Naming conventions – PHP

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Here are the suggested naming conventions for Variables, Classes, Functions and Files.

Naming Variables

  • Use all lower case.
  • Use _ to separate words, e.g. $green_color_value
  • Use descriptive names (except loop variables).
  • Loop variables can be of the usual variety: $i, $j, $k, etc.
  • Count variables should follow the format $*_count, e.g. $error_count
  • Global variables should be prefixed with g_
  • Temporary variables should be prefixed with t_
  • Parameters and variables passed from forms that have been cleaned of any special SQL chars (i.e. slashes) should be prefixed with c_
  • Never prefix with l_ or o_ or q_ (visually confusing)
  • $query and $result should be used for SQL query and results respectively

Naming Classes

  • Use FirstLetterOfWordIsCaptilized style
  • Variables that are class objects should have the prefix coo_

Naming Functions

  • Use all lower case.
  • Use _ to separate words, e.g. setup_page_breaks()
  • Keep functions to 5 words or less
  • Functions that print should be prefixed with print_.
  • Try to use prefixes to group functions (i.e., email_, news_, etc.)

Naming Files

  • Use all lower case.
  • Use _ to separate words, e.g. view_new_bugs_page.php
  • Use .php file extensions
  • Filenames must be less than 32 characters in length.
  • Included files should be suffixed by _inc.php