In this episode, we're tackling how to dynamically return the status of an order based on which status dates (like placed_at, packaged_at, and shipped_at) are filled. At first, this might look simple—just check if a certain column is set. But to get the latest status, we need a way to systematically check these columns and determine the most recent, non-null status for each order.
We walk through setting up an array of possible status fields, then use Laravel collections to filter out any that are null and grab the latest filled one. This makes it super easy to figure out where an order is in the process without writing a ton of logic in our templates.
Once we have the logic for returning which status is current, we hook it into the UI and show how to add some quick conditional statements to display human-readable status text (like "Order Placed", "Order Packaged", or "Order Shipped") based on which column is set. We also briefly touch on how to cast these timestamps to date objects if you want to show the actual dates.
By the end of this episode, you'll have a clean way to track and display the current status of orders without a lot of messy code—future-proof and ready for more statuses if you ever need them!