Core PHP Programming, Third Edition

Chapter 1. An Introduction to PHP

Topics in This Chapter

• The Origins of PHP

• PHP Is Better Than Its Alternatives

• Interfaces to External Systems

• How PHP Works with the Web Server

• Hardware and Software Requirements

• What a PHP Script Looks Like

• Saving Data for Later

• Receiving User Input

• Choosing Between Alternatives

• Repeating Code

This chapter introduces you to PHP. You learn how it came about, what it looks like, and why it is the best server-side technology. It also exposes the most important features of the language.

PHP began as a simple macro replacement tool. Like a nice pair of shoes, it got you where you needed to go, but you could go only so far. On the hyperspeed development track of the Internet, PHP has become the equivalent of a 1960s muscle ...