PHP

bigcat1967 · 10-16-2009, 09:40 PM

I need to learn PHP - how do I start out and what do I need?

Bruce Hearder · 10-17-2009, 10:00 PM

You can learn PHP programming without spending a cent. All you have to do is go down to your local local library and get a few books on PHP.

Then go to http://www.apachefriends.org/en/index.html and download yourself a copy of XAMPP!

This will let you setup a development platform for local testing.
It will install a copy of :
Apache web server,
PHP,
MySQL plus phpMyAdmin

Using this lot, you can develop away to your hearts content.

I hope this helps

Bruce

Steven Fullman · 10-19-2009, 11:29 AM

If you're a visual learner, Leigh Mac over at PHP Video Tutorials - Like to watch the video instead of reading the book? has some great free (and paid for) videos. He actually manages to make PHP entertaining!

HTH,
Steve

TristanPerry · 10-19-2009, 12:31 PM

Whilst you can learn 100% for free online, I personally recommend buying a book, especially if you haven't done any scripting language before.

PHP can be tricky at first and there's a lot to take in; hence why I recommend learning it via a book.

devilishsaint · 10-19-2009, 12:34 PM

i think w3schools is also having good resources about php you should start from beginner level and move on.

shaddai · 10-19-2009, 10:02 PM

I got a book...and learned enough to be dangerous. At that point I just decided I was going to code a project & when I ran into something I didn't know how to do, I just went googling to find out.

Some people just have to learn by actually doing it, and I'm one of them.

Todd

TristanPerry · 10-20-2009, 01:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shaddai

I got a book...and learned enough to be dangerous. At that point I just decided I was going to code a project & when I ran into something I didn't know how to do, I just went googling to find out.

Some people just have to learn by actually doing it, and I'm one of them.

Todd

I was the same

A book can teach you quite a lot, but you also need to then go out and create some basic scripts too (as some of the books do suggest, to be fair)

elena1234 · 10-20-2009, 02:36 AM

I think w3schools is best for learning to short time.

lolito · 10-20-2009, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigcat1967

I need to learn PHP - how do I start out and what do I need?

Just follow those suggested by our Warriors here, just read the book about PHP while you reading just type the source code in to your PC to easy understand how does PHP works.

AndyBlackSEO · 10-21-2009, 01:57 AM

I agree with Todd. Buy a couple of different books. Say a reference type book and one that has basic scripts, fuctions and tutorials. Then start from the bootom up. Once you have learnt some of the basics (a matter or hours / days) just use what you have learnt to write a couple of your own scripts. It doesn't matter what these scripts do, as long as you write them and they work.

Then keep learning more. Expect some headaches along the way but when you solve a problem or find an error it's a good feeling.

Make sure you have error reporting enabled.

Good luck.

SimonFairbairn · 10-21-2009, 06:04 AM

I third Andy and Todd - books are a good starting point. I like the PHP/MySQL bible, but even the PHP for Dummies books are pretty decent.

Also, the Lynda dot com training videos are really good - lots of good practice and their latest ones are all about the Object Orientated Programming.

Abook or a training course is a lot more structured than reading a bunch of websites - but set up a testing server on your local machine like Bruce said as soon as possible and get started.

As for websites, w3schools is a good starting point, and net dot tutsplus dot com often have well written, comprehensive tutorials.

Programming PHP and MySQL is a lot of fun! Good luck!

Si

ninjawarrior · 10-21-2009, 11:15 AM

I'd go with shaddai's approach. You learn a lot about php by actually doing it, I believe.

Makes me reflect how much learning php is actually very close to learning IM, the 'learning via doing' route.

Hope that helps.

Ross Dalangin · 10-21-2009, 11:24 AM

Do you have a background in Programming? Try to visit w3schools.com and buy a PHP book on the nearest bookstore on your town. After that, install XAMPP of apache friends so that you have PHP, Apache and Mysql on your PC to test what you've learned on the book.

jackgunale · 10-22-2009, 12:47 PM

if you want to learn PHP,you can visit more site related put keyword PHP in search engine of google , you will get e-book and site also,,i also done this like there will be get tutorial.

thanks

RichPirate · 10-22-2009, 04:19 PM

Check out the "Learning" series of books published by O'Reilly. "Learning PHP" is good and takes you step by step through the process.

munkyscripts · 10-24-2009, 11:56 AM

the php website helped me a ton, just looking thru their examples

EWGQDD · 10-24-2009, 02:48 PM

There are some great tutorials on this website....

