FAQ: Introduction to PHP Functions - Defining Functions

Frequently Asked Questions PHP FAQ
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This community-built FAQ covers the “Defining Functions” exercise from the lesson “Introduction to PHP Functions”.

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This exercise can be found in the following Codecademy content:

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FAQs on the exercise Defining Functions

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2

Just curious,

I see that in every example given for printing multiple lines of text, it is formatted like this:

function greetLearner()
{
  echo "Hello, Learner!\n";
  echo "I hope you're enjoying PHP!\n";
  echo "Love, Codecademy";
}

I tried formatting it like this:

function greetLearner()
{
  echo "Hello, Learner!\n hope you're enjoying PHP!\nLove, Codecademy";
}

There was no difference in how it printed. Is one method better than the other, and if so, why?

Thanks!

3

I’d say it’s a matter of preference. The first example may be slightly more readable, but as long as you know what \n means, the second example is pretty readable too. Just an aside, this would work too because if you hit the enter/return key in the middle of a string, you get a new line:

function greetLearner()
{
  echo "Hello, Learner!
I hope you're enjoying PHP!
Love, Codecademy";
}

Happy coding!

1 Like
4

Aside

echo is simple by all appearances but in reality it is a very expensive operation, or at least it used to be. We can build huge strings in PHP and then echo only once. Something to keep in mind when writing generation code.

3 Likes
5

Makes sense; thank you!

1 Like
6

OK, now I’m going to research this!

As soon as I’m done researching Mac OS X vs. Linux, that is…

Codecademy has created a monster! :laughing:

2 Likes