- Overloading in PHP provides means to dynamically create properties and methods.
- These dynamic entities are processed via magic methods, one can establish in a class for various action types.
- All overloading methods must be defined as Public.
- After creating object for a class, we can access set of entities that are properties or methods not defined within the scope of the class.
- Such entities are said to be overloaded properties or methods, and the process is called as overloading.
- For working with these overloaded properties or functions, PHP magic methods are used.
- Most of the magic methods will be triggered in object context except __callStatic() method which is used in static context.
Property overloading
- PHP property overloading allows us to create dynamic properties in object context.
- For creating those properties no separate line of code is needed.
- A property which is associated with class instance, and not declared within the scope of the class, is considered as overloaded property.
Some of the magic methods which is useful for property overloading.
- __set(): It is triggered while initializing overloaded properties.
- __get(): It is utilized for reading data from inaccessible Properties.
- __isset(): This magic method is invoked when we check overloaded properties with isset() function.
- __unset(): This function will be invoked on using PHP unset() for overloaded properties.
