for class wp_widget, in what order are the member functions called?

Question

When a widget is used, in what order are the members used? Obviously, __construct is first, but what happens next? function widget()? function form()?

Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?

Answer 1

It's hard to tell the order in which these functions are called, because they're used in different contexts.

WP_Widget class has 4 methods:

• __construct - it constructs the widget, so it's always run first
• widget - it should output the content of given widget, so it's used on front-end in sidebar, when the widget is printed
• form - it outputs the options of given widget in admin area, so it's used in admin, when you edit the widget
• update - it processes the options form and saves the options, so it's used in admin, when you save the widget options

Answer 2

By using logging, I found out that if it has not been constructed, then function form is called, then function widget.