`return $this;` design pattern or anti-pattern?

Question

I\'ve seen many times Zend Framework using return $this; pattern style - and from my point of view:

• Pro: seems its quite not

Answer 1

This is called Fluent Interface, i don't think this is a pattern but better a way to implements function to reduce amount of code and improve readibility.

I let you read the Wikipedia Page : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluent_interface