I have a code similar to this:
if($a) {
return $a;
} elseif($b) {
return $b;
} elseif($c) {
return $c;
} else {
return $d;
}
it is honestly not so looking good but I need to check the variables to respect some sort of priority order. I was guessing if there is a better way to write this?
You can use the Null Coalescing Operator:
return $a ?? $b ?? $c ?? $d;
Note that below version 7.0 of PHP this operator is not supported.
As berend pointed out in a comment this does differ slightly from the code in your question. If $a is FALSE then it is defined and will be returned. If that's not what you want, you could fall back on the Ternary Operator:
return isset($a) ? $a : (isset($b) ? $b : (isset($c) ? $c : $d));
but in most usage cases the Null Coalescing Operator will do.
You can use a switch / case where the condition is TRUE.
Example:
switch (TRUE) {
case (isset($a)) : return $a; break;
case (isset($b)) : return $b; break;
case (isset($c)) : return $c; break;
default : return $d;
}
Further Reading: