The php Function Is_Integer() and Is_Numeric()
PHP, short for Hypertext Preprocessor, is a widely used server-side scripting language that works on nearly every operating system and web browser. It is a programming language that allows for a variety of data types, including integers, floats, strings, objects, and callback values. However, when working with different types, developers must be careful to ensure that they are using the correct functions and are not causing errors by mixing data types.
For example, the php function is_integer() checks whether a given variable is of type integer. If the value is an integer, it will return true. Otherwise, it will return false. The is_integer function also has two aliases, is_int($value) and is_long($value), which work the same way.
Another important function is is_numeric(), which checks if a given string contains an integer value. Numeric strings can be written in a number of ways, including decimal, hexadecimal, octal, or binary. In fact, PHP will convert a valid numerical string to an integer before performing addition or other operations on it. However, if you are not sure of the format of the string that is being passed to your function, then it is possible that an integer has been accidentally cast to a float, which can cause a Fatal error.
To prevent this, you can use is_numeric() to test the type of a given variable before using it in a function. This type hinting is particularly helpful when dealing with form input, which can be in any of these different formats.