title: A pragmatic view on private vs public
body: <p>I've always wondered on the topic of <code>public</code>, <code>protected</code> and <code>private</code> properties. My memory can easily recall times when I <em>had</em> to hack somebody's code, and having the hacked-upon class variables declared as <code>private</code> was always upsetting.</p>
  
  <p>Also, there were (more) times I've written a class myself, and had never recognized any potential gain of privatizing the property. I should note here that using public vars is <em>not</em> in my habit: I adhere to the principles of OOP by utilizing getters and setters.</p>
  
  <p>So, what's the whole point in these restrictions?</p>