC] jabeardsley at netscape dot net
Well, I did RTFM, quite a bit in fact. The result of the function call *is* a "plain variable", no? If not, your telling me that (from my example) $foo->getStr() is not equal to the plain string "foo"? It's just a string coming back from the call, and that should be accepted into empty() just as if I'd typed a string in there to begin with. Seems like the evaluation order is screwed up to me. In any case, if this function is "working as intended", a better FM might be in order in this case.
 [2002-03-13 17:06 UTC] torben@php.net
From the manual (http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.empty.php):

  Note that this is meaningless when used on anything which 
  isn't a variable; i.e. empty (addslashes ($name)) has no 
  meaning since it would be checking whether something which 
  isn't a variable is a variable with a FALSE value.

This not only explains the issue, it gives an example.

You're not using empty() on a variable in your example; 
you're using it on an anonymous value (specifically, the 
return value of a function).


Torben
 
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