Learning PHP: beginners' resources

[gwyneth]

(This is on the List of resource list threads, along with other kinds of useful stuff.)

After receiving a couple of requests to expand on the list of beginners' PHP resources in the Baby Steps thread, I've put this together.

First, the horses' mouth, where PHP comes from, so to speak. The upper left hand corner of the main page gives links to FAQs, a tutorial, and the manual of all PHP commands that you can download:

PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor

PHP : A simple tutorial - Manual


Then, in no particular order, links for PHP beginners (remember, your mileage may vary....):

10 Tips Every PHP Newbie Should Know

Beginners PHP : tutorials,source code, books, downloads, hosting ...

Clockwatchers Web Site Hosting - PHP Tutorial

Code Beach - PHP Beginner Tutorials

PHP 101: PHP For the Absolute Beginner

PHP Beginner - Where to learn PHP

PHP for Beginners by a Beginner : Simple Login, Logout, and Session ...

PHP Help: Including Files in PHP - Beginner Tutorial

PHP: 5 Basics Newbies Should Know - Brian Haveri, One Aspiring Entrepreneur's Weekly Blog

PHPBuilder.com, the best resource for PHP tutorials, templates, PHP manuals, content management systems, scripts, classes and more.

PHPhelps.com - php tutorial for beginner

Processing Forms with PHP , a Beginner ’s Guide | Joe Dolson ...

[regentronique]

Bravo gwyneth!

Very nice of you to help the newbies in PHP with those links.

Reading this just gaved me an idea.

It would also be interesting to have an expert page for very high level questions about php that even tech support are unable to answer...

Maybe it would be preferable to post them in a specific PHP thread so all level of expertise could read, write and use.

What do you think of it?

[slapshotw]

Yes, nice job Gwyneth!

Regentronique, I agree with your feeling, but what about all the other locations online where people ask for advanced PHP help? Maybe those would be better?

[regentronique]

Originally Posted by slapshotw

Regentronique, I agree with your feeling, but what about all the other locations online where people ask for advanced PHP help? Maybe those would be better?

Yes i agree for general questions, but if the questions are related to HostGator environment it would be better, i believe, to keep them in a thread here. Dont you think?

[esl]

I like the way the boards are set up now.

[gwyneth]

Originally Posted by esl

I like the way the boards are set up now.

I do too, and here's why. The more specialization, the fewer threads in each specialized category. That means both fewer people looking at the category who may be able to help, and fewer people looking at the category for whom a thread might apply but don't know it.

In other words, mixing the unspecialized threads, IMO, results in more teaching and learning. The people who need help benefit when as many people as possible see the thread title.

I've learned a lot just reading the titles. The opposite also applies: sometimes I find out a thread is relevant only after reading the messages.

To regentronique's point about questions relating to the HG environment: by organizing the categories into broad environment subdivisions, the current setup probably results in the highest number of useful answers.

Advanced questions not specific to the HG environment are better asked and answered in specialized fora elsewhere, as Matt points out. And questions that do relate to the HG environment often involve several aspects that could easily be missed in more specialized HG categories--is a problem PHP- or apache-related? Both? Neither?

PS: thanks for the compliments on the resource list.

[tribe]

I prefer the hard copy route. Even though the book was published in 2000, it's still a great jumping off point into PHP

PHP Essentials by Julie Meloni

[regentronique]

There are things you will never find in a book.

As an example : If you try to use the PHP script piping for email filtering with cPanel, do you know how to code it so the "spammer" or "hacker" do not know about your Hostgator "account name" with the bouncing message returned?

Even the HostGator Tech support level 3 are not able to answer you about this, they will say it is impossible. But it is possible because i did it and you will never find the way to do it in a book...

That would be a nice topic regarding : "reseller hosting mail filtering on a HostGator server"...

[gwyneth]

I think you can use online learning stuff without a book, but you can't use a book without online learning sites.

The PHP books I've got are OK to very good...but to really get what they're saying, you've got to get onto the computer and run things. Which means typing in what the books suggest. This is not only work, but can introduce potential errors in the form of typos, which can be very difficult to track down.

When you go the online route, you can copy and paste fragments or entire scripts.

Another advantage: the PHP manual, with all PHP functions, etc. is much easier to use on the computer in its downloadable compiled help format. Easy cross-referencing, clickable links, and copy and paste.

IMO, the way to have the best of all worlds is to take the money that one or two PHP books would cost and buy a used HP Laserjet 4 Plus. A unit with less than 75,000 copies is still a baby (they're incredibly heavy duty). One $35 cartridge goes for about 10,000 copies. The 4 Plus shoots web pages out at between 4 and 8 pages a minute. Standard parallel and serial ports for PC or Mac use.

With that kind of speed and economy, you can just print out anything that looks as if it might be useful, and put together your own notebooks.

[esl]

Originally Posted by gwyneth

I think you can use online learning stuff without a book, but you can't use a book without online learning sites.

Nicely put.

[om1]

thanks for the links.... i do need to learn alittle more php.... just hard for me to take the time to do it since i dont design many websites and when i do i normally just stick to html..... probably because i dont know php....lol

[gwyneth]

Originally Posted by om1

thanks for the links.... i do need to learn alittle more php.... just hard for me to take the time to do it since i dont design many websites and when i do i normally just stick to html..... probably because i dont know php....lol

Things, particularly software, are always much easier to learn when you know "why you'd want to" do something*.

Then you can see the point.

A good way to tiptoe into PHP is to think of any part of your web-site that is repetitive, using the same info.

The first thing I did in PHP was a really simple two- or three-line script for the bottom of each page to tell readers "This page last updated on MM-dd-yyyy".

Then, because I was tired of cutting and pasting menu links....

*(Known in software design as the functional, rather than application, approach. Like mopping the floor. If someone handed you a super-sonic steam thing with nozzles that looked like a death ray, you might go huh? Why would I want to use that? But if you start out with the goal, get a cleaner floor, you might wind up with the steam cleaner.)

[hcacree]

Anyone know of a site with a php forum where a noob can ask php programming questions?

I need to ask some questions to shorten the learning curve.