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Objects

Anonymous objects​

Create one-off objects with new object():

ZYMBA
$person = new object() {
    name = "Alice";
    age  = 30;
};

echo $person.name; // "Alice"
echo $person.age;  // 30

Objects with methods​

Define methods directly in the object body. Use $this to reference the object itself:

ZYMBA
$counter = new object() {
    value = 0;

    increment() {
        $this.value++;
    }

    decrement() {
        $this.value--;
    }

    get() {
        return $this.value;
    }
};

$counter.increment();
$counter.increment();
$counter.increment();
echo $counter.get(); // 3

Reading and writing properties​

Access properties with dot notation:

ZYMBA
$config = new object() {
    host = "localhost";
    port = 3306;
};

echo $config.host;    // "localhost"
$config.host = "192.168.1.1"; // Modify property

Dynamic property access​

Use bracket notation for dynamic property names:

ZYMBA
$field = "name";
$value = $person[$field]; // Same as $person.name

$person["age"] = 31; // Same as $person.age = 31

Deleting properties​

Remove properties with delete:

ZYMBA
$data = new object() {
    name = "test";
    temp = true;
};

delete $data.temp;
// $data.temp is now undefined

Object cloning​

Use clone to create an independent copy of an object:

ZYMBA
$Person = new object() {
    name;
    construct($n) { $this.name = $n; }
};

$original = new $Person("Alice");
$copy     = clone $original;
$copy.name = "Bob";

echo $original.name; // "Alice" (unchanged)
echo $copy.name;     // "Bob"

Reference semantics​

Objects are passed by reference. Assigning an object to a new variable does not create a copy — both variables point to the same object:

ZYMBA
$a = new object() { x = 1; };
$b = $a;      // $b is a reference to the same object
$b.x = 99;
echo $a.x;    // 99 (both point to same object!)

$c = clone $a; // $c is an independent copy
$c.x = 42;
echo $a.x;     // 99 (unchanged)

Common pitfall: forgetting $this​

ZYMBA
// Wrong — creates a local variable, doesn't update the object
$Counter = new object() {
    value = 0;
    increment() {
        $value++; // Local variable, not $this.value!
    }
};

// Correct
$Counter = new object() {
    value = 0;
    increment() {
        $this.value++;
    }
};