[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #58874: Code Modernization: Consider using the null coalescing operator.

[WordPress Trac]

#58874: Code Modernization: Consider using the null coalescing operator.
-----------------------------------+---------------------
 Reporter:  costdev                |       Owner:  (none)
     Type:  enhancement            |      Status:  new
 Priority:  normal                 |   Milestone:  6.4
Component:  General                |     Version:
 Severity:  normal                 |  Resolution:
 Keywords:  has-patch 2nd-opinion  |     Focuses:
-----------------------------------+---------------------

Comment (by SergeyBiryukov):

 Replying to [comment:4 jrf]:
 > I also wonder why this should be changed for existing code (as it make
 backports harder). What about just ''allowing it'' for ''new'' code and
 for code ''which is being patched anyway'' ?
 > That way, the impact on backports will be much more limited, while we
 can still use the new shiny in code actually being worked on. 😁

 I would very much prefer consistency in the code, i.e. using the same
 pattern for the same thing across all codebase, to avoid confusion, or
 adding a comment if that's not feasible in a particular place for some
 reason.

 In this case, using the null coalescing operator (`??`) anywhere in the
 file appears to cause a parse error on PHP 5.6, so it would be trivial to
 catch if it's accidentally backported to an older branch.

 I think only allowing it for new code does not automatically make
 backports easier, as some parts of new code can occasionally be backported
 too as part of bug fixes or security fixes. So I believe the required PHP
 version bump in 6.3 is something we'll have to keep in mind anyway when
 doing backports, pretty much like with the previous version bump to PHP
 5.6.20 in WP 5.2.

-- 
Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/58874#comment:7>
WordPress Trac <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/>
WordPress publishing platform