Proper way of converting string to long int in PHP
casting, long-integer, php, string, typeconverter
Solution
As long as you are not very particular about what exactly kind of value you end up with, `"number" + 0` is probably the best way of converting your input because it converts to the "natural" numeric data type.
The result will be an integer if the input has no decimal part and fits (see `PHP_INT_MAX`) or a float if it does not.
Problem
I tried `(int) "4209531264"` and `intval("4209531264")` but sadly all I get is `2147483647` (I realize this is because of 32 bit architecture or some php dependencies or something). I came up with `"4209531264" + 0` which returns the correct result but it is surprising to see it working since it is beyond maxint. but the real question: is this the "right way" of converting string to long? edit: `(float)` that is. thanks for the comments! eye opening!