Easier way to dynamically create Javascript using PHP

Question

I'm currently using PHP to dynamically create a javascript which will be echoed on the page.

Sample Code:

$JS .= '<script>';

if($condition == true) {
    $JS .= 'alert("Yo its true omg!");
}

$JS .= "</script>";

As you can see, this will eventually get messy with ll the ' quotes and escaping of single quotes within the double quotes...

Is there a better way to do this?

Answer 1

You want the heredoc syntax!

if($condition)
    $statement = <<<JS
        alert("Wohoo!");
JS;
else $statement = "";

$javascript = <<<JS
    <script>
        $statement
    </script>
JS;

To handle conditional statements inside heredoc strings, simply do the condition logic beforehand and insert empty or filled strings inside the heredoc string. You can insert variables into heredoc strings the same way you do normal strings.

If you think heredoc strings are a hassle to define, I agree with you. Unfortunately, as far as I know, it's the only way to escape the even greater quote escaping hassle (No pun intended).