How can echo and return statements be effectively combined within PHP functions for optimal results?
To effectively combine echo and return statements within PHP functions for optimal results, it's important to understand their differences. Echo is used to output content to the browser, while return is used to send a value back to the calling code. To combine them, you can use echo to display content and return to pass a value back. This can be useful when you want to display something to the user while also returning a value for further processing.
function combineEchoAndReturn($value) {
echo "The value is: " . $value;
return $value;
}
$result = combineEchoAndReturn(10);
echo "The returned value is: " . $result;