PHP stands for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor.PHP is server-side scripting language which is used to develop dynamic websites. PHP is mainly used for web development purpose but also for a programming language.
Programming with PHP is a very easy job or task. Most of the syntax in PHP is similar to C/C++.PHP supports all object-oriented programming concepts like inheritance, polymorphism etc. techniques. As PHP is a powerful server-side scripting language, therefore, it requires local host server for programming. We can use any web server like Xampp, Apache, and IIS when we install Xampp server it comes with MYSQL & PHP installation.
What is PHP file
A PHP file has file extension .php or.php3 or .phtml. It contains text, HTML tags, and scripts.PHP files are returned to the browser as plain HTML.PHP act as a mediator between browser and web server.
How to Open PHP Files
PHP files are text documents, we can open it with any text editor or web browser. Notepad in Windows is one example for syntax highlighting which is very helpful when coding in PHP, therefore, more dedicated PHP editor is usually required. Notepad++ is one free text editor that includes syntax highlighting.
What is required to run PHP program
To run PHP code we can Install Apache (or IIS) on your own server, install PHP, and MYSQL OR We can Install Wampserver2 (a bundle of PHP, Apache, and MYSQL server) on your own server/machine
Free Download
- PHP: http://www.PHP.net/downloads.PHP
- MYSQL Database: http://www.mysql.com/downloads/index.html
- Apache Server: http://httpd.apache.org/download.cgi
- How to install and configure Apache
- Here is a link to a good tutorial from PHP.net on how to install PHP5: http://www.PHP.net/manual/en/install.PHP
Basic of PHP Syntax
- PHP statements are terminated with semicolons ;
- Curly braces, { } are used to create compound statements
- Variables cannot be defined in a compound statement unless it is the body of a function
- PHP has typical scripting language characteristics
- Dynamic typing, untyped variables
- Associative arrays
- Pattern matching
- Extensive libraries
- Primitives, Operations, Expressions
- Four scalar types: Boolean, integer, double, string
- Two compound types: array, object
Advantages of Server-Side Scripting
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Open Source
PHP is open-source code language. It means it is freely available we can modify the code according to our requirement. Most of the PHP associative software like MYSQL, Apache server is also freely available so it is very cost effective for developers. PHP is actually much simpler than the rest and so you can stay confident of amazing results.
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Cross-Platform
As PHP is cross-platform we can work on LINUX, UNIX and Windows platform. All these platform support for PHP scripts. The user can get hosting service easily as it is highly compatible with various platforms.
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User Friendly
Designed in a user-friendly way, PHP gives more elasticity than C, C++, and ASP and overall helps in growing traffic to the site.
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Quick
As PHP is mainly used for efficient web development all the HTML code is valid in PHP. This makes it really short and simple to make a website.
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Security
PHP offers security by restricting users to access some pages on your website.
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Built-in database connection modules
We can connect to database easily using PHP. PHP can add, delete, and modify data in your database.
PHP also has a lot of resources like commands, functions, and code which can be rewritten. As PHP is easy to use, easy integration and cost efficient therefore it is one of the most powerful server-side scripting languages.