[SOLVED] Simple PHP Qustion

[ashton321]

I have been looking at a few scripts inside CMS like Joomla and keep seeing ->.  What does the -> do in PHP?

[gevans]

it is usually refering to a function from an assigned object

[ashton321]

What does that mean?

[gevans]

How your php??

 

imagine you have a class;

 

class animal{
private var $type;
function __construct($a){
$this->type = $a;
}
function getAnimal(){
return $this->type;
}
}

$animalObject = new animal('dog');
echo $animalObject->getAnimal;

 

make sense?

[ashton321]

Im new to PHP and can write basic scripts but im starting to learn functions and classes and i guess the problem for me lies in the $this.  I have been doing a little reading like 

class Cart {
    var $todays_date;
    var $name;
    var $owner;
    var $items = array("VCR", "TV");

    function Cart() {
        $this->todays_date = date("Y-m-d");
        $this->name = $GLOBALS['firstname'];
        /* etc. . . */
    }
}

So the this means for the items in the class above the function are being set?

[trq]

A class is an object template. When you instantiate an object, eg;

 

$obj = new myclass;

 

You create an object of the type myclass (in the given example).

 

Now, within your class template $this is used to refer to the object that will be created once your class has been instantiated.

[trq]

Should elaberate some more.

 

So, just as you would use $obj (given the above example) to refer to your object from outside of the object, you would use $this to refer to the object from within it.

 

Does that make sense?

[ashton321]

Yes it does thank you very much.  Also i found this while browsing around.

 

http://www.phpfreaks.com/forums/index.php/topic,95867.0.html

 

Thanks All