php.ini and "include_path"

You can read about the include_path directive here:

http://www.php.net/manual/en/ini.php#ini.list
http://www.php.net/manual/en/ini.core.php#ini.include-path

It is useful for including libraries and classes that were not installed with a compile of PHP. For example, if your version of PHP is compiled without the PEAR/PECL libraries...

http://pear.php.net/manual/en/introduction.php

like Apple's installed PHP Apache module is, then you can add PEAR by installing it in directory and adding its path to the include_path directive, thereby allowing your scripts to find the libraries without having to set the full path to include them.

http://pear.php.net/manual/en/installation.shared.php

This directive can be configured in php.ini, .htaccess and server config files (PHP INIALL).

Larry

Also,the PHP docs read 'Using a . in the include path allows for relative includes as it means the current directory.' While this is useful, there are instances where setting the include_path directive to '.' in your php.ini file will cause problems with your script system. I can't remember if it is with Joomla or SquirrelMail. I would avoid this in php.ini and use it in your scripts with ini_set() or in .htaccess files for local referencing only.

Larry