[development] $custom_theme when does it take effect... when does it not

[Earl Miles]

Jon Saints wrote:
> I notice a bug in D6.4 and CVS in the block module. This post,
> however, is not to report the bug (i will use bug tracker for that).
> This post is to ask a development question that will help me create a
> patch for the issue.
> 
> On our website we use different themes for different sections of the
> site.  As the user browses to different sections of the site, the
> theme is changed automatically by changing $custom_theme global in
> hook_init().
> 
> Bug background: The bug occurs when administering blocks.  For
> example, if my current active theme is foo_theme and I click
> admin/build/block/list/bar_theme a list of blocks for bar_theme is not
> displayed.  Instead, a list of blocks for the active theme foo_theme
> is displayed.  When the user clicks the link "Bar theme" they could
> reasonably expect that a list of the blocks for bar_theme should
> display.
> 
> The development question: I think the bug has something to do with the
> code in the block module function block_admin_display(). In this
> function the author of the code tries to display a list of blocks for
> the theme the user selected by changing  the global variable
> $custom_theme. The problem with this approach is that outside of
> hook_init() I have found that changing $custom_theme variable has no
> effect on changing the active theme.
> 
> Have others found this to be the case that changes to $custom_theme
> variable have no effect on changing the active theme outside of
> hook_init()?
> 
> If this is the case then we need to rethink how we are pulling the
> list of blocks in the block module admin.
> 
> Thanks
> Jon

$custom_theme takes effect as soon as init_theme() is run. The later in 
the page that you set it, the more likely that init_theme() will already 
have run. That makes it definitely work best inside hook_init(), but 
often later is ok, as long as some module isn't calling theme(...) very 
early. Calling theme() functions in hook_init(), for example, could be 
very bad as it can destroy $custom_theme setting.