In what scenarios would it be more efficient to use the explode function in PHP to handle data returned by a bash script, as opposed to writing it to a file?

When dealing with data returned by a bash script, it may be more efficient to use the explode function in PHP if the data is small and does not need to be stored in a file. This can save time and resources by avoiding unnecessary file operations. However, if the data is large or needs to be accessed multiple times, writing it to a file may be a better option for easier management and retrieval.

// Assume $output contains the data returned by the bash script
$data = explode("\n", $output);

// Process the data as needed
foreach($data as $line) {
    // Do something with each line of data
}