require/include into variable

Question

I want to require/include a file and retrieve its contents into a variable.

test.php

Answer 1

In PHP/7 you can use a self-invoking anonymous function to accomplish simple encapsulation and prevent global scope from polluting with random global variables:

return (function () {
    // Local variables (not exported)
    $current_time = time();
    $reference_time = '01-01-1970 00:00';

    return "seconds passed since $reference_time GMT is $current_time";
})();

An alternative syntax for PHP/5.3+ would be:

return call_user_func(function(){
    // Local variables (not exported)
    $current_time = time();
    $reference_time = '01-01-1970 00:00';

    return "seconds passed since $reference_time GMT is $current_time";
});

You can then choose the variable name as usual:

$banner = require 'test.php';