Getting Started with webpack.mix

This is an essential must know for Laravel developers.  This tutorial will go through the basics of webpack.mix and preparing live CSS stylesheets and Javascript includes.

Locate webpack.mix.js and the /resources and /public directories.  I will define a few ways to specify the files from resources compiled to the live public directory.  Check out these 2 examples…  they should cover necessary usage for 99% of projects.

Example: Combine multiple files into a single file.

In this example I’ll define a simple way to combine multiple custom javascript files into a single file.  Let’s take 4 custom stylesheets and 4 javascript files.  We will combine all specified stylesheets from /resources/css into a single stylesheet named /public/css/custom-all.css.  Also let’s combine the specified javascript files from /resources/js into a single javascript file named /public/js/custom-all.js  

All files that can be edited directly are located in the resources directory.  All compiled files will be placed in the public directory where the code can be accessed live.

 mix.js('resources/js/app.js', 'public/js')

    .vue()

    .sass('resources/sass/app.scss', 'public/css');

 // Combine all custom JS into one file

 mix.scripts([

    'resources/js/custom/main.js',

    'resources/js/custom/helpers.js',

    'resources/js/custom/components/*.js'

 ], 'public/js/custom-all.js');

 // Combine all custom CSS into one file

 mix.styles([

    'resources/css/custom/main.css',

    'resources/css/custom/components/buttons.css',

    'resources/css/custom/pages/*.css'

 ], 'public/css/custom-all.css');

Let’s see how to use things in a blade template:

 <!DOCTYPE html>

 <html lang="en">

 <head>

    <meta charset="UTF-8">

    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">

    <title>Your Laravel Application</title>

    <!-- Compiled CSS -->

    <link href="{{ mix('css/app.css') }}" rel="stylesheet">

    <link href="{{ mix('css/custom-all.css') }}" rel="stylesheet">

 </head>

 <body>

    <div id="app">

        <!-- Your application content -->

    </div>

    <!-- Compiled JavaScript -->

    <script src="{{ mix('js/app.js') }}"></script>

    <script src="{{ mix('js/custom-all.js') }}"></script>

 </body>

 </html>

Example: Prepare several files.

This example is very similar to the example above.  The only difference is in this example we are generating individual files in the public directory for each file specified from the resources directory. 

 // Webpack-compiled JS and CSS

 mix.js('resources/js/app.js', 'public/js')

   .vue({ version: 2 })

   .sass('resources/sass/app.scss', 'public/css') // Or .css() if not using Sass

   .css('resources/css/app.css', 'public/css');

 // Custom JS files (separate from Webpack bundle)

 mix.js('resources/js/custom/main.js', 'public/js/custom.js')

   .js('resources/js/custom/helpers.js', 'public/js/helpers.js');

 // Custom CSS files (separate from Webpack bundle)

 mix.css('resources/css/custom/main.css', 'public/css/custom.css')

   .css('resources/css/custom/components/buttons.css', 'public/css/components/buttons.css');

Notice in webpack.mix.js the definitions for mix.js and mix.css methods.  Each of the javascript files and stylesheets from the resources directory has a corresponding file in the public directory.

Now let’s look at how to use this in a blade template:

 <!DOCTYPE html>

 <html lang="en">

 <head>

    <meta charset="UTF-8">

    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">

    <title>Your Laravel Application</title>

    <!-- Compiled CSS -->

    <link href="{{ mix('css/app.css') }}" rel="stylesheet">

    <link href="{{ mix('css/custom.css') }}" rel="stylesheet">

    <link href="{{ mix('css/components/buttons.css') }}" rel="stylesheet">

 </head>

 <body>

    <div id="app">

        <!-- Your application content -->

    </div>

    <!-- Compiled JavaScript -->

    <script src="{{ mix('js/app.js') }}"></script>

    <script src="{{ mix('js/custom.js') }}"></script>

    <script src="{{ mix('js/helpers.js') }}"></script>

 </body>

 </html>

To generate the public CSS and JS files:

 npm install

 npm run dev

PHP Match Expression (match)

The PHP match expression is a powerful feature introduced in PHP 8.0 that provides a more concise and flexible alternative to switch statements.

