> c) Two such functions were proposed and rejected during the
> array_key_first/last RFC
> (https://wiki.php.net/rfc/array_key_first_last)
>
> Yes, that was in 2018. At that time, functions like str_contains() or
> str_starts_with() wouldn't have even come into existence, just because
> there was an obscure way to do it without them. I believe we've moved
> on since then. Today we know how useful it is to use simple,
> easy-to-understand methods, both for programmers who write and read
> the code.
It's true that sentiment may have shifted in this time. However, a
common argument at that time still stands: `null` is not a good
sentintenal for failure because the value inside the array very well
could have been null. This is not true for the keys. For me
personally, I think I would still vote no. I'm not entirely sure about
that, but that's how I would lean right now.
As it stands, you'd have to write code along the lines of:
```php
$key = \array_key_first($array);
if ($key === null) {
// handle the failure
} else {
// success
$value = $array[$key];
}
```
Yes, it would be slightly nicer if we could do:
```php
$value = \array_first($array);
if ($value === null) {
// handle the failure
} else {
// success
}
```
But I fear in practice people will just omit the error checking.
One way around that is to throw an exception. I'm not sure how I feel
about that, but I'll think about it.
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