Using <<

Question

I have seen this through out several php file, and wanted to know, what purpose this served, if any and is it something i should use, or stay away from.

$html = <<<END
Some html stuff to output {$phpvariable
END;

vs.

$html = "Some html stuff to output {$phpvariable}";

Have you tried googling this? Or checking the php.net manual? — Daedalus, Jan 26 '14 at 23:18
It's called a [`heredoc`](http://www.php.net/manual/en/language.types.string.php#language.types.string.syntax.heredoc) — Funk Forty Niner, Jan 26 '14 at 23:19
I didn't seem to find anything, yes i Googled. But now i know what its called, i found out some more info. — user2090111, Jan 26 '14 at 23:19
https://www.google.com/search?q=three+less+than+signs+php&rlz=1C1CHFX_enUS461US461&oq=three+less+than+signs+php&aqs=chrome..69i57.549j0j9&sourceid=chrome&espv=210&es_sm=122&ie=UTF-8 What was your query string? — Daedalus, Jan 26 '14 at 23:20
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5673269/what-is-the-advantage-of-using-heredoc-in-php — Wesley Murch, Jan 26 '14 at 23:21
See what happens when you put a space before `END;` ;-) (grin) — Funk Forty Niner, Jan 26 '14 at 23:26
This will save you time in the future http://symbolhound.com/ — elclanrs, Jan 26 '14 at 23:27

S. A. · Accepted Answer · 2014-01-26T23:25:42.460

0

It's often used when you need a string with multiple lines.

For example you can use:

$html = <<<END
this is
a multiline
string
END;

Instead of:

$html = "this is\na multiline\nstring";

In addition, "END" in this case is the end of the string. You can use other word for it. (e.g. EOS -for End Of String).

Have a look to the php documentation: http://www.php.net/manual/en/language.types.string.php

edited Jan 26 '14 at 23:25

answered Jan 26 '14 at 23:20

S. A.

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multiple lines is not the primary advantage of heredoc syntax – Jan 26 '14 at 23:38
@Dagon So what's the primary advantage? Apart of multiline strings and avoid escaping double quotes I don't find any reason to use it. – S. A. Jan 27 '14 at 00:48

Using <<

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