Happy Coders

An abstract class serves as a blueprint for other classes and cannot be instantiated directly. It may include both abstract methods (no body) and regular methods. Any class that extends an abstract class must implement all of its abstract methods. Abstract classes help enforce a structure and promote code consistency in OOP.

1. Basic Abstract Class Example

abstract class Animal {
    abstract public function makeSound(); // Abstract method

    public function eat() {
        return "Eating...";
    }
}

class Dog extends Animal {
    public function makeSound() {
        return "Woof!";
    }
}

$dog = new Dog();
echo $dog->makeSound(); // Output: Woof!
echo $dog->eat();       // Output: Eating...

File: abstract_class_example.php

2. Why Use Abstract Classes?

• To provide a common structure for related classes.
• To enforce method implementation in child classes.
• Ideal when some behavior is shared, and some must be customized.

3. Key Rules of Abstract Classes