Here..

e.calabio · 11-06-2009, 03:42 AM

What code is used to make a visitor counter in php? I'm not sure what it's called, a counter that holds the number of all visitors who went to your website.

Gimme4Free · 11-06-2009, 09:17 AM

This is the one you want:
Learning PHP, MySQL, and JavaScript - O'Reilly Media

Absolutely awesome guide, will get you from PHP newbie to an advanced coder in no time at all.

RedEvo · 11-06-2009, 10:14 AM

have you tried W3Schools?

d

Gary Smith · 11-06-2009, 10:45 AM

Three tips:

1. If you are using MySQL with your programming learn about mysql_real_escape_string() and use it on all user supplied data. See PHP Security Consortium: PHP Security Guide: Databases and SQL

2. Always encrypt passwords and generate a new password from your 'lost password' page. If passwords are encrypted then they are pretty much useless to a hacker.

3. Learn about session hijacking and session fixation. See PHP Security Consortium: PHP Security Guide: Sessions

That's really only scraping the surface, but being mindful of security while you are learning will definitely help in the long term. There are plenty of good texts and tutorials on the internet that cover PHP scripts and how to make them more secure.

AndyBlackSEO · 11-06-2009, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by e.calabio

What code is used to make a visitor counter in php? I'm not sure what it's called, a counter that holds the number of all visitors who went to your website.

You can get free counters from the web but generally this can be coded very easily with php. You would basically set up a mysql database and create a table with a couple of field. You could add more fields if you wanted to store more information about the visitor, ie - date, time, browser, IP etc.

You'd then just write a bit of php that would (at minimum) increment the count in the database and update it. With every refresh it would retrieve the current count and display it on screen.

To count only unique visits you could add the users IP to another database table and query that with each refresh to check whether the users IP already exists in that table before incrementing.

The possibilities are endless.

llamafier · 11-07-2009, 07:49 AM

I learned from this book and thought it was really great. There wasn't a bunch of crap to read through it just got to the point of things.

Title: PHP 5 Fast & Easy Web Development

Won't let me link cause of post count so you'll have to Google it.

NinjaTech · 11-07-2009, 11:04 AM

i use echo echo and monkeyforums These are how i learned.
But truly its best to come up with an idea you want to use a database for
a contact list or organize your dvds or movies.
make a project you will have fun with. that will encourage you to learn. and push yourself.

childtalent · 11-09-2009, 02:44 AM

go to php.net

there are some pretty good information over there

Snowblind · 11-09-2009, 08:42 PM

Once you've learnt the basics the best way to get going with PHP is to just start coding basic stuff. As you do that & get more and more advanced scripts you'll find you learn a lot by just searching through and using the PHP manual. The manual is available here: php.net/manual/en/

trumpetblast · 11-09-2009, 10:53 PM

Someone earlier mentioned the PHP video tutorials website by Leighmac (link above or Google it: I can't link yet

That's an excellent site which actually has 15 or 20 free lessons on it. Well worth your time and an easy way to get started.

After that I'd also recommend picking out a project for yourself and just doing it. The best way to learn is to make tons of mistakes, figure out what the errors are, and then promise yourself you'll never pull your hair out by making that particular one again!

Seriously, that's the one problem with books and tutorials: they can never drill home the point like doing something for yourself and wading through all the mistakes to finally get something working right.

morgano1132 · 11-11-2009, 04:08 PM

First of all you need to strong your basics it means you should do prctice of html and css first and then you can learn php easily,

Thanks,

Hans123 · 11-12-2009, 02:02 AM

We have a duplicate board at How PHP can Easy to Learn

My recommendations:

1. Before you start with php, you need to understand html. A good starting point is W3Schools Online Web Tutorials as mentioned by other. Don't get distracted by the other tutorials at the site - Learn the basic HTML before moving on.

2. Get the php developer tools, server and basic training for FREE from Eclipse PHP Development Tools - Zend.com - Use their training and sample along with additional php training from w3schools. That should bring you up to speed without any expenses.

