View Layer

The Zero Framework view layer lets you render native PHP templates with a handful of Blade-inspired directives. Templates stay simple PHP files while gaining conveniences such as sections, layouts, and automatic HTML escaping.

Rendering Views

Use the view() helper or View::render() to produce HTML from a template stored in resources/views.

// In a controller or route callback
return view('pages/home', [
    'title' => 'Welcome home',
    'posts' => Post::latest()->take(5)->get(),
]);

Both helpers accept an array of data that is extracted into the template's scope. Keys are converted to variables ($title, $posts, …).

Whenever you print data, prefer the escaped output directive {{ $value }}—it runs the expression through htmlspecialchars, keeping user-supplied content safe by default.

Layouts & Sections

Add @layout at the top of a template to wrap it in a parent layout. Sections declared with @section / @endsection are later inserted with @yield inside the layout.

// resources/views/layouts/app.php
@include('components.head', ['title' => $title ?? 'Zero Framework'])

    <main class="container py-5">
        @yield('content')
    </main>

@include('components.footer')

// resources/views/pages/home.php
@layout('layouts.app', ['title' => $title ?? 'Dashboard'])

@section('content')
    <h1 class="mb-4">{{ $title }}</h1>

    @foreach ($posts as $post)
        <article class="mb-3">
            <h2 class="h5 mb-1">{{ $post->title }}</h2>
            <p class="mb-0">{!! $post->excerpt !!}</p>
        </article>
    @empty
        <p class="text-muted">No posts yet. Check back soon!</p>
    @endforeach
@endsection

Layout data passed to @layout is extracted after the view data. This lets layout-specific variables (such as meta tags) override values defined within the view when necessary.

Including Partials

Use @include('path.to.partial', ['data' => $value]) to pull in reusable fragments. The path mirrors the filesystem under resources/views, using dots or slashes (@include('components.alert') maps to resources/views/components/alert.php).

Output & Escaping

Prefer the escaped {{ }} syntax to avoid XSS. Reserve raw output forms for trusted, pre-sanitised HTML snippets.

Control Structures

The compiler understands a subset of Blade-style directives that compile directly to PHP:

• Conditionals: @if, @elseif, @else, @endif
• Loops: @for, @endfor, @foreach, @endforeach
• Empty states: pair @empty inside an @foreach to render fallback content when the iterable has no items

Example:

@foreach ($comments as $comment)
    <li>{{ $comment->body }}</li>
@empty
    <li class="text-muted">Be the first to comment.</li>
@endforeach

Nested loops are supported and each @empty is scoped to its nearest @foreach block.

Running Arbitrary PHP

For quick inline statements use @php($counter++). For multi-line blocks, wrap the code with @php ... @endphp.

@php($hasSidebar = count($widgets) > 0)

@php
    $timestamp = date('c');
@endphp

Legacy Static API

Directives are syntactic sugar for the underlying Zero\Lib\View static helpers. You can mix and match both styles or fall back entirely to PHP if you prefer:

<?php View::layout('layouts.app'); ?>

<?php View::startSection('content'); ?>
    <h1>Hello from the legacy API</h1>
<?php View::endSection(); ?>

All helper methods remain available:

• View::layout($name, $data = [])
• View::startSection($name) / View::endSection()
• View::yieldSection($name)
• View::include($name, $data = [])
• View::render($name, $data = [])

Caching & Configuration

Compiled templates can be cached to disk. Enable caching in config/view.php or at runtime:

View::configure([
    'cache_enabled' => true,
    'cache_path' => base('storage/cache'),
    'cache_lifetime' => 3600,
]);

Use View::clearCache() to purge the entire cache or View::clearViewCache('pages/home') to refresh a single template. When cache is disabled the framework recompiles templates on every render.

Debugging Tips

• Drop @dd($variable) in a template to dump a value and stop execution.
• To inspect the compiled PHP, enable caching with 'debug' => true in the view configuration. Compiled files are written beneath <cache_path>/views/cache.
• If a directive throws a syntax error, re-run with 'cache_enabled' => false to ensure you are testing fresh output.

Quick Reference

Keep templates small and focused. For complex presentation logic, move calculations into controllers or view models before handing data to the renderer.