Programming PHP, 3rd Edition

The Development Environment

The development environment is a place where the raw code is created without fear of server crashes or peer ridicule. This needs to be a place where concepts and theories are proven or disproven; where code can be created experimentally. Therefore, the error-reporting environmental feedback should be as verbose as possible. All error reporting should be logged and at the same time also sent to the output device (the browser). All warnings should be as sensitive and descriptive as possible.

Note

Later in this chapter there is a table that shows the comparisons for recommended server settings for each of the three environments as it relates to debugging and error reporting.

The location of this development environment can be debated. However, if your company has the resources, then a separate server should be established for this purpose with full code management (SVN, a.k.a. Subversion, Git) in place. If the resources are not available, then a development PC can serve this purpose via a localhost-style setup. This localhost environment can be advantageous in and of itself in the sense that a developer may want to try something completely off-the-wall, and by coding on a standalone PC can therefore be fully experimental without affecting a common development server or anyone else’s code base.

Localhost environments can be created with the Apache web server, or Microsoft’s IIS, as a manual process. There are also a few all-in-one environments that can be utilized ...