Static functions can be used without instantiating the object.
A quick example of a static function is shown below as well as a comparison with a non static function.
A quick example of this (in PHP5):
class TestClass{ static function staticFunction(){ echo "static function called"; } function nonStaticFunction(){ echo "nonstatic function was called"; } } TestClass::staticFunction(); //will echo static function called $testClass = new TestClass(); $testClass.nonStaticFunction(); //will echo nonstatic function was called unset($testClass); |