JREAM Blog

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Phalcon Named Routing with Templates

With a default phalcon project created with the Phalcon DevTools

$phalcon project example

Here is how you create a named route in and use it within your Volt Template, or regular template. First set a named route using the router:

$router = new Phalcon\Mvc\Router(); $router->removeExtraSlashes(true); $router->add('/my-testimony', [ 'controller' => 'MyTestimony', 'action' => 'index' ])->setName('MyTestimony');

To apply this route in a default view:

<?=$this->url->get(['for' => 'MyTestimony']);?>

To Apply this route in a volt view:

{{ url.get(['for':'MyTestimony']) }}

To make the entire link with code only in volt:

{{ link_to(['for':'MyTestimony'], 'My Testimony Link') }}

[jream-blog]

PhalconPHP Raw Query

Here is how you can run a raw query in PhalconPHP:

$sql = "SELECT * FROM user WHERE id != ?"; $query = $this->db->query($sql, [1]); $result = $query->fetchAll(); print_r($result);

[jream-blog]

This course is ready!

[jream-blog]

My LASIK Experience

I recently had LASIK eye surgery. Here is my experience.

I have been -4.75 in both eyes for a few years. I couldn't wear contacts at one point because my eye's kept getting infected. So I wore glasses for 2 years.

First Appointment

I took a LASIK appointment at LasikPlus in Altamonte Springs, FL. I like to take appointments early so I'm sleepy, I'm less nervous. I am very squeemish and It is unusual for me to do sometihng like this.

If you've ever had an eye appointment, it was quite similar.

First, there is a machine to test the focus/vision of my eye by staring at a red dot. This does not blow air, there are no puffs of air in the eye in any machines.

Second, there is a machine that looks like a black and white spiral that scanned my eye shape and maps it to a printed color grid. It was bright white lights but fairly quick.

I proceeded into the eye doctors exam chair, just like every eye doctor. They did all the usual tests. They put numbing drops in my eye, and the drops to make my pupils large. The only uncomfortable part for me was they use a small tool to touch my eye (rather than the air I believe) to see how strong it is. I did not feel it, but I knew it was there so my natural reaction was to lean my head back.

They go over all the drops to put in the eyes for a week: 2 Anti-Biotics, 1 Steroid for healing. A fourth drop that costs an arm and a leg called Restasis, I ended up getting a few days after once they finally figured out how to use my insurance + coupon card with it.

I can't pay $400 for eye drops. I also told the doctor they are too expensive and they said I don't need to take them, they'll see if my eyes are tearing up again like normal in 2 weeks.

I am a pretty uptight nervous wreck most days so they do offer a 10mg Valium which I took before the operation. I have a long history of anxiety and panic attacks, I even fainted in the Hospital during my wife's pregnacy (When they gave her the epidurul). But if there is a will, there is a way.

Surgury Day

I took an appointment a week later. I was very excited to get this done and not very nervous. They redid several tests I had on my first appointment to confirm everything.

Once I was ready, I put on a blue cap, popped the Valium and waited in the Comfort Room for 15 minutes. They had water and chips, it was nice to snack on because I was hungry.

I was escorted to the surgery area, it was a fairly large room and pretty cold. I knew it'd be cold from reading so much about this. So I wore a long sleeve shirt and I'm glad I did.

First, they put a lot of numbing drops in my eyes, that feels very nice. It makes them easier to keep open. They laid me down at the first of two spots. The first being where they'll create the flap on the eye.

I was quite chill and drowsy from the valium, feeling good. I had to look up at a circular light as they put a suction thing on my eye. I could feel it for sure. It's not painful but it would probably be if the eye was not numb.

They did one eye at a time placing a black patch over the unused eye. I looked up at a this halo ring and heard what sounded like a vacuum and it took about 18 seconds. I would say that was the hard part. I read online that your vision will black out of a moment, and I'm glad I read that because it might have scared me a little to learn it just then.

