What best practices should the user follow when implementing conditional statements in PHP code to avoid potential errors?
When implementing conditional statements in PHP code, it is important to ensure that the conditions are properly structured and that all possible scenarios are accounted for to avoid potential errors. One common mistake is forgetting to include an 'else' statement to handle cases where none of the conditions are met. To prevent this, always include an 'else' block or a default condition to handle unexpected scenarios. Example:
// Incorrect implementation without an 'else' block
$number = 10;
if ($number < 5) {
echo "Number is less than 5";
}
if ($number > 5) {
echo "Number is greater than 5";
}
// Correct implementation with an 'else' block
$number = 10;
if ($number < 5) {
echo "Number is less than 5";
} else {
echo "Number is greater than or equal to 5";
}