PHP Training – Learn about Code Refactoring & it’s Significance in PHP Coding

Niral Modi

October 12, 2013

Refactoring is a process of simplifying the code of a PHP program thereby making easy to understand and also faster to execute. It is a technique of developing globally accepted, confusion-free code with minimum alterations such that external behavior of the code remains unchanged.

Refactoring in PHP is a technique of developing easily understandable and confusion-free code for developing applications using this popular programming language. Refactoring is a practice of restructuring the code of a complex program in PHP while taking care that its behavior remains unaltered. In this process no updating processes like adding of new functionalities, fixing glitches etc are performed. Only with basic structure alteration, the complex code is converted into universally accepted simple and easy-to-understand format.

In PHP coding there are different ways to develop an application through different methods. However, all methods are not efficient enough. An easy way to develop a good application is by using simple coding techniques that make execution easier and much faster for the code. This can be achieved through refactoring.

Significance of Refactoring Process in PHP

• Code refactoring process can enhance the potential of your PHP code by making it more viable and readable.

• The complex programming methodology is greatly simplified through this process that enhances the overall structure of the PHP program with minimum and meaningful alterations.

• Any PHP programmer can execute refactoring process for which no specialized training would be required.

• The process gives a simpler code and hence is easier to maintain as compared to the codes that are lengthy and complex.

• Such a code with simple make over will execute faster and hence, is globally accepted.

• The code that is subjected to refactoring becomes easily understandable and simple. Therefore, detection of bugs in such PHP code will become much easier for a programmer.

• The layout of such code is very clear and hence, adding new features to it, is not at all a problem.

• Sometimes, there can be a situation where an application in a company is developed by it’s previous employees with older methods or technology. Hence, it might be quite difficult for a new employee unaware of older methods to understand such application code. In such situations code refractoring is done to break down the complex coding in the old application into much simpler format.

The Best Practices for PHP Code Refactoring

1. Proper code indentation ensures easily understandable code hierarchy. Hence, using correct indentation techniques is one of the practices to ensure code refactoring in PHP.
2. Avoid unnecessary looping. Use only when required. This reduces the complexity of the PHP program structure.
3. Commenting for each and every line of the program makes the code of an application much easier to understand. Hence, including comments frequently is a good practice for better PHP coding.
4. Using foreach loop instead of while is the best practice because foreach executes faster than while and heance, this increases the overall code execution speed.
5. It’s a good practice to specify your selection every time you use the select statement to fetch the records from database in PHP application. Instead of select *, use select field names in particular which you are looking to fetch from the database like select username, select userid etc.

An Easily Understandable Example to Show Code Refactoring

Consider an example of a code written for displaying integer or digit value (taken as input) in words.

Code before refactoring

<?

function display($value)

{

if($value==0) $t = “Zero”;

elseif($value ==1) $t = “One”;

elseif($value ==2) $t = “Two”;

elseif($value ==3) $t = “Three”;

elseif($value ==4) $t = “Four”;

}

?>

Code after refactoring

<?

function DisplayInputValueInText($digit)

{

switch($digit)

{

case 0: echo “Zero”;break;

case 1: echo “One”;break;

case 2: echo “Two”;break;

case 3: echo “Three”;break;

case 4: echo “Four”;break;

}

}

?>

So code refactoring is greatly beneficial both to the programmers as well as the readers as it makes coding easy as well as makes the code easily understandable for the reader as well.

Code refactoring techniques can best be learnt in PHP training classes under the guidance of programming experts who have the best knowledge of implementing them. Hence, for those looking to become good PHP developers should PHP training under experts to learn such effective coding techniques.

TOPS Technologies is a leading PHP training institute based at Ahmedabad, India. With nearly 18 branches across the country, the institute provides most effective, industry-oriented PHP training to the students and freshers so that they can understand the real-time PHP programming concepts and hence get ready for the PHP jobs.