Not only does this create a getter and setter method for each attribute, but it also means that no maintenance to getter and setter methods are required when you add or remove attributes at a later point.

Lets take a look at a sample class called Picture which simply describes an image that is stored on the server at some URL.

class Picture {

	protected $id;
	protected $type;
	protected $width;
	protected $height;
	protected $name;
	protected $url;

	public function setID($id) {
		if (!$this->id) {
			$this->id = $id;
		}
	}

	/**
	 * This serves as the default getter and setter methods for all attributes that don't expressively have one
	 *
	 * @param unknown_type $name
	 * @param unknown_type $args
	 * @return unknown nothing
	 */
	public function __call($name, $args) {
		if (preg_match('/^(get|set)(w+)/', strtolower($name), $match) && $attribute = $this->validateAttribute($match[2])) {
			if ('get' == $match[1]) {
				return $this->$attribute;
			} else {
				$this->$attribute = $args[0];
			}
		} else {
			throw new Exception('Call to undefined method Bookmark::'.$name.'()');
		}
	}

	/**
	 * Validates that the attribute is part of the class
	 *
	 * @param unknown_type $name name of the attribute
	 * @return unknown returns the name of the attribute
	 */
	protected function validateAttribute($name) {
		if (in_array(strtolower($name), array_keys(get_class_vars(get_class($this))))) {
			return strtolower($name);
		}
	}
}

The code above in __call() and validateAttribute is used as the getter and setter functions for any attribute which does not already have a getter or setter defined. This is important to note. __call() is only used as a last resort. Therefore, if you want to create a getter or setter that behaves differently then normal it is not a problem. In fact, that is exactly what I have done for setID.

In this case, the ID is not something we want to be overridden once it is set. In my case, the purpose of this ID was to identify the picture’s ID in the database. So once the ID is set (likely when the object is created), the ID can no longer be changed.

Feel free to leave questions in the comments, I’ll be happy to answer.

This post is from Ryan Price’s blog.

How to Automatically Create Getter and Setter Methods in PHP

$forcedwidth: the width you want the resized image to be.
$forcedheight: the height you want the resized image to be.
$sourcefile: the path to the file on your server.
$destfile: where you want the finished file to be placed.

//will resize an image to the specified width and height
function resampimagejpg($forcedwidth, $forcedheight, $sourcefile, $destfile) {
	$fw = $forcedwidth;
	$fh = $forcedheight;
	$is = getimagesize($sourcefile);

	//set the orientation of the image
	if ($is[0] >= $is[1]) {
		$orientation = 0;
	} else {
		$orientation = 1;
		$fw = $forcedheight;
		$fh = $forcedwidth;
	}

	//resize calculations
	if ($is[0] > $fw || $is[1] > $fh) {
		if (($is[0] - $fw) >= ($is[1] - $fh)) {
			$iw = $fw;
			$ih = ($fw / $is[0]) * $is[1];
		} else {
			$ih = $fh;
			$iw = ($ih / $is[1]) * $is[0];
		}
		$t = 1;
	} else {
		$iw = $is[0];
		$ih = $is[1];
		$t = 2;
	}

	//create the new image
	if ($t == 1) {
		$img_src = imagecreatefromjpeg($sourcefile);
		$img_dst = imagecreatetruecolor($iw, $ih);
		imagecopyresampled($img_dst, $img_src, 0, 0, 0, 0, $iw, $ih, $is[0], $is[1]);
		if (!imagejpeg($img_dst, $destfile, 90)) {
			exit ();
		}
	} else
		if ($t == 2) {
			copy($sourcefile, $destfile);
		}
}

Lines #8-14 here set the orientation of the image. This way it doesn’t matter if your image is tall for fat, its taken care of.

As mentioned above, this particular function only deals with .jpg type files. You can easily adjust this to deal with other types as well. Simply replace the imagecreatefromjpeg() function on line 34 with the function that suits you file type. The most common options are imagecreatefrompng and imagecreatefromgif, although there are a few others as well.

This post is from Ryan Price’s blog.

How to Resize an Image with PHP

$myArray = array("a", "b", "c", "d"); //create the array

unset($myArray[2]); //this will erase "c"

print_r($myArray);

/* Result:
Array
(
    [0] => a
    [1] => b
    [3] => d
)
*/

$myArray = array_values($myArray); //reset the indexes

print_r($my_array);

/* Result:
Array
(
    [0] => a
    [1] => b
    [2] => d
)
*/

It is important to note that if you are using associative arrays that the array_values function will reindex your array numerically and your associative keys will be lost.

This post is from Ryan Price’s blog.

How to Remove Items from an Array and Adjust (Reset) Array Keys

If you're doing a lot of debugging of this type as you go, it will be quicker to make this a function within your file like so:

Then you can quickly check the contents at any point in your script using checkContents($someVar);.

This post is from Ryan Price's blog.

How to Show the Contents of an Array, Object, or Array of Objects using PHP

(expression 1) ? (expression 2) : (expression 3)

If expression 1 is true, then it evaluates expression 2.
If expression 1 is false, then it evaluates expression 3.

Here's an example:

This post is from Ryan Price's blog.

PHP Shorthand for the If-Else Statement: The Ternary Operator

As you upgrade to new versions of PHP you'll want to make sure you're taking advantage of the upgrades. How can you tell when you're using deprecated functions? The answer is in the error_reporting() level you set.

By setting it to E_STRICT (integer value 2048) you will receive warnings when you are using deprecated functions.

From the PHP site:

In PHP 5 a new error level E_STRICT is available. As E_STRICT is not included within E_ALL you have to explicitly enable this kind of error level. Enabling E_STRICT during development has some benefits. STRICT messages will help you to use the latest and greatest suggested method of coding, for example warn you about using deprecated functions.

This may not be something you'll want to leave set at this level all the time. However, setting it every once in a while and checking your code will ensure that you're up to date on the functions you should be using.

You can also view a complete list of new functions along with all what ones now behave differently.

This post is from Ryan Price's blog.

How to Ensure You’re Using The Latest Version of PHP Functions

To learn more about why this is important, check out these articles:
SQL Injection Attacks by Example
More examples and explanations

This post is from Ryan Price's blog.

How to Make Your Form Data Safe for SQL with PHP

A couple examples:

This post is from Ryan Price's blog.

How to Debug MySQL Errors