Using custom functions in Views template files = not good practice?

Question

I have a field in my View that outputs a YouTube URL (eg. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rF1X12PE6PY)

I want to output just the ID part (ie. rF1X12PE6PY)

So I made a module with a function that takes the full URL and returns just the ID. Then in my views-views-fields.tpl.php template I call the function:

<?php print youtube_id_get($fields['url']->content); ?>

Now this works fine, but something tells me it's not good Drupal practice?

Will this screw up Views performance/caching? Should I create a custom Views filter instead (still learning about such things)?

Answer 1

This should be just fine, however, The REAL Drupal way to do this, would be for your module to provide a field formatter to views that calls this function. There are many modules which do nothing but provide functions. CTools, for example.

Having a field formatter removes your site's functionality from the "view". Which is a best practice with any kind of software. You'll be able to change the theme in the future without worrying about your youtube IDs. Creating a formatter isn't hard to do, here is a great tutorial on how to do it.

Once you have a formatter, you can simply select it from the drop down in the View's UI and you're done!