3. Thereafter you can consider advanced courses or books.

4. Then contact me. I always have work for php programmers and a veriety of freelancers

Good luck - Good php programmers are always in demand

PS: Don't waste time with ASP. I will never use ASP again for any site

10-16-2009, 09:40 PM	#1
bigcat1967 HyperActive Warrior Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 270 Thanks: 2 Thanked 6 Times in 6 Posts	PHP I need to learn PHP - how do I start out and what do I need?
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10-17-2009, 10:00 PM	#2
Bruce Hearder HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Perth, Australia. Posts: 406 Thanks: 2 Thanked 63 Times in 55 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP You can learn PHP programming without spending a cent. All you have to do is go down to your local local library and get a few books on PHP. Then go to http://www.apachefriends.org/en/index.html and download yourself a copy of XAMPP! This will let you setup a development platform for local testing. It will install a copy of : Apache web server, PHP, MySQL plus phpMyAdmin Using this lot, you can develop away to your hearts content. I hope this helps Bruce
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10-19-2009, 11:29 AM	#3
Steven Fullman Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: London, England Posts: 3,007 Thanks: 492 Thanked 267 Times in 177 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP If you're a visual learner, Leigh Mac over at PHP Video Tutorials - Like to watch the video instead of reading the book? has some great free (and paid for) videos. He actually manages to make PHP entertaining! HTH, Steve
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10-19-2009, 12:31 PM	#4
TristanPerry HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Cardiff, United Kingdom Posts: 443 Thanks: 63 Thanked 64 Times in 50 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Whilst you can learn 100% for free online, I personally recommend buying a book, especially if you haven't done any scripting language before. PHP can be tricky at first and there's a lot to take in; hence why I recommend learning it via a book.
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10-19-2009, 12:34 PM	#5
devilishsaint Webweaver Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 124 Thanks: 4 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP i think w3schools is also having good resources about php you should start from beginner level and move on.
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10-19-2009, 10:02 PM	#6
shaddai HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 162 Thanks: 7 Thanked 7 Times in 7 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP I got a book...and learned enough to be dangerous. At that point I just decided I was going to code a project & when I ran into something I didn't know how to do, I just went googling to find out. Some people just have to learn by actually doing it, and I'm one of them. Todd

10-20-2009, 02:36 AM	#8
elena1234 Warrior Member Join Date: Aug 2009 Posts: 8 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP I think w3schools is best for learning to short time.
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10-21-2009, 01:57 AM	#10
AndyBlackSEO www.linkabyss.com War Room Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: , , United Kingdom. Posts: 833 Thanks: 18 Thanked 71 Times in 60 Posts	Re: PHP I agree with Todd. Buy a couple of different books. Say a reference type book and one that has basic scripts, fuctions and tutorials. Then start from the bootom up. Once you have learnt some of the basics (a matter or hours / days) just use what you have learnt to write a couple of your own scripts. It doesn't matter what these scripts do, as long as you write them and they work. Then keep learning more. Expect some headaches along the way but when you solve a problem or find an error it's a good feeling. Make sure you have error reporting enabled. Good luck.
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10-21-2009, 06:04 AM	#11
SimonFairbairn Warrior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Manchester, UK Posts: 21 Thanks: 1 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP I third Andy and Todd - books are a good starting point. I like the PHP/MySQL bible, but even the PHP for Dummies books are pretty decent. Also, the Lynda dot com training videos are really good - lots of good practice and their latest ones are all about the Object Orientated Programming. Abook or a training course is a lot more structured than reading a bunch of websites - but set up a testing server on your local machine like Bruce said as soon as possible and get started. As for websites, w3schools is a good starting point, and net dot tutsplus dot com often have well written, comprehensive tutorials. Programming PHP and MySQL is a lot of fun! Good luck! Si
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10-21-2009, 11:15 AM	#12
ninjawarrior Warrior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 12 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP I'd go with shaddai's approach. You learn a lot about php by actually doing it, I believe. Makes me reflect how much learning php is actually very close to learning IM, the 'learning via doing' route. Hope that helps.

10-21-2009, 11:24 AM	#13
Ross Dalangin Senior Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: http://QuickMinisiteBuilder.com Posts: 2,519 Blog Entries: 15 Thanks: 125 Thanked 104 Times in 61 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Do you have a background in Programming? Try to visit w3schools.com and buy a PHP book on the nearest bookstore on your town. After that, install XAMPP of apache friends so that you have PHP, Apache and Mysql on your PC to test what you've learned on the book.
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10-22-2009, 12:47 PM	#14
jackgunale Warrior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 9 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP if you want to learn PHP,you can visit more site related put keyword PHP in search engine of google , you will get e-book and site also,,i also done this like there will be get tutorial. thanks
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10-22-2009, 04:19 PM	#15
RichPirate Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Posts: 67 Thanks: 6 Thanked 9 Times in 7 Posts	Re: PHP Check out the "Learning" series of books published by O'Reilly. "Learning PHP" is good and takes you step by step through the process.

