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Variables

Variable declaration​

Variables in Zymba are identified by the $ prefix and declared using simple assignment:

ZYMBA
$name   = "John";
$age    = 30;
$active = true;

Key rules:

  • Variable names must start with $
  • Names can contain letters, numbers, and underscores
  • Names are case-sensitive ($Name and $name are different variables)
  • Variables are dynamically typed
ZYMBA
$validName = "test";   // Valid
$_private  = 42;       // Valid
$$invalid  = true;     // Invalid — only one $ prefix
$123abc    = "test";   // Invalid — cannot start with a digit after $

Variable scope​

Functions in Zymba have isolated scope — they cannot access variables from the surrounding context. Variables declared inside a function are local to that function:

ZYMBA
$outer = "I am outer";

function $testScope() {
    $local = "I am local";
    return $outer; // $outer is NOT accessible — returns null
}

// $local is not accessible here either

To use outer variables inside a function, pass them as parameters or capture them with the use clause:

ZYMBA
$rate = 0.08;

// Pass as parameter (preferred)
function $addTax($price, $rate) {
    return $price * (1 + $rate);
}

// Capture with use (closures only)
$addTax = function($price) use ($rate) {
    return $price * (1 + $rate);
};

Service parameters​

In ZeyOS services, parameters passed to the service are available with the @ prefix (without a dollar sign):

ZYMBA
// In a remotecall service that receives "token" and "secret" parameters:
$jwt = @Crypt.validateJWT(@token, @secret);

This is distinct from static class access (@Crypt, @String, etc.) — when a name after @ matches a defined service parameter, it resolves to that parameter value.

Application settings​

Access per-instance application configuration through @APPSETTINGS:

ZYMBA
$config  = @APPSETTINGS.myapp;
$apiUrl  = $config.apiUrl ?? "https://api.default.com";
$timeout = $config.timeout ?? 30;

The include statement​

Import standard library modules and shared resources at the top of each file:

ZYMBA
// Import built-in modules (comma-separated)
include 'zymba:sql,var,http,string,date,crypt';

// Import application resources
include 'resource:lib';        // Loads resources/lib.zy
include 'resource:helpers';    // Loads resources/helpers.zy

The zymba: prefix loads built-in modules. The resource: prefix loads shared code from the application's resources/ directory.

note

Always place include statements at the top of the file, before any other code.

The with statement​

The with statement provides automatic resource management. The context is entered at the start of the block and automatically exited when the block completes — even on errors:

ZYMBA
// Temporarily switch timezone
with (new @Date.TimezoneContext("UTC")) {
    echo @Date.format("Y-m-d H:i:s"); // Formatted in UTC
}
// Timezone automatically restored to default

// Database transaction — auto-rolls back on error
with (new @ZeyOS.TransactionContext) {
    $order = new @ZeyOS.ObjectTransaction();
    $order.setFields([name: "New Order"]);
    $order.save();
    // If save() throws, transaction is rolled back
}

Available context classes:

  • @Date.TimezoneContext — temporarily change the active timezone
  • @ZeyOS.TransactionContext — wrap database operations in a transaction
  • @SQL.TransactionContext — SQL-level transaction context
  • @SQL.SavepointContext — nested savepoint within a transaction
  • @IO.LockContext — file locking