What are some recommended string functions in PHP for handling variable manipulation?
When working with strings in PHP, there are several built-in functions that can help with variable manipulation. Some recommended functions include `strlen()` for getting the length of a string, `strtolower()` and `strtoupper()` for converting strings to lowercase and uppercase respectively, `str_replace()` for replacing occurrences of a substring within a string, and `trim()` for removing whitespace from the beginning and end of a string.
// Example of using string functions in PHP for variable manipulation
$string = "Hello, World!";
echo strlen($string); // Output: 13
echo strtolower($string); // Output: hello, world!
echo strtoupper($string); // Output: HELLO, WORLD!
echo str_replace("Hello", "Hi", $string); // Output: Hi, World!
echo trim(" Hello "); // Output: Hello