PHP call_user_func vs. just calling function

Question

I\'m sure there\'s a very easy explanation for this. What is the difference between this:

function barber($type){
    echo \"You wanted a $type haircut, no         


        

Answer 1

Although you can call variable function names this way:

function printIt($str) { print($str); }

$funcname = 'printIt';
$funcname('Hello world!');

there are cases where you don't know how many arguments you're passing. Consider the following:

function someFunc() {
  $args = func_get_args();
  // do something
}

call_user_func_array('someFunc',array('one','two','three'));

It's also handy for calling static and object methods, respectively:

call_user_func(array('someClass','someFunc'),$arg);
call_user_func(array($myObj,'someFunc'),$arg);