Developers of the PHP language the idea of creating a new dialect, P++, which will help take the PHP language to the next level. Currently, the development of PHP is hindered by the need to maintain compatibility with the existing codebase of web projects, which keeps developers constrained. As a solution, they plan to start developing a new PHP dialect — P++, which will be developed without regard for the need to maintain backward compatibility, allowing for revolutionary improvements to the language and the elimination of outdated concepts.
The most noticeable changes in P++ will include a shift to strict typing, the removal of the use of tags like "<?", the discontinuation of support for array() in favor of the syntax "[]", and a ban on using the global namespace for functions.
The preliminary name selected for the project is P++ (PHP Plus Plus), paralleling C++. PHP and P++ are proposed to be developed side by side, sharing a unified runtime. Unrelated low-level components, data structures, extensions, and performance optimizations will be developed simultaneously for both PHP and P++, but the PHP mode will preserve backward compatibility, while P++ will allow experimentation with the evolution of the language.
Code written in PHP and P++ can be mixed in a single application and executed by one interpreter, though the method for code separation has yet to be determined. At the same time, developers remain committed to advancing the PHP 8 branch, where a JIT compiler and tools for portability with C/C++ libraries will be added. The P++ project is still in the discussion phase. The main proponent of P++ is Zeev Suraski,, one of the leaders of the PHP developer community, co-founder of Zend Technologies, and author of the Zend Engine.
From opponents, concerns have been raised regarding a lack of resources to advance the project (only two developers work full time on PHP), the possibility of community fragmentation, and competition with the existing language (PHP with static typing), the experience from the HHVM project (ultimately support both PHP and Hack in a single runtime), the need to change the semantics for strict typing, the danger of PHP stagnation and the development of innovations only in P++, questions regarding the organization of coexistence and interaction between PHP and P++ (the non-triviality of converting PHP code to P++ (the syntax may diverge so much that it will require rewriting the application), P++'s incompatibility with existing PHP tools and the need to convince the authors of tools, testing systems, and IDEs to support the new version).
Source: opennet.ru
