Latest Development Style

I've revised my development style after a lot of thought. Now, don't get me wrong, I make exceptions to this when I have a client with certain tastes, but this is the style I will use when the client leaves it up to me.

First, if I can use small packages to achieve what I need, I'll definitely consider them. I'm not a big fan of big elaborate systems except things that are well established and which fit a need very well. For example, WordPress and phpBB are great fits on some projects -- no need to rewrite those unless something special comes up.

Now, if I need to build something custom, then I don't like spaghetti code, so I need a framework. I don't like the learning curve of other frameworks, and I have learned a few, but they are either too cumbersome, too slow, too inflexible, or just generally are a plain in the rear to use.

Therefore, we have to separate out the PHP from the MySQL from the XHTML, so here's how I do it.

First, I used to use Smarty, and will still use it if a client wants it. However, now that I know Smarty, I've realized that it's actually slower, as well as redundant to, just using XHTML files saved as PHP pages with inside. I stick these in a subfolder called templates and load them with require_once instead of $smarty->display.

Second, to handle the MySQL, I use either Outlet ORM with PDO or Propel ORM with PDO, depending on client need. And if I have something special, some special SQL besides this, I do a straight PDO call by using parameterized SQL stored in a central conf file. (BTW, my conf files are actually PHP class files with public variables.) Parameterized SQL means I have SQL statements with ^ caret symbols inside where variables would go, and I use a Pack() function that I created to insert the variables inside those places.

Third, to handle the PHP page logic, I don't use MVC. Instead, I use PHP pages for each individual need, and each PHP page is started with a commented template where I insert my PHP logic. I call these "PHP Logic Templates".

Fourth, instead of a "Model" from MVC, I use a classes subfolder with my object classes inside.

Fifth, I use Blueprint CSS on difficult CSS projects, but now I often may go straight CSS based on things I learned from Blueprint. It makes for cleaner code to go without Blueprint, but it's not always possible.

Sixth, I still use everything else such as ProperCase() function naming, $sAdaptedHungarian for my variable naming, initial curly braces { on the same line as the statement where they are used (not on a new line), and everything else you see in previous posts besides the stuff about the database logic, which has changed a great deal now.