[code]

function startsWith($haystack, $needle) {
     $length = strlen($needle);
     return substr($haystack, 0, $length) === $needle;
}
[/code]

[code]

function endsWith($haystack, $needle) {
    $length = strlen($needle);
    if ($length == 0)
        return true;
    return substr($haystack, -$length) === $needle;
} 

[/code]