package DBIx::Class::UTF8Columns; use strict; use warnings; use base qw/DBIx::Class/; __PACKAGE__->mk_classdata( '_utf8_columns' ); =head1 NAME DBIx::Class::UTF8Columns - Force UTF8 (Unicode) flag on columns (DEPRECATED) =head1 SYNOPSIS package Artist; use base 'DBIx::Class::Core'; __PACKAGE__->load_components(qw/UTF8Columns/); __PACKAGE__->utf8_columns(qw/name description/); # then belows return strings with utf8 flag $artist->name; $artist->get_column('description'); =head1 DESCRIPTION This module allows you to get and store utf8 (unicode) column data in a database that does not natively support unicode. It ensures that column data is correctly serialised as a byte stream when stored and de-serialised to unicode strings on retrieval. THE USE OF THIS MODULE (AND ITS COUSIN DBIx::Class::ForceUTF8) IS VERY STRONGLY DISCOURAGED, PLEASE READ THE WARNINGS BELOW FOR AN EXPLANATION. If you want to continue using this module and do not want to receive further warnings set the environment variable C to a true value. =head2 Warning - Module does not function properly on create/insert Recently (April 2010) a bug was found deep in the core of L which affects any component attempting to perform encoding/decoding by overloading L and L. As a result of this problem L sends the original column values to the database, while L sends the encoded values. L and L are both affected by this bug. It is unclear how this bug went undetected for so long (it was introduced in March 2006), No attempts to fix it will be made while the implications of changing such a fundamental behavior of DBIx::Class are being evaluated. However in this day and age you should not be using this module anyway as Unicode is properly supported by all major database engines, as explained below. If you have specific questions about the integrity of your data in light of this development - please L to further discuss your concerns with the team. =head2 Warning - Native Database Unicode Support If your database natively supports Unicode (as does SQLite with the C connect flag, MySQL with C connect flag or Postgres with the C connect flag), then this component should B be used, and will corrupt unicode data in a subtle and unexpected manner. It is far better to do Unicode support within the database if possible rather than converting data to and from raw bytes on every database round trip. =head2 Warning - Component Overloading Note that this module overloads L in a way that may prevent other components overloading the same method from working correctly. This component must be the last one before L (which is provided by L). DBIx::Class will detect such incorrect component order and issue an appropriate warning, advising which components need to be loaded differently. =head1 SEE ALSO L, L. =head1 METHODS =head2 utf8_columns =cut sub utf8_columns { my $self = shift; if (@_) { foreach my $col (@_) { $self->throw_exception("column $col doesn't exist") unless $self->has_column($col); } return $self->_utf8_columns({ map { $_ => 1 } @_ }); } else { return $self->_utf8_columns; } } =head1 EXTENDED METHODS =head2 get_column =cut sub get_column { my ( $self, $column ) = @_; my $value = $self->next::method($column); utf8::decode($value) if ( defined $value and $self->_is_utf8_column($column) and ! utf8::is_utf8($value) ); return $value; } =head2 get_columns =cut sub get_columns { my $self = shift; my %data = $self->next::method(@_); foreach my $col (keys %data) { utf8::decode($data{$col}) if ( exists $data{$col} and defined $data{$col} and $self->_is_utf8_column($col) and ! utf8::is_utf8($data{$col}) ); } return %data; } =head2 store_column =cut sub store_column { my ( $self, $column, $value ) = @_; # the dirtiness comparison must happen on the non-encoded value my $copy; if ( defined $value and $self->_is_utf8_column($column) and utf8::is_utf8($value) ) { $copy = $value; utf8::encode($value); } $self->next::method( $column, $value ); return $copy || $value; } # override this if you want to force everything to be encoded/decoded sub _is_utf8_column { # my ($self, $col) = @_; return ($_[0]->utf8_columns || {})->{$_[1]}; } =head1 FURTHER QUESTIONS? Check the list of L. =head1 COPYRIGHT AND LICENSE This module is free software L by the L. You can redistribute it and/or modify it under the same terms as the L. =cut 1;