$table* global variables sheduled for deletion

[markjaquith]

The $table* ($tableposts, $tablecomments) etc global variables have been marked for imminent deletion in the code for something like 18 months now. Target 2.1, or are there still enough ignorant plugin develeopers using them to warrant keeping them for a while longer?

Also, we're currently using $table_prefix variable in core code... shouldn't we be using $wpdb->table_prefix?

We should definitely use the wpdb table prefix in core. I think we need to sample some plugins to see how widespread table* may be.

I'm making a patch for $table_prefix now

Pros:

• Makes things neater
• Forces plugins to have better code
• Reduce our symbol space

Cons:

• Negligible speed/memory etc. benefits (I'd wager)
• May break plugins

+1. These have been around so long that any plugins using them are so decrepid they probably break on some other major change as well.

[3603]

It may be that no matter how long we wait, people will still use these. Usage may be as low now as it's ever going to be. And yeah, David is right... anyone still using these is likely still using $user_level and $single instead of is_single() and a whole host of other things that have been deprecated.

+1 for removing them, here's a patch.

(In [3951]) Another step toward removing old table vars, this is why we should be careful about naming things! Fixes #2524