Design Patterns in PHP - Factory Method and Abstract Factory

Overview

In object oriented programming, object creation - also known as instantiation - is an implied requirement. Objects must at some point be created for use. Obviously, creating objects is not a difficult task and most languages, PHP included, have simple and intuitive syntax for doing so.

When developing larger, more complex systems though, object creation can become difficult. There are situations where different objects may need to be created based on different conditions or based on the context of the object creating it. Creating objects of concrete types explicitly in code can make these situations a nightmare when it comes time to make revisions and additions. When a new class is introduced, you get to follow a trail of code and commence the hours of debugging that will inevitably follow such an endeavor. This is where design patterns come in.

This article will discuss the usage of Factory Method [DP107] and Abstract Factory [DP87] as they pertain to developing applications in PHP using object oriented programming techniques.