PHP is the server-side scripting language.
The basics you should have
Before continuing with your study, you need to have a basic understanding of the following knowledge:
If you want to learn these items first, please visit these tutorials on our homepage.
What is PHP?
- PHP stands for pHP: Hypertext preprocessor
- PHP is a widely used, open-source scripting language
- PHP scripts are executed on the server
- PHP is free to download and use
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PHP is easy to learn for beginners.
PHP also offers a number of advanced features for professional programmers. |
What is a PHP file?
- PHP files can contain text, HTML, JavaScript code, and PHP code
- PHP code executes on the server and results are returned to the browser in plain HTML
- The default file name extension for PHP files is ". php"
What can PHP do?
- PHP can generate dynamic page content
- PHP can create, open, read, write, and close files on the server
- PHP can collect form data
- PHP can send and receive cookies
- PHP can add, delete, and modify data in your database
- PHP can restrict users from accessing some pages on your site
- PHP can encrypt data
With PHP, you are no longer limited to outputting HTML. You can export images, PDF files, or even Flash movies. You can also export arbitrary text, such as XHTML and XML.
Why use PHP?
- PHP can be run on different platforms (Windows, Linux, Unix, Mac OS X, etc.)
- PHP is compatible with almost all servers currently in use (Apache, IIS, etc.)
- PHP provides a wide range of database support
- PHP is free and can be downloaded from the official PHP resources: www.php.net
- PHP is easy to learn and runs efficiently on the server side
What is PHP