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Request #50532 Lazy-evaluated multiple-array foreach
Submitted: 2009-12-19 12:38 UTC Modified: 2013-03-15 14:57 UTC
Votes:3
Avg. Score:5.0 ± 0.0
Reproduced:0 of 0 (0.0%)
From: jsimlo at yahoo dot com Assigned:
Status: Wont fix Package: Arrays related
PHP Version: * OS: *
Private report: No CVE-ID: None
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 [2009-12-19 12:38 UTC] jsimlo at yahoo dot com
Description:
------------
I would like to suggest an extended foreach syntax like this:
<?php
foreach ($a, $b, $c as $k => $i)
  echo $i;
?>
Which would result in the same execution as current:
<?php
foreach (array ($a, $b, $c) as $x)
  foreach ($x as $k => $i);
    echo $i;
?>
The reason for requesting this is (simplicity and) possibility of lazy-evaluation of the source arrays. The source arrays can be expressions that take time to compute; or consume large memory each while they exist; and the body of the foreach can break the foreach cycle, rendering a lazy-evaluation quite worth the trouble. Example:
<?php
// several not-so-easy-to-compute arrays
foreach (
  $item1->GetChilds(),
  $item2->GetChilds(),
  $item3->GetParent()->GetChilds(),
  $item3->GetComputeSomethingDifficultChilds()
  as $child
)
   // searching for a child with a special name
   if ($child->GetName() == 'something') break;

// now we got a child of such name (or the last cycled child)
print_r ($child);

Reproduce code:
---------------
---
From manual page: control-structures.foreach
---



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 [2010-12-28 12:39 UTC] jani@php.net
-Package: Feature/Change Request +Package: Arrays related -Operating System: irrelevant +Operating System: * -PHP Version: 5.3.1 +PHP Version: *
 [2013-03-15 14:57 UTC] nikic@php.net
-Status: Open +Status: Wont fix
 [2013-03-15 14:57 UTC] nikic@php.net
I don't think it makes to extend the foreach syntax in that direction. It's hard to understand and rarely useful.

Instead use AppendIterator from SPL (http://php.net/appenditerator).
 
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