Blade Variable Laravel Package

Getting Started

Minimal Setup

1. Installation

   composer require arindam/blade-variable
   

   Publish the config (if needed):

   php artisan vendor:publish --provider="ArindamRoy\BladeVariable\BladeVariableServiceProvider"
   

2. First Use Case Define a variable in a Blade template:

   @variable('user', ['name' => 'John Doe', 'email' => 'john@example.com'])
   

   Access it later in the same template:

   <p>Hello, {{ $user['name'] }}!</p>
   

3. Where to Look First

   • Blade directives: Check @variable and @endvariable syntax.
   • Service Provider: BladeVariableServiceProvider registers the directive.
   • Config file: config/blade-variable.php (if published) for global defaults.

Implementation Patterns

Workflow: Scoped Variable Management

1. Define and Use in a Single Template

   @variable('config', ['theme' => 'dark', 'layout' => 'sidebar'])
   <div class="{{ $config['theme'] }}">
       @include('partials.header', ['layout' => $config['layout']])
   </div>
   

2. Pass Variables to Included Views

   @variable('sharedData', ['title' => 'Dashboard', 'items' => []])
   @include('layouts.app')
   

   Access in layouts/app.blade.php:

   <h1>{{ $sharedData['title'] }}</h1>
   

3. Dynamic Variable Assignment Use PHP logic to conditionally define variables:

   @php
       $isAdmin = auth()->user()->isAdmin();
   @endphp
   @variable('permissions', $isAdmin ? ['create', 'edit', 'delete'] : ['view'])
   

4. Integration with Blade Components Define variables in a component’s view:

   <x-user-card>
       @variable('user', $userData)
   </x-user-card>
   

   Access in the component’s template:

   <p>{{ $user['name'] }}</p>
   

Gotchas and Tips

Pitfalls

1. Scope Limitation

   • Variables defined with @variable are template-scoped and not available in parent/child templates unless explicitly passed.
   • Fix: Use @include or @stack/@push for shared data.

2. Overwriting Global Variables

   • If a variable name conflicts with Laravel’s global helpers (e.g., $errors), the Blade directive may not work as expected.
   • Fix: Use unique namespaced keys (e.g., ['app_data' => [...]]).

3. No Direct Access in Controllers

   • Variables are Blade-only; they won’t be available in PHP logic outside the template.
   • Fix: Pass data via the controller’s view data array:

     return view('view.name', ['user' => $user]);
     

4. Caching Quirks

   • If using Blade caching (php artisan view:cache), redefine variables in cached views may not persist.
   • Fix: Avoid @variable in cached views or clear cache after changes.

Tips

1. Type Safety Use PHP’s json_encode to validate variable structure:

   @variable('user', json_decode('{"name":"John"}', true))
   

2. Default Values Set defaults in the config file (config/blade-variable.php) for reusable variables:

   'defaults' => [
       'app' => ['name' => 'MyApp', 'version' => '1.0'],
   ],
   

   Access via @variable('app').

3. Extending Functionality Override the directive logic by binding a new instance of BladeVariableManager in the service provider:

   $this->app->singleton('blade-variable', function () {
       return new \ArindamRoy\BladeVariable\BladeVariableManager(['custom' => 'value']);
   });
   

4. Debugging Dump variables to check their contents:

   @variable('debug', ['data' => $someData])
   @dump($debug)
   

5. Performance For large templates, define variables late (close to where they’re used) to avoid unnecessary scope pollution.