Lecture 2: What is PHP?

PHP is one of the most (if not the most popular) server-side programming language on the web today, with more than 240 million websites using it (as of January 2013 — according to Wikipedia).

Websites like Google, Apple, Facebook and YouTube utilize PHP. Popular Content Management Systems (CMS) like Wordpress, Drupal, Joomla and Expression Engine all rely on PHP.

PHP stands for "Hypertext Preprocessor" — I know, right? I don't get it either...

PHP can be used as a stand-alone programming language to create robust applications, or it can be used within HTML code to create dynamic websites (which is the goal of this course).

PHP runs on a "server", and in order to use PHP on your own computer when developing a website, you'll need to have a server installed on your machine — don't worry about this part, it's quick & painless to get set up, and it doesn't cost you a penny.

I'll be covering the tools you'll need in an upcoming lecture.

Also, I will be frequently referencing PHP.net throughout the duration of this course, and I recommend you bookmark it for easy access.

Stay tuned, because in the next lecture I'll give you a quick rundown of some of the cool things PHP can do!

See you there!

DOWNLOAD COURSE FILES HERE
www.bradhussey.ca/download-php-course

1. Welcome to the Course
2. What is PHP?
3. What Does PHP Do?
4. Tools to Get Started
5. Download Course Files
6. Your First PHP Page
7. PHP Syntax
8. PHP Variables
9. More Variables
10. Defining Constants
11. Get Your Hands Dirty
12. Arrays
13. Associative Arrays
14. Multi-Dimensional Arrays
15. Get Your Hands Dirty
16. If Statements
17. Else
18. Else If
19. Get Your Hands Dirty
20. Comparison Operators
21. Logical Operators
22. Arithmetic Operators
23. String Operators
24. Assignment Operators
25. While Loop
26. For Loop
27. Foreach Loop
28. Do While Loop
29. PHP Functions
30. Custom Functions
31. Simple Arguments
32. Final Website
33. Basic Layout
34. Global Header & Footer
35. Copyright & Hours of Operation
36. Team Member Array & Template
37. Menu Array & Template
38. Understanding $_GET
39. Menu Item Template
40. Contact Form
41. Understanding $_POST
42. Form Validation
43. Form Submission
44. Upload Your Website Live
45. Wrap Up

This course is a Total Beginner's Guide to Coding Your Very Own Dynamic Websites with PHP, so you need no prior knowledge or experience — although it's a good idea that you know some HTML (my beginner's guide "Build a Website from Scratch with HTML & CSS" will get teach you everything you need to know).

So — why learn PHP? Well, PHP is a very powerful scripting language used by millions of websites. Some of the most popular websites and frameworks utilize PHP to build their dynamic websites. PHP works very well with HTML, and therefore will allow you to start coding dynamic websites quickly without having to learn some of the more complicated scripting languages out there.