PHP next() Function
Topic: PHP Array ReferencePrev|Next
Description
The next() function moves the internal pointer of an array to the next element, and returns its value.
The following table summarizes the technical details of this function.
| Return Value: | Returns the value of the next element in the array, or FALSE if there are no more elements. |
|---|---|
| Version: | PHP 4+ |
Tip: Every array has an internal pointer that points to the current element in the array. When a new array is created, the current pointer is initialized to reference the first element in the array.
Syntax
The basic syntax of the next() function is given with:
The following example shows the next() function in action.
Example
Run this code »<?php
// Sample array
$colors = array("red", "green", "blue", "orange", "yellow", "black");
// Getting the values
echo current($colors); // Prints: red
echo next($colors); // Prints: green
?>Parameters
The next() function accepts the following parameters.
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| array | Required. Specifies the array to work on. |
More Examples
Here're some more examples showing how next() function actually works:
The following example demonstrates how to get the next value from an associative array:
Example
Run this code »<?php
// Sample array
$alphabets = array("a"=>"apple", "b"=>"ball", "c"=>"cat", "d"=>"dog");
// Getting the element's values
echo current($alphabets); // Prints: apple
echo next($alphabets); // Prints: ball
// Getting the next element's key
echo key($alphabets); // Prints: b
?>The next() function is commonly used along with the following functions:
current()– Returns the value of the current element in an array.end()– Moves the internal pointer of an array to its last element, and returns its value.prev()– Moves the internal pointer of an array to the previous element, and returns its value.reset()– Set the internal pointer of an array to its first element, and returns its value.key()– Returns the key of the current element in an array.
Here's an example that demonstrates how these functions basically work:
Example
Run this code »<?php
// Sample array
$colors = array("red", "green", "blue", "orange", "yellow", "black");
// Getting the values
echo current($colors); // Prints: red
echo next($colors); // Prints: green
echo current($colors); // Prints: green
echo end($colors); // Prints: black
echo current($colors); // Prints: black
echo prev($colors); // Prints: yellow
echo current($colors); // Prints: yellow
echo reset($colors); // Prints: red
echo current($colors); // Prints: red
// Getting the current element's key
echo key($colors); // Prints: 0
?>
