How to Use the Zend Form ViewScript Decorator In All Modules

By Matthew Setter. Wed, Aug 8, 2012.
Intermediate  Tips  Tutorial 

If you’ve been using Zend Forms for any length of time, you’ll know just how flexible and configurable they are. There’s not much that you can’t do with them, But it’s not always easy and there are catches. Today we look at ensuring that module-based Zend Forms using the ViewScript decorator can always be initialised no matter what.

If you’ve been using Zend Forms for any length of time, you’ll know just how flexible and configurable they are. Whether you’re initialising them in code or via Zend_Config with one of the adapters Zend_Config_Xml, Zend_Config_Ini, Zend_Config_Json, Zend_Config_Yaml. There’s not much that you can’t do with them, besides link them to a database model for validation - but that’s another story.

What’s more, we can, as I’m quite fond of, use the ViewScript decorator. This allows us to have nearly 100% control of the configuration of the look and feel of our rendered forms. Take the following script template, of a user profile form, as an example:

  <td class="code">
    <pre class="php" style="font-family:monospace;">&lt;form action="<span style="color: #000000; font-weight: bold;">&lt;?php</span> <span style="color: #b1b100;">print</span> <span style="color: #000088;">$this</span><span style="color: #339933;">-&gt;</span><span style="color: #004000;">escape</span><span style="color: #009900;">&#40;</span><span style="color: #000088;">$this</span><span style="color: #339933;">-&gt;</span><span style="color: #004000;">element</span><span style="color: #339933;">-&gt;</span><span style="color: #004000;">getAction</span><span style="color: #009900;">&#40;</span><span style="color: #009900;">&#41;</span><span style="color: #009900;">&#41;</span><span style="color: #339933;">;</span> <span style="color: #000000; font-weight: bold;">?&gt;</span>"

method="<?php print $this->escape($this->element->getMethod()); ?>" name="<?php print $this->escape($this->element->getName()); ?>" id="<?php print $this->escape($this->element->getId()); ?>" class="<?php print $this->escape($this->element->getAttrib(‘class’)); ?>"> <div> <fieldset> <legend><?php print $this->translate(‘Profile Details:’); ?></legend> <div class=“control-group”> <label class=“control-label” for=“username”> <?php print $this->element->username->getLabel(); ?> </label> <div class=“controls”> <?php print $this->element->username; ?> </div> </div> <div class=“control-group”> <label class=“control-label” for=“email”> <?php print $this->element->email->getLabel() ?> </label> <div class=“controls”> <?php print $this->element->email ?> </div> </div> <div class=“form-actions”> <?php print $this->element->submit; ?> <?php print $this->element->cancel; ?> </div> </fieldset> </div> </form> 

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You can see that we can layout forms exactly where and when we want them. There is a bit of a catch that we have to remember all the options that we want to display, but that’s not really an overarching concern.

Caveat Emptor

But buyer beware, there is a catch. Depending on how long you’ve been using them you may or may not have come across the situation where involving the viewScript decorator. That is, it’s alright when the form’s being rendered in the module that it’s created in, but in any other module, it fails to find the view template.

What’s The Solution

If you’ve come across this situation, there is a solution. When you’re using the ViewScript decorator, pass the viewModule parameter as an argument when initialising it.

Similar to rendering partials within other view template scripts, the viewModule parameter provides a module-specific path for finding view script templates. Have a look at the following example to see just how simple it is:

  <td class="code">
    <pre class="php" style="font-family:monospace;"><span style="color: #000000; font-weight: bold;">class</span> Default_Form_MyForm <span style="color: #000000; font-weight: bold;">extends</span> Zend_Form

{ public function init() { // … other form initialisation …   // do custom rendering of the form $this->setDecorators(array(   array(‘ViewScript’, array( // the view template script ‘viewScript’ => ‘forms/myformtemplate.phtml’,   // the module that contains our view templates ‘viewModule’ => ‘default’ )) ));   }   } 

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We have now specified that the viewScript template will be under application/module/default/forms/. So irrespective of where in the application this form is initialised, if the template is in that location, the form will render with it correctly.

Your Thoughts

Having troubles with the viewScript decorator? Put your thoughts in the comments.

Image courtesy: kiler129

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