In PHP, what is the significance of using srand() before calling the rand() function, and how does it affect the random number generation process?

When using the `rand()` function in PHP, it is important to call `srand()` before generating random numbers to ensure that the random number generator is properly seeded. This helps in producing more unpredictable and varied sequences of random numbers. If `srand()` is not called, the random numbers generated by `rand()` may be predictable and repeatable.

srand(time()); // Seed the random number generator with current time
$randomNumber = rand(1, 100); // Generate a random number between 1 and 100
echo $randomNumber;