They did explain to me everything that's going on while I'm laying there so I knew the sounds and things to expect, but I like to be prepared. Anyways, it's nice to know what's going on.

Once they did the flaps on both my eyes I walked over to the next station where they correct the eye. Everything is quite blurry, and obviously because I have my glasses off.

Again, one eye at a time the doctor moved the flap to prepare for the correction. Above me were many LED lights that looked like a football stadium. I couldn't tell what was going on very well, I was just told to look at a red light.

He was putting saline in my eye to keep it moist, and possibly a few other drops. I was a bit jumpy because I am a bit of a wuss with people putting eyedrops in my eyes. And, I kept seeing a little tool directly above my eye to move the flap.

Once I was ready, the red dot seemed to spread out for 5 seconds. Each eye took five seconds. My left eye had a temporary contact to hold the flap in place better (they removed the next day).

I put on my glasses as a habit as I was leaving and couldn't see well because my vision was better without them. It was a bit blurry here and there but I could see well.

Going Home

My wife took me home and I took a 4 hour nap. I believe the nap afterwards is probably the most important thing they tell you. One of my eyes felt a little gritty and sleep would fix it.

I woke up and had no pain, I could see perfectly. I just continued to use the eye drops.

Conclusion

I would do this experience again. I can see 20/20 with no contacts or glasses. It is a strange feeling. I keep reaching for my glasses all the time still. And I touch between my eyebrows to push my glasses up when they aren't there.

[jream-blog]

Re-Inventing the Blog and Forum

It's never a good idea to re-invent a wheel. What do you do when you have your own user system built and want to add some type of integration to blogging or forums?

There are several options, you can integrate a plugin or write your own blog or forum. This is risky business because re-inventing the wheel is rarely a good idea unless you are extremely skilled in security.

The problem is the limitations to blogging platforms is pretty much WordPress for PHP, and vBulletin and a few others the phpBB. Generally, they are all the same. They have features for anything and everything, plugins developed by people in other countries, and you don't know what they do for certain unless you investigate the code.

I do not trust WordPress because it's the most popular blogging platform. The plugins are developed by strangers in foreign lands, and if you look at some of the plugin code it makes me wonder if it's safe.

So I suggest, if you have the ability, create your own blog system or use a third-party system such as WordPress.org or Tumblr to take care of all the security for your. The same could go with a forum, use a third party one if possible, though many aren't free.

This still leaves a gap between seamlessly integrating your user system into the third-party host without some sort of REST API.

I think making everything a seamless integration isn't as big of a deal as it seems, the main thing to avoid is using a large system you don't know the in's and out's of.

[jream-blog]

When to use an Interface

I don't use interfaces often because the majority of the time I am developing within a framework of some sort. However, there are many times I have to create some sort of custom library. So I often wrestle with my mind with the question, "Should I use an interface?"

An Interface is simply a file that forces method requirements for any given class, without specifying how it functions. An interface also only allows you to declare public methods.

It's easy to abuse the use of interfaces when they aren't needed. I find it's best to use one when you have a group of classes that all do the same thing. A good example would be a series of system Jobs. 

Let's imagine I have a class called Job. Within there I have a "create method". This method uses composition to load the defined job, in lay mans terms, it instantiates the sub-class from the Job class.

So I may have three simple job types: CleanCache, ProcessImage, and Email. Since these all have a common system, a great idea would be to use an interface to require some rules so they all follow the same pattern.

For a simple example (I won't use namespaces to keep it simple):

Job Launcher Class

<?php class Jobs { public function create($type) { $job = new ${type}(); $job->beforeDispatch(); $job->dispatch(); $job->afterDispatch(); } }

JobInterface

<?php interface JobInterface { public function beforeDispatch(); public function dispatch(); public function afterDispatch(); }

Specific Job Class

<?php class Email implements \JobInterface { public function beforeDispatch() { // Imementation here } public function dispatch() { // Imementation here } public function afterDispatch() { // Imementation here } }

[jream-blog]

Hi test.