10-24-2009, 11:56 AM	#16
munkyscripts Warrior Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Nashville, TN - Costa Rica Posts: 13 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 2 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP the php website helped me a ton, just looking thru their examples
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10-24-2009, 02:48 PM	#17
EWGQDD Active Warrior Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Kansas City Posts: 89 Thanks: 2 Thanked 10 Times in 9 Posts Contact Info	Re: PHP There are some great tutorials on this website.... Here..
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11-06-2009, 03:42 AM	#18
e.calabio e.calabio Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 27 Thanks: 7 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP What code is used to make a visitor counter in php? I'm not sure what it's called, a counter that holds the number of all visitors who went to your website.

11-06-2009, 09:17 AM	#19
Gimme4Free Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 74 Thanks: 7 Thanked 4 Times in 4 Posts	Re: PHP This is the one you want: Learning PHP, MySQL, and JavaScript - O'Reilly Media Absolutely awesome guide, will get you from PHP newbie to an advanced coder in no time at all.
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11-06-2009, 10:14 AM	#20
RedEvo Warrior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Aboyne, Scotland Posts: 9 Thanks: 1 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Social Networking Contact Info	Re: PHP have you tried W3Schools? d

11-06-2009, 10:45 AM	#21
Gary Smith HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Ballarat, Victoria , Australia. Posts: 261 Thanks: 1 Thanked 6 Times in 5 Posts Social Networking	Re: PHP Three tips: 1. If you are using MySQL with your programming learn about mysql_real_escape_string() and use it on all user supplied data. See PHP Security Consortium: PHP Security Guide: Databases and SQL 2. Always encrypt passwords and generate a new password from your 'lost password' page. If passwords are encrypted then they are pretty much useless to a hacker. 3. Learn about session hijacking and session fixation. See PHP Security Consortium: PHP Security Guide: Sessions That's really only scraping the surface, but being mindful of security while you are learning will definitely help in the long term. There are plenty of good texts and tutorials on the internet that cover PHP scripts and how to make them more secure.
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11-07-2009, 07:49 AM	#23
llamafier Active Warrior Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Washington, USA Posts: 34 Thanks: 2 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP I learned from this book and thought it was really great. There wasn't a bunch of crap to read through it just got to the point of things. Title: PHP 5 Fast & Easy Web Development Won't let me link cause of post count so you'll have to Google it.

11-07-2009, 11:04 AM	#24
NinjaTech Email Marketer War Room Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: fl Posts: 31 Blog Entries: 2 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Social Networking	Re: PHP i use echo echo and monkeyforums These are how i learned. But truly its best to come up with an idea you want to use a database for a contact list or organize your dvds or movies. make a project you will have fun with. that will encourage you to learn. and push yourself.
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11-09-2009, 02:44 AM	#25
childtalent Warrior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 21 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP go to php.net there are some pretty good information over there

11-09-2009, 08:42 PM	#26
Snowblind Warrior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 1 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP Once you've learnt the basics the best way to get going with PHP is to just start coding basic stuff. As you do that & get more and more advanced scripts you'll find you learn a lot by just searching through and using the PHP manual. The manual is available here: php.net/manual/en/

11-09-2009, 10:53 PM	#27
trumpetblast Warrior Member War Room Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 22 Thanks: 1 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts Contact Info	Re: PHP Someone earlier mentioned the PHP video tutorials website by Leighmac (link above or Google it: I can't link yet That's an excellent site which actually has 15 or 20 free lessons on it. Well worth your time and an easy way to get started. After that I'd also recommend picking out a project for yourself and just doing it. The best way to learn is to make tons of mistakes, figure out what the errors are, and then promise yourself you'll never pull your hair out by making that particular one again! Seriously, that's the one problem with books and tutorials: they can never drill home the point like doing something for yourself and wading through all the mistakes to finally get something working right.

11-11-2009, 04:08 PM	#28
morgano1132 Warrior Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 7 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP First of all you need to strong your basics it means you should do prctice of html and css first and then you can learn php easily, Thanks,
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11-12-2009, 02:02 AM	#29
Hans123 Warrior Member Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 17 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: PHP We have a duplicate board at How PHP can Easy to Learn My recommendations: 1. Before you start with php, you need to understand html. A good starting point is W3Schools Online Web Tutorials as mentioned by other. Don't get distracted by the other tutorials at the site - Learn the basic HTML before moving on. 2. Get the php developer tools, server and basic training for FREE from Eclipse PHP Development Tools - Zend.com - Use their training and sample along with additional php training from w3schools. That should bring you up to speed without any expenses. 3. Thereafter you can consider advanced courses or books. 4. Then contact me. I always have work for php programmers and a veriety of freelancers Good luck - Good php programmers are always in demand PS: Don't waste time with ASP. I will never use ASP again for any site