In what ways can the explode() function be optimized for efficiently parsing data from a text file in PHP?

When using the explode() function to parse data from a text file in PHP, it can be optimized by using a delimiter that is unique and consistent in the file. This will help reduce the number of unnecessary iterations when splitting the string. Additionally, it is recommended to store the exploded data in an array for easier access and manipulation.

// Read the contents of the text file
$file_contents = file_get_contents('data.txt');

// Define a unique delimiter
$delimiter = '|';

// Explode the file contents using the delimiter
$data_array = explode($delimiter, $file_contents);

// Access the parsed data
foreach ($data_array as $data) {
    echo $data . "\n";
}