What is PHP? Why is it important for Web Development

Anyone who decides to start programming must decide which language to use.

For those who already have some experience, it is interesting to know which is the best programming language to expand their knowledge.

Some research has been completed on the most famous programming languages from one side of the globe to the next, and it is fascinating to take note of that the pattern has commonly continued as before throughout the course of recent years.

PHP is consistently among the top five most popular programming languages ​​in our market. Therefore, it is used by an enormous number of novice programmers as an initial phase in their professional development.

The most important questions everyone in the world is asking is whether PHP is easy to learn and what are it’s benefits. The short answer is that PHP is subjectively easy to learn and is considered one of the simplest programming languages, yet it has its specific applications. To comprehend the reason why PHP is a decent decision for the people who have chosen to make a career in programming, knowing the nature and scope of the PHP language and its capabilities is useful.

What is PHP?

PHP is a notable and inescapable web programming language, in spite of the fact that it isn’t generally utilized. It is used for server-side development , for successful back-end development, or in other words, for writing web applications and services.

PHP is an open source and a bit easy-to-learn programming language. Although it is mostly used for smaller projects, it is still a fundamental part of websites. It is most commonly used in web systems like WordPress, Drupal, Magento, OpenCart, and is used to support stores, blogs, forums or other web software. PHP is used on pretty much every operating systems like GNU/Linux, UNIX, Macintosh operating system X and Windows, and PHP engineers work with present day databases like MySQL, MariaDB, Prophet, MongoDB and others.

PHP is generally a good choice to start learning a programming language, especially if your goal is Full Stack programming, as PHP is used exclusively for this purpose. PHP is great for programmers who definitely know HTML and CSS and need to work on their abilities.

The evolution of PHP over the years

Originally, PHP was mainly used to create dynamic websites. It is considered a simple, method-based scripting language. Being easy to learn and implement, it has established itself over the years as a leading language for backend web development. In past, PHP was used to manage half of the world’s websites, particularly within e-business platforms such as WordPress, Magento and Joomla. According to recent findings, 37% of the most visited websites online in 2017 were built with PHP.

In the early days of PHP development, users faced many problems related to code maintenance, lack of standards, random file distribution and problems with larger projects, so it was not considered the most usable language.

The language became new and object-oriented and these shortcomings were eliminated with the development of new variants and the introduction of PHP 7 and PHP 7.1. Under the dominance of Java, PHP now supports paradigms such as interfaces, objects, encapsulation, polymorphism and so on, while the latest variants allow for data typing and greater flexibility through operator programming.

PHP is now used to create high-quality web projects and is comparable to leading server-side programming languages ​​such as Java and C#.

Why design in PHP?

There are many reasons to start developing in PHP. One of the main reasons is that there is currently a great demand for PHP developers in Brazil, which is a great opportunity for those who are just starting out in programming.

You’ll learn other fascinating things about PHP that will make you keep thinking about whether this is actually the programming language you ought to focus on:

• Excellent starting salary for inexperienced PHP programmers.
• PHP and MySQL are some of the most popular technologies in Brazil.
• More than 5 million developers worldwide PHP as a programming language.
• Almost a third of all websites are based on PHP.
• PHP is used to develop web applications and web servers (backend systems).

How can I learn PHP?

We have already said that development in PHP is subjectively easy and this language can be chosen by both beginners and those who want to improve their skills.

There are numerous ways to learn this programming language:

• Self-learning using information from the Internet: This technique is the most ideal for individuals who as of now have a ton of programming experience. It is not necessarily suitable for beginners, who constantly have to filter good information from bad advice on the Internet.
• Learning from books – this option is also preferable for people who already have experience in this field, but with more motivation anyone can achieve good results.
• PHP programming courses – It is the best option for beginner programmers and those who want to refresh their knowledge. PHP programming courses combine theoretical and practical training, which makes them much more effective and often minimizes training time. The possibility of working in small groups gives students better access to knowledge and more opportunities to interact with the teacher and other participants.

How to become a PHP programmer?

To work as a programmer, several relevant skills are required, regardless of the language used:

• Learning to write code: the use of switches, functions, data manipulation, matrices and lists are some of the basic skills to be acquired.
• Logical/algorithmic/mathematical thinking: this can be developed by solving programming problems. In general, troubleshooting is essential for a successful programmer. Knowledge of mathematics and physics is helpful in developing this type of thinking.
• Acquire a basic knowledge of programming: what are databases, software engineering, network programming; what are the main technologies and types of Internet programming?
• Learn programming languages ​​and software technologies: In this step, you can decide the direction your development will take. To become a PHP programmer, you need to learn this language and other key technologies that can improve web server development.

PHP is a well-known programming language in the IT community. PHP programming is subjectively easy and does not require a large investment of time to master. A 2-month course can be enough for a beginner to master the basics of PHP programming and develop a career in this direction.