Interactive PHP shell - can it be done?

[George Nachman]

I'm interested in implementing a command-line PHP app that takes input
line-by-line (for example, using Readline) and executes commands as
they are entered. It would need to know the difference between this:

echo "hello world";

which should be eval()ed after the first line, and this:

for ($i=0; $i < 10; $i==) {
echo $i;
}

which can't be executed until the block is closed.

I suppose I could try calling eval() and catching errors until it
works, but then how to distinguish between a data-entry error (e.g.,
"ecoh $i") and an error indicating that you're in the middle of a
possibly valid block?

Thanks for your help,
G

[Gary L. Burnore]

On 29 Nov 2004 18:54:02 -0800, gn******@gmail. com (George Nachman)
wrote:

I'm interested in implementing a command-line PHP app that takes input
line-by-line (for example, using Readline) and executes commands as
they are entered. It would need to know the difference between this:

echo "hello world";

which should be eval()ed after the first line, and this:

for ($i=0; $i < 10; $i==) {
echo $i;
}

which can't be executed until the block is closed.

I suppose I could try calling eval() and catching errors until it
works, but then how to distinguish between a data-entry error (e.g.,
"ecoh $i") and an error indicating that you're in the middle of a
possibly valid block?

why not just typ php from the command line? You get a prompt. enter
the stuff. It works.
--
gburnore@databa six dot com
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[Chung Leong]

"George Nachman" <gn******@gmail .com> wrote in message
news:e5******** *************** **@posting.goog le.com...

I'm interested in implementing a command-line PHP app that takes input
line-by-line (for example, using Readline) and executes commands as
they are entered. It would need to know the difference between this:

echo "hello world";

which should be eval()ed after the first line, and this:

for ($i=0; $i < 10; $i==) {
echo $i;
}

which can't be executed until the block is closed.

I suppose I could try calling eval() and catching errors until it
works, but then how to distinguish between a data-entry error (e.g.,
"ecoh $i") and an error indicating that you're in the middle of a
possibly valid block?

Thanks for your help,
G

Prepend the PHP code block with a simple assignment. If there're no syntax
error, then the assignment would be made. Otherwise the the assignment is
not made. Use the @ operator to suppress the parse error message.

$statement = '$apple = $orange;'; // whatever

$parse_error = true;
@eval("\$parse_ error = false; $statement");
if($parse_error ) {
....
}
else {
....
}

Set a custom error handler with set_error_handl er() to handle non-syntax
errors in the code.

[George Nachman]

Chung,

I'm not sure I understand how this could distinguish between a syntax
error and a well-intentioned but incomplete script?

Also, thanks for your incisive comments there Gary. Real helpful.

Prepend the PHP code block with a simple assignment. If there're no syntax
error, then the assignment would be made. Otherwise the the assignment is
not made. Use the @ operator to suppress the parse error message.

$statement = '$apple = $orange;'; // whatever

$parse_error = true;
@eval("\$parse_ error = false; $statement");
if($parse_error ) {
...
}
else {
...
}

Set a custom error handler with set_error_handl er() to handle non-syntax
errors in the code.

[Chung Leong]

"George Nachman" <gn******@gmail .com> wrote in message
news:e5******** *************** ***@posting.goo gle.com...

Chung,

I'm not sure I understand how this could distinguish between a syntax
error and a well-intentioned but incomplete script?

Well, you're trying to do the impossible then. PHP can't read mind and can't
see into the future. How can you tell whether, say, the absence of a curly
bracket is imcompleteness or a mistake? What I have give you is a mean to
detect syntax error in the code.

[dec200269]

You're describing an interprative PHP environment. Essentiall you would
run the script upon completion. Which is basically what you can do now,
an integrated PHP environment with an external debugger would give you
most of what you want and it's all readily available.
D

[George Nachman]

"Chung Leong" <ch***********@ hotmail.com> wrote in message news:<QJ******* *************@c omcast.com>...

"George Nachman" <gn******@gmail .com> wrote in message
news:e5******** *************** ***@posting.goo gle.com...

Chung,

I'm not sure I understand how this could distinguish between a syntax
error and a well-intentioned but incomplete script?

Well, you're trying to do the impossible then. PHP can't read mind and can't
see into the future. How can you tell whether, say, the absence of a curly
bracket is imcompleteness or a mistake? What I have give you is a mean to
detect syntax error in the code.

I should have been more specific. What I need to know, specifically,
is if the braces, quotation marks, etc. are balanced. The Tcl language
provides a C API to do this--Tcl_CommandComp lete
(http://www.tcl.tk/man/tcl8.2.3/TclLi...mplt.htm)--and I'm looking
for an analogue in PHP. Hopefully no mind-reading will be needed :)