Basic Match Syntax

$result = match ($value) {

  pattern1 => expression1,

  pattern2 => expression2,

  // ...

  default => default_expression,

};

Comparison switch vs match

// switch statement

switch ($statusCode) {

   case 200:

       $message = 'OK';

       break;

   case 404:

       $message = 'Not Found';

       break;

   case 500:

       $message = 'Server Error';

       break;

   default:

       $message = 'Unknown';

}

// match equivalent

$message = match ($statusCode) {

  200 => 'OK',

   404 => 'Not Found',

   500 => 'Server Error',

   default => 'Unknown',

};

Various Usage Examples:

 // multiple conditions

 $result = match ($httpCode) {

    200, 201, 202 => 'Success',

    400, 401, 403 => 'Client Error',

    500, 501, 502 => 'Server Error',

    default => 'Unknown',

 };

 // Match uses strict comparison (===)

 $result = match ($value) {

    0 => 'Integer zero',

    '0' => 'String zero',

    false => 'Boolean false',

    default => 'Other',

 };

 // Complex Expressions

 $age = 25;

 $category = match (true) {

    $age < 13 => 'Child',

    $age < 20 => 'Teenager',

    $age < 65 => 'Adult',

    default => 'Senior',

 };

 // returning different types

 function processValue($value) {

    return match ($value) {

        'int' => 42,

        'string' => 'Hello World',

        'array' => [1, 2, 3],

        'bool' => true,

        default => null,

    };

 }

 // Using with arrays

 $user = [

    'role' => 'admin',

    'status' => 'active'

 ];

 $permissions = match ($user['role']) {

    'admin' => ['read', 'write', 'delete'],

    'editor' => ['read', 'write'],

    'viewer' => ['read'],

    default => [],

 };

 // nested match expressions

 $result = match ($type) {

    'number' => match ($value) {

        $value > 0 => 'Positive',

        $value < 0 => 'Negative',

        default => 'Zero',

    },

    'string' => 'String type',

    default => 'Unknown type',

 };

 // Conditional Logic in Patterns

 $score = 85;

 $grade = match (true) {

    $score >= 90 => 'A',

    $score >= 80 => 'B',

    $score >= 70 => 'C',

    $score >= 60 => 'D',

    default => 'F',

 };

Advantages Over Switch

- Returns a value - Can be assigned directly to variables
- No fall-through - Prevents accidental bugs
- Strict comparisons - More predictable behavior
- More concise - Less boilerplate code
- Better error handling - Throws UnhandledMatchError for unhandled cases

Important Notes
- Match expressions must be exhaustive or include a default case
- Throws UnhandledMatchError if no pattern matches and no default is provided
- Each arm must be a single expression (use anonymous functions for complex logic)
- Patterns are evaluated in order, first match wins

The match expression is a significant improvement that makes conditional logic more readable, safer, and more expressive in modern PHP code.

In PHP Object-Oriented programming, public, private, and protected are access modifiers (visibility keywords) used to control how properties (variables) and methods (functions) of a class can be accessed.

They are important in Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) because they enforce encapsulation (controlling how data is exposed and used).


Public
Members declared public can be accessed from inside the class, outside of the class and by subclasses (child classes).  If no visibility is specified on a property the default will be public.

class Car {

    public $brand;

    public function setBrand($brand) {

   $this->brand = $brand; // accessible inside the class

    }

 }

 $car = new Car();

 $car->brand = "Toyota"; // accessible outside the class

echo $car->brand; // Output: Toyota

Private

Members declared private can only be accessed inside of the class that defines them.  They cannot be accessed from outside the class or by subclasses.

class Car {

    private $engineNumber;

    public function setEngineNumber($num) {

       $this->engineNumber = $num; // accessible inside the class

    }

    public function getEngineNumber() {

       return $this->engineNumber; // allowed via public method

    }

 }

 $car = new Car();

 $car->setEngineNumber("ENG123");

 // echo $car->engineNumber; ERROR: Cannot access private property

 echo $car->getEngineNumber(); // Output: ENG123

Protected

Members declared protected can be accessed inside of the class, in child(sub) classes that inherit from it.  They cannot be accessed directly from outside of the class… only subclasses.

class Vehicle {

  protected $type = "Generic Vehicle";

   protected function getType() {

       return $this->type;

   }

}

class Car extends Vehicle {

  public function showType() {

       return $this->getType(); // accessible in child class

   }

}

$car = new Car();

// echo $car->type; ERROR: Cannot access protected property

echo $car->showType(); // Output: Generic Vehicle

What is a self-invoked function? (IIFE)

A self-invoked function, also called an Immediately Invoked Function Expression (IIFE) is a Javascript function expression that is invoked immediately after its declaration.  A self-invoked function can be a valuable tool for creating isolated scopes and managing variable privacy in javascript applications.

