<type>'d var.xml, improved documenation on serialize (not yet 'ready', though)

git-svn-id: https://svn.php.net/repository/phpdoc/en/trunk@50267 c90b9560-bf6c-de11-be94-00142212c4b1

functions/var.xml

@@ -128,28 +128,28 @@ if (!isset($var)) { // evaluates false
      Possibles values for the returned string are:
      <itemizedlist>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"boolean" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>boolean</type>" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"integer"</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>integer</type>"</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"double"</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>double</type>"</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"string"</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>string</type>"</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"array"</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>array</type>"</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"object"</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>object</type>"</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"resource" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>resource</type>" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
-       <simpara>"NULL" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
+       <simpara>"<type>NULL</type>" (since PHP 4)</simpara>
       </listitem>
       <listitem>
        <simpara>"user function" (PHP 3 only, deprecated)</simpara>
@@ -246,8 +246,9 @@ print_r(array_keys(get_defined_vars()));
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     This function returns a string representing the type of the resource
-     passed to it. If the paramater is not a valid resource, it
+     This function returns a string representing the type of the 
+	 <type>resource</type> passed to it. If the paramater is not a 
+	 valid <type>resource</type>, it
      generates an error.
      <informalexample>
       <programlisting role="php">
@@ -285,13 +286,13 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <simpara>
-     Returns the integer value of <parameter>var</parameter>,
+     Returns the <type>integer</type> value of <parameter>var</parameter>,
      using the specified base for the conversion (the default is
      base 10).
     </simpara>
     <simpara>
      <parameter>var</parameter> may be any scalar type. You cannot use
-     <function>intval</function> on arrays or objects.
+     <function>intval</function> on <type>array</type>s or <type>object</type>s.
     </simpara>
     <note>
      <para>
@@ -323,7 +324,7 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an array, false
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an <type>array</type>, false
      otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
@@ -360,7 +361,7 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcsynopsis>
      <para>
       Returns true if the <parameter>var</parameter> parameter is
-      a boolean.
+      a <type>boolean</type>.
      </para>
      <para>
      See also <function>is_array</function>,
@@ -390,7 +391,7 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is a double,
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is a <type>double</type>,
      false otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
@@ -512,7 +513,8 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an integer (long),
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an <type>integer</type> 
+	 (long),
      false otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
@@ -545,7 +547,8 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is null, false otherwise.
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is <type>null</type>, 
+	 false otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
      See also <function>is_bool</function>,
@@ -610,8 +613,8 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an object, false
-     otherwise.
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is an <type>object</type>, 
+	 false otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
      See also <function>is_bool</function>,
@@ -678,15 +681,13 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
      <function>is_resource</function> returns true if the variable
-     given by the <parameter>var</parameter> parameter is a resource,
-     otherwise it returns false.
-    </para>
-    <para>
-     Resources are things like file or database result handles that
-     are allocated and freed by internal PHP functions and that may
-     need some cleanup when they are no longer in use but haven't been
-     freed by user code.
+     given by the <parameter>var</parameter> parameter is a 
+					<type>resource</type>, otherwise it returns false.
     </para>
+				<para>
+					See the documentation on the <type>resource</type>-type for
+					more information.
+				</para>
    </refsect1>
   </refentry>
 
@@ -715,10 +716,13 @@ echo get_resource_type($doc->doc)."\n";
      otherwise it returns false.
     </para>
     <para>
-     Scalar variables are those containing an integer, float, string
-     or boolean. For example:
+     Scalar variables are those containing an <type>integer</type>, 
+	 <type>float</type>, <type>string</type> or <type>boolean</type>. 
+	 For example:
      <informalexample>
       <programlisting role="php">
+<!-- TODO: better example, this one can be quite misleading for unexperienced
+           programmers -->
 function show_var($var) {
     if (is_scalar($var))
         echo $var;
@@ -747,7 +751,7 @@ show_var($proteins)
     </para>
     <note>
      <para>
-      <function>is_scalar</function> does not consider resource
+      <function>is_scalar</function> does not consider <type>resource</type>
       type values to be scalar values. This behavior is intentional:
       Resources are abstract datatypes which are currently based on
       integers. This implementation detail should not be relied upon,
@@ -756,8 +760,7 @@ show_var($proteins)
     </note>
     <note>
      <para>
-      This function was added to the CVS code after the release of PHP
-      4.0.4pl1
+	  Since 4.0.5
      </para>
     </note>
     <para>
@@ -790,7 +793,7 @@ show_var($proteins)
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <para>
-     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is a string,
+     Returns true if <parameter>var</parameter> is a <type>string</type>,
      false otherwise.
     </para>
     <para>
@@ -867,10 +870,11 @@ print isset ($foo); // FALSE
     </funcsynopsis>
     <simpara>
      This function displays information about the values of variables
-     in a way that's readable by humans.  If given a string, integer
-     or double, the value itself will be printed.  If given an array,
+     in a way that's readable by humans.  If given a <type>string</type>, 
+	 <type>integer</type> or <type>double</type>, the value itself will be 
+	 printed.  If given an <type>array</type>,
      values will be presented in a format that shows keys and
-     elements.  Similar notation is used for objects.
+     elements.  Similar notation is used for <type>object</type>s.
     </simpara>
     <simpara>
      Remember that <function>print_r</function> will move the array
@@ -894,9 +898,11 @@ print_r ($a);
     </para>
     <warning>
      <para>
-      This function will continue forever if given an array or object
+      This function will continue forever if given an <type>array</type> 
+	  or <type>object</type>
       that contains a direct or indirect reference to itself or that
-      contains an array or object on a deeper level that does so.
+      contains an <type>array</type> or <type>object</type> on a deeper 
+	  level that does so.
       This is especially true for <literal>print_r($GLOBALS)</literal>,
       as <literal>$GLOBALS</literal> is itself a global variable and
       contains a reference to itself as such.
@@ -932,10 +938,23 @@ print_r ($a);
    <simpara>
     To make the serialized string into a PHP value again, use
     <function>unserialize</function>.  <function>serialize</function>
-    handles the types <type>integer</type>, <type>double</type>,
-    <type>string</type>, <type>array</type> (multidimensional) and
-    <type>object</type>.
+    handles all types, except the <type>resource</type>-type.
+   	You can even <function>serialize</function> arrays that contain
+				references to itself. References inside the array/object you 
+				are <function>serialize</function>ing will also be stored.
    </simpara>
+			<!-- TODO
+								in 4.0.4pl1 this didn't work properly, however, there
+								been some fixes. I don't know whether this all
+								works correctly now, and if so, whether it is since 405
+								or 406
+			<note>
+				<simpara>
+					This didn't work correctly until 4.0.?
+				</simpara>
+			</note>
+   </simpara>
+			-->
    <note>
     <para>
      In PHP 3, object properties will be serialized, but methods are
@@ -1041,7 +1060,9 @@ settype($bar, "string");  // $bar is now "1" (string)
      </funcprototype>
     </funcsynopsis>
     <simpara>
-     Returns the string value of <parameter>var</parameter>.
+     Returns the <type>string</type> value of <parameter>var</parameter>.
+					See the documentation on <type>string</type> for more information
+					on converting to string.
     </simpara>
     <simpara>
      <parameter>var</parameter> may be any scalar type. You cannot use