Support/Types Classes

The Support/Types namespace provides enhanced type utility classes that extend Laravel's base functionality with additional methods tailored for common development scenarios.

Str Class

The Str class extends Laravel's Illuminate\Support\Str class, providing all base Laravel string functionality plus additional utility methods.

Purpose

Enhanced string manipulation operations beyond Laravel's base functionality, with a focus on formatting, validation, and type-safe conversions.

Key Methods

Basic Utilities

• guid() - Generates a UUID as a string
• empty() - Returns an empty string constant
• space() - Returns a single space character
• toString(mixed $value) - Performs type-safe string conversion

Text Formatting

• maxLength(string $value, ?int $length = null) - Truncates strings to maximum length (default: 100 characters)
• conjunctions(string $value) - Formats conjunctions by converting "And" → "and", "Or" → "or", "Of" → "of"
• formattedTitleCase(string $value) - Applies title case while removing underscores and formatting conjunctions

Usage Scenarios

• String truncation with consistent length limits
• Text formatting for display purposes
• Title case formatting with proper conjunction handling
• UUID generation for unique identifiers
• Type-safe string conversions

Arr Class

The Arr class extends Laravel's Illuminate\Support\Arr class, providing all base Laravel array functionality plus advanced manipulation methods.

Purpose

Advanced array operations that maintain array structure integrity while providing powerful manipulation capabilities.

Key Methods

Basic Utilities

• empty() - Returns an empty array constant

Array Manipulation

• renameKey(array $array, string $oldKey, string $newKey) - Renames an array key while preserving the original order of elements
• addAfter(array $array, string $afterKey, string $newKey, mixed $newValue) - Inserts a new key-value pair after a specified existing key

Usage Scenarios

• Maintaining array order during key modifications
• Dynamic array structure manipulation
• Form field reordering and insertion
• Configuration array modifications

Number Class

The Number class extends Laravel's Illuminate\Support\Number class, providing all base Laravel number functionality plus type-safe validation and conversion methods.

Purpose

Safe number operations with built-in validation to prevent type conversion errors and ensure data integrity.

Key Methods

Type Conversion

• toInt(mixed $value) - Performs type-safe integer conversion
• validate(mixed $value) - Validates whether a value can be safely converted to an integer

Usage Scenarios

• Safe type conversion in user input processing
• Data validation before mathematical operations
• Form input sanitization
• API data type validation

Common Patterns

Inheritance Strategy

All Support/Types classes extend their Laravel counterparts, meaning you get:

• All existing Laravel functionality
• Additional stdlib-specific methods
• Seamless integration with existing Laravel code
• Drop-in replacement capability

Type Safety

These classes emphasize type safety by:

• Providing validation methods before conversions
• Using nullable return types where appropriate
• Throwing appropriate exceptions for invalid operations
• Maintaining consistent behavior across different input types

Performance Considerations

• Built on top of Laravel's optimized implementations
• Additional methods maintain Laravel's performance characteristics
• String operations use efficient PHP built-in functions
• Array operations preserve memory efficiency where possible