Key aspects of IIFEs:

- IIFEs execute immediately when defined

- Allows creation of private scopes without polluting global namespace

- Return values can be assigned to variables

- Parameters can be passed to IIFEs

Basic syntax:

 (function() {

    // code here

 })();

 // OR arrow functions (ES6+)

 (() => {

       // code here

 })();

Why are IIFEs Necessary?

Immediate Execution with Parameters

 // Immediately logs provided data

 (function(date, location) {

    console.log(`Date: ${date.toDateString()}`);

    console.log(`Location: ${location}`);

 })(new Date(), 'Seattle');

 // Immediately logs:

 // Date: Thu Oct 16 2025

 // Location: Seattle

Avoiding Global Namespace Pollution

 // if multiple scripts use the same variable names

 // they won't conflict

 (function() {

    const restaurant = "Dairy Queen";

    console.log(user); // "Dairy Queen"

 })();

 (function() {

    const restaurant = "Burger King";

    console.log(user); // "Burger King"

 })();

Data Privacy/Encapsulation

 // Problem: counter value is vulnerable.

 var counter = 0;

 function increment() {

    return ++counter;

 }

 // FIX: keeps variables private. counterModule isn't directly accessible

 const counterModule = (function() {

    let count = 0;

    return {

        increment: function() {

            return ++count;

        },

        decrement: function() {

            return --count;

        },

        getCount: function() {

            return count;

        }

    };

 })();

 counterModule.count = 100; // WONT WORK!!

 // count is not accessible directly

 console.log(counterModule.getCount()); // 0

 counterModule.increment();

 console.log(counterModule.getCount()); // 1

 // OUPTUT: 0 1

Module Pattern Implementation

 const User = (function() {

    let memory = 0;

    function add(a, b) {

        return a + b;

    }

    function store(value) {

        memory = value;

    }

    function recall() {

        return memory;

    }

    // Only expose public methods

    return {

        add: add,

        store: store,

        recall: recall

    };

 })();

 console.log(Calculator.add(5, 3)); // 8

 Calculator.store(10);

 console.log(Calculator.recall()); // 10

 // memory is private and inaccessible

Math Operators

Addition:
Caculate the sum of two numbers using the + operator.

$sum = 1 + 3;
The value of $sum is 4.

Subtraction:
Caculate the difference of two numbers using the - operator.

$diff = 3 - 2;
The value of $diff is 1.

Division:
Calculate the quotient of two numbers using the / operator.

$quotient = 4 / 2;
The value of $quotient is 2.

Multiplication:
Calculate the product using the * operator.

$product = 4 * 5;
The value of $product is 20.

Modulo:
Gives the remainder after dividing two numbers the % operator.

$remainder = 10 % 3;
The value of $remainder is 1.

In PHP, an interface defines a contract or blueprint that any class implementing it must follow.

It specifies method signatures (the names, parameters, and visibility of methods), however does  not implement the methods.

A class that implements an interface must define all of the methods declared in the interface.

Interfaces help achieve abstraction and multiple inheritance (since a class can implement multiple interfaces).

Example:

// Define an interface

 interface Employee {

    public function clockIn(string $message);

 }

 // Implement the interface in a class

 class Engineer implements Employee {

    public function clockIn(string $message) {

        echo "Engineer Clock In: " . PHP_EOL;

    }

 }

 // Another class implementing the same interface

 class Mechanic implements Employee {

    public function clockIn(string $message) {

        echo "Mechanic Clock In: " . PHP_EOL;

    }

 }

 // Usage

 function processTask(Employee $employee) {

    $employee->clockIn("Task has been processed!");

 }

 // You can swap implementations easily

 $engineer = new Engineer();

 $mechanic = new Mechanic();

 processTask($engineer);  // Clock In Engineer

 processTask($mechanic);    // Clock In Mechanic

What interfaces can contain:

 - Method declarations (no body/implementation)

 - Constants (e.g. const MAX_LIMIT = 100;)

What interfaces cannot contain:

 - Properties/variables

 - Constructors with implementation

 - Method bodies

Example:

 interface ExampleInterface {

    // Allowed

    public function doSomething();

    // Allowed

    const VERSION = "1.0";

    // Not allowed: properties inside interfaces

    // public $name;   // This will cause an error

 }