How important is it to consider compatibility with different PHP versions when starting a new project?

It is important to consider compatibility with different PHP versions when starting a new project to ensure that your code will run smoothly across various environments. This can help prevent unexpected errors or issues when deploying your application. One way to address this is by using version-specific functions or features only when necessary, and providing fallbacks or alternative solutions for older PHP versions. 

// Example of checking PHP version compatibility and using fallback functions

if (version_compare(PHP_VERSION, '7.0.0') >= 0) {
    // Use PHP 7.0+ specific functions
    // ...
} else {
    // Fallback for older PHP versions
    // ...
}

Keywords

PHP versions compatibility project development backward compatibility PHP functions

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