CODEWITHSUNDEEP
phpsilverstripesilverstripe-4
Aaryn
Aaryn

Reputation: 1643

Silverstripe 4 - accessing core methods

In Silverstripe 3, eveything was autoloaded on demand. That meant that one could know the class and method that they wanted to use. Example:

Debug::dump('dump message');

If I'm understanding the concepts of SS4 correctly, one needs to import the class to the file that you would like to use the method (or property). In the above example, one would need to do something as follows at the top of the file

use /name/space/to/Debug
Debug::dump('dump message');

Is that understanding correct? If so, my real question is how does a developer effectively know the precise location of everything in core? Are they expected to know exactly where in system these core files reside on top of their names and the methods you wish to use? Are there tools or methods to assist in this?

Upvotes: 2

Views: 70

Answers (1)

UncleCheese
UncleCheese

Reputation: 1584

First, just a clarification -- what you're talking about is not autoloading, it's more like aliasing -- but the two are related.

Because the Debug class is no longer in the global namespace, its name is much more verbose (SilverStripe\Dev\Debug). This is known as a fully qualified class name, or "FQCN" for short. There's nothing short, however, about that new name. It's tedious to type, and if the class ever changes its name, you have a lot of updates to make.

To that end, you can use the use statement to "import" that class into the local scope of your file under an alias. By default, that alias is just the trailing part of the FQCN (Debug), but you're also allowed to use any custom alias you like. (use SilverStripe\Dev\Debug as MyDebugger).

SS4 now uses PSR-4 autoloading, for which namespacing is a critical piece. In very short terms, it dictates that the directory structure must match up with the FQCN, e.g. /framework/src/Dev/Debug.php. This makes the autoloading deterministic and predictable.

As for tooling, using a fully powered IDE like PHPStorm is invaluable for doing dev work in a framework with namespaced classes (which is far more the rule than the exception these days). A good IDE, like PHPStorm, will not only autocomplete as you inject a classname, but will also add the use statement for you, among many, many other wonderful time-saving features.

For a more manual approach, api.silverstripe.org is a good place to look up class mappings.

Upvotes: 7

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