title: Assigning NULL to a variable in PHP: what does that do?
body: <p>In maintaining code, I'm encountering loops, where at the end of the loop several variables are set to <code>NULL</code> like so: <code>$var = NULL;</code>. From what I understand in the manual, NULL is meant mostly as something to compare against in PHP code. Since <code>NULL</code> has no type and is not a string or number, outputting it makes no sense.</p>
  
  <p>I unfortunately cannot provide an example, but I think the NULL values are being written to a file in our code. My question is: does <code>$var</code> have a value after the assignment, and will echoing/writing it produce output?</p>
  
  <p><strong>EDIT:</strong> <em>I have read the PHP manual entry on</em> <code>NULL</code>. There is no need to post this: <a href="http://php.net/manual/en/language.types.null.php">http://php.net/manual/en/language.types.null.php</a> in a comment or answer, or top downvote me for not having RTM. Thank you!</p>