O'Reilly
August 4, 2004

"Learning PHP 5": Techies and Non-Techies Alike Can Build Dynamic Web Sites with Ease

Sebastopol, CA--One of the most popular programming languages for building dynamic web sites, PHP makes it easy for even non-technical designers to create more useful, faster, highly impressive web pages. "Whatever interactive excitement you want to create--such as a product catalog, a blog, a photo album, or an event calendar--PHP is up to the task," says author and PHP instructor David Sklar. And after reading his new Learning PHP 5 (O'Reilly, US $29.95), he promises, "you'll be up to the task of building that dynamic web site, too."

As its popularity has grown, PHP's basic feature set has become increasingly more sophisticated. Now PHP 5 boasts advanced features-- such as new object-oriented capabilities and support for XML and web services--that will please even the most experienced web professionals while still remaining user-friendly enough for those with a lower tolerance for technical jargon.

Sklar, who also co-authored the popular PHP Cookbook, tells readers all about what the accessible but powerful PHP can do (and why it's so good at what it does) in this "pain-free introduction" to building interactive web sites. With attention to both PHP 4 and the new PHP Version 5, Learning PHP 5 delivers everything from an explanation of how PHP works with a web server and web browser to the ins and outs of working with MySQL databases and HTML forms.

Learning PHP 5 guides readers through every aspect of the language they'll need to master in order to achieve professional web programming results. This book provides a hands-on learning experience complete with end-of-chapter exercises for confirming the reader's understanding of the content (and the answers are conveniently located in a back-of-book appendix).

Dense with information but highly readable and well organized, Learning PHP 5 covers:

  • How PHP works with your web browser and web server
  • PHP language basics, including data, variables, logic, and looping
  • Working with arrays and functions
  • Making and processing web forms
  • Working with databases such as MySQL
  • Remembering users with cookies and sessions
  • Reading and writing XML
  • Techniques for finding and fixing bugs
  • From the fundamental PHP topics for everyday dynamic web site development to PHP's many advanced capabilities (including generating images, producing PDF files, running shell commands, making Flash movies, encryption, and more), Learning PHP 5 will have techies and non-techies alike creating interactive web content with ease.

    Additional Resources:

    Learning PHP 5
    David Sklar
    ISBN 0-596-00560-1, 348 pages, $29.95 US, $43.95 CA
    order@oreilly.com
    1-800-998-9938; 1-707-827-7000

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