Bringing it all together

One of the best features of PHP is its level of flexibility. This language was designed to process forms in HTML pages, and thus, PHP eases the process of sending form data. Convenience is an upper hand in programming. However, the same features that can help you achieve various tasks in PHP can still be an avenue for those who want to hack into your system.

It is important to recognize that PHP, on its own, is neither secure nor unsecure. The security of your web application is defined by the type of code that you write. Consider a PHP script that opens a file that contains a name that was passed in a form parameter. If you fail to check the filename, there is a chance that a user can reveal a URL, the name of the path or even a path to exit from the application data directory and get into a system directory.

Web security is an evolving field. So, this book alone cannot sufficiently teach you how you can prevent attacks directed into your application. This book simply covers a few important topics related to security. Furthermore, you will learn some tips on how you can protect your applications from dangerous attacks.

23 people found this helpful

PHP masterclass.

PHP is an amazing language which you can use to build interactive and dynamic websites. When you are done writing your PHP program, you must have a Web server to run your code. PHP programs serve web pages to visitors based on their request. Put simply, it is a server side language. PHP has one prominent feature where you can embed your written code within the pages of HTML. This makes it very easy for anyone who wants to make dynamic content. In the previous paragraph, you can simply say I described PHP as ‘interactive and dynamic.’ As a beginner to PHP programming, you may be wondering about what exactly those two phrases mean. To save you time, when you hear a programmer describe a web page as being dynamic, they are simply trying to say that the contents of the page change automatically whenever the page is viewed. You can compare this with a static HTML file which never changes no matter how many people visit the page. Meanwhile, an interactive web page is one which accepts and responds to the input it receives from the visitors. A good example of an interactive website is a web forum. In a web forum, different users can post a message which is then displayed on the forum for everyone to see. If you have been wondering what PHP stands for, then you are in the right place. PHP is an abbreviation for Hypertext Preprocessor. By just knowing the full meaning of PHP, you can begin to tell some of the capabilities of the language. In simple terms, it processes information and unveils it as hypertext. Many developers prefer recursive acronyms and PHP is very appealing to developers.

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Expand your horizons

In the modern era, different applications on different devices are connected with other application through APIS. Before starting to discuss REST API, let’s define what an API is. You may already know what an API does or what it is, but still, there is no harm in repeating. This chapter assumes that you are new to API and for that reason, a basic intro about API is important.

In full, API stands for Application Programming Interface. The basic idea behind API is to link various applications regardless of their platforms to facilitate information sharing. Generally, API accepts requests from various applications, processes it, and sends back a feedback.

PHP is a language that is executed on the server. This book has covered different concepts in PHP: from how to use Restful APIs, create graphics in PHP, classes, and objects in PHP, and many others. You have also learned how you can use PHP cookies and session to pass data between different pages.

20 people found this helpful

Clear concise with intuitive approach.

Applications and dynamic websites are powered by a server-side scripting language called PHP. PHP is an acronym for Hypertext Preprocessor. Any server that has an installed PHP can run PHP scripts. Client computers that need to access PHP scripts must have only a web browser. Since the introduction of PHP in 1994, the language has continued to drive the web industry. There are millions of websites which run on PHP, and that makes it a very popular language across the web. In truth, PHP is a red-hot property when it comes to creating websites. A script is defined as a set of programming instructions interpreted at runtime. The language interprets scripts during execution and that gives it an edge. Usually, other software environments also embed scripts to boost the performance or execute routine tasks in an application. Since PHP is being interpreted on the server, it is also considered a server-side script. An excellent client-side script example is JavaScript because the client browser interprets it. By learning PHP, you acquire the best skills to help you set up your web application and perform different tasks. This book begins by introducing you to PHP and some of the powerful things that you can achieve with PHP. Later on, it goes deep into complex PHP topics like Restful APIs, PHP Graphics, and Object Oriented Programming. Additionally, it covers PHP Security and encryption and many other useful topics.

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Understanding the whole idea of PHP

Web pages are made responsive by using PHP. Graphics are one of the best features of PHP. It has powerful GD graphics library that can dynamically change images. Furthermore, it can create PNG, JPEGs, GIFs, and WBMPs.

By using GD graphics library, it adds another advantage to PHP. Bar diagrams, Charts, graphs, and line diagrams can be created easily with dynamic properties. Building a graphical data chart is very easy when you use this language.

PHP will allow anyone to create image objects such as rectangle, circle, oval, and others which can be altered to create complex patterns and designs. PHP facilitates grouping of large, complex objects as well as the representation of dynamic properties to image objects.

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Feel more confident now.

PHP also allows you to define constants to hold values. One thing about the values of constants is that it remains the same. In addition, constants are defined once in a PHP script. Don’t confuse constants with variables in PHP. Constants are different from variables in the way they are defined, and they don’t begin with the dollar sign. However, I will recommend that you make it a habit to define all your constants in uppercase letters. In addition, don’t use reserved PHP keywords to define constants. If you do so, you may confuse PHP. Most people new to PHP always ask this question. If you happen to be among them, here is something interesting for you, many internet service providers and web hosting firms have systems that are compatible with PHP. Today, a big population of developers use PHP, and they are very many because a majority of the websites are built on PHP programming. Another powerful feature that you will get, if you choose to use the PHP language, is that it’s cross-platform compatible. What this one simply means is that you can run your PHP programs on more than one platform. It doesn’t matter if the platform you’re using is Mac OS X, Windows, FreeBSD, and Solaris. Plus, the PHP engine is compatible with some of the popular web servers like Internet Information Server, Zeus, Apache, and lighttpd. This implies that if you want to develop your PHP program in, let’s say, a Windows setup and later deploy it on Mac OS X, it is possible. In addition, the process of migrating your entire PHP program is easy. No stress involved.

5 people found this helpful

Less spoon feeding

I recommend this course to anyone who is new to PHP and want to learn it,just go for it.Martin makes it easy for you.By the end of the course, you will be able to write the code on your own and will be able to create some application.

1 person found this helpful

Do not buy audio without Kindle or paper version

Most of the codes are skipped in the audio version and it refers you to the printed version!

I've only gone through three chapters so far, but can safely say I am pleased with this purchase. The audio version helps stay focused.

Secondly, matters such as array are well explained for the beginner to get a good grasp!

The 2 stars are missing because the image quality of the kindle version is very poor and harly legible.

1 person found this helpful

just wish it gave more context to the code

there will be part where try reference code in the book and glance over it. wish there was more context

Worthless! Don't waste your money!

While most instructional audiobooks include verbal descriptions or supplemental PDFs of graphs and charts, this audiobook has nothing. Three fourths of this book include the phrase, "an example is available in the written form of this book." This is a horrible audiobook because every instance of sample code, forms, websites, arrays, and etcetera are omitted and replaced by the statement, "an example is available in the written form of this book." This audiobook, itself, has no usable information. I can't believe Audible approved this travesty as an instructional manual for PHP. I wish I could get my money back.