How to ... static variables in inherited methods for PHP < 5.3.0 ???

[Wildbug]

 

I find it bizarre that PHP behaves the way it does regarding method definition context and static class variables ($this vs. self).  The self keyword is almost useless; if it's only ever going to refer to the class in which it was defined, why wouldn't I just use the class name explicitly? /rant

 

How can I have a value common to an extended class be correctly referenced in an inherited method?

 

An example case:

 

<?php

abstract class Base {

static protected $table_name = "none";
public function getTableName() {
	return self::$table_name;
}
}

class ChildClass extends Base {
static protected $table_name = "my_table";
}

$cc = new ChildClass;
echo $cc->getTableName(); // outputs "none"
?>

 

I guess I could define an abstract method in the base class that should return the tablename.  What's the standard practice for this situation in PHP?