The Model, View, Controller Programming Pattern

It is hard to differentiate what LiquidPHP will be from what every other PHP software is already, but I recently discovered a good article from Wikipedia on the Model-View-Controller programming pattern. Without realizing it, LiquidPHP has been following this design extremely closely and I think comparing LiquidPHP to such a well established system will be a useful aid in showing its true power.

In the most simplistic way of describing the MVC system, there are three distinctively isolated components that make up the program. Models are the data logic that take stored information from which to create something more useful to the users. Views provide the user interface to the program. The controllers are what takes the user's input and directs the correct model to launch in response.

LiquidPHP is designed to allow any of these components to be interchanged, besides a core module that provides minor functionality. Each model is a PHP object that has a counterpart in a database, though no database is needed unless LiquidPHP is used to store data. These models create useful data for the templating system, the views. These templates format the data into XHTML output. The controller is handled by yet another interchangeable module that searches for the correct model to suit the users' needs.

There's nothing drastically unique about the MVC pattern that isn't already implemented in every other PHP software already available. LiquidPHP has an edge because it fully implements the pattern. Any of the M, V, or C components could be changed out with another. Whereas most PHP software available is a swiss army knife of sorts -- many components are there that can do many things, but it will only ever be a swiss army knife -- LiquidPHP is more of a toolbox -- any tool can be placed inside to do any job.

Programming patterns are not the only element to a good piece of software, but with this solid foundation, I hope to show the power that LiquidPHP will have. The Wikipedia page mentioned throughout this article can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model%E2%80%93view%E2%80%93controller

~Garrett