Hi,sry for this kind of noob question,i know i can search answers on google,but i want read from this forum,so my question is:
How you started learning php?
How long it was take to learn basics from php?
What is best way to learn it?ebooks?,write some code my own?,read tutorials?

What you need to get started with PHP (or any other language, really) depends a lot on your previous programming experience.

The downloadable manual in CHM format from php.net was all I used when first learning the language, but I already knew how to program in C and other languages.

Anyway, it does have a small tutorial introduction, so I suggest you check it out and see if it helps.

Originally Posted by ndr

What you need to get started with PHP (or any other language, really) depends a lot on your previous programming experience.

The downloadable manual in CHM format from php.net was all I used when first learning the language, but I already knew how to program in C and other languages.

Anyway, it does have a small tutorial introduction, so I suggest you check it out and see if it helps.

tnx for answer, i will do that,anyway i will wait answers from other users here as well.
and about programming experience(i know html,but not much more)

Hi

I think
www.w3schools.com
www.tizag.com
www.goodphptutorials.com/
www.tutorialized.com/
www.developertutorials.com

are great option for you to learn the PHP.
thanks

Originally Posted by masteryooshi

Hi

I think
www.w3schools.com
www.tizag.com
www.goodphptutorials.com/
www.tutorialized.com/
www.developertutorials.com

are great option for you to learn the PHP.
thanks

tnx

and about programming experience(i know html,but not much more)

Then, my first tip would be to find documentation about programming in general.
What are branchs, what is a function, what are the different datatype you can work with, what exactly is an array, how can you make it grow, or shrink, what are the difference between an reference passed value or a copy passed value (this one is a little bit more advanced, but can be very handy to know)...

Those are not typical PHP questions, but very generic on the programming domain.
But if you know those basis, then it will look easier for you in any programming task you want to do (be it C#, PHP or pure C)

The PHP manual can already give you a good overview of those, and I personnaly found it very weel written.
But I've always preferred good old books, where you can mark pages, add annotations and use to knock bugs out :-)

Originally Posted by tripy

Then, my first tip would be to find documentation about programming in general.
What are branchs, what is a function, what are the different datatype you can work with, what exactly is an array, how can you make it grow, or shrink, what are the difference between an reference passed value or a copy passed value (this one is a little bit more advanced, but can be very handy to know)...

Those are not typical PHP questions, but very generic on the programming domain.
But if you know those basis, then it will look easier for you in any programming task you want to do (be it C#, PHP or pure C)

The PHP manual can already give you a good overview of those, and I personnaly found it very weel written.
But I've always preferred good old books, where you can mark pages, add annotations and use to knock bugs out :-)

tnx for you also,i have some ebooks: John Wiley & Sons - PHP5 and MySQL Bible;John Wiley & Sons - PHP 5 For Dummies;John Wiley & Sons - PHP and MySQL for Dummies, Second Edition; i already started reading them and follow examples on them.

Originally Posted by nofuture

use google, man

i use it every day and even more then that

I'm not a master php coder of any kind. I've always learned what I've needed, when I needed it. So far I haven't stumbled across something that I can't accomplish with php and a little review of php.net

As recommended by another user: www.tizag.com is a great place to start. www.w3schools.com is another.

Originally Posted by webhostingultra

I'm not a master php coder of any kind. I've always learned what I've needed, when I needed it. So far I haven't stumbled across something that I can't accomplish with php and a little review of php.net

This is about the way it has been for me. Some great links have been provided above. I approched it with nothing but some self learned gw-basic experience.

Installing, breaking fixing and modifying scripts is one of the ways I learned the most. Always best to play on your local machine so you may want to install something like xampp.

Originally Posted by colbyt

This is about the way it has been for me. Some great links have been provided above. I approched it with nothing but some self learned gw-basic experience.

Installing, breaking fixing and modifying scripts is one of the ways I learned the most. Always best to play on your local machine so you may want to install something like xampp.

tnx,i already have php5,mysql and phpmyadmin on my ubuntu mashine
I started reading ebooks and yes looks like www.tizag.com is really very good place to start.

I would also suggest finding someone who knows a reasonable amount of PHP who wont get hacked off by noob questions, dont over do it but it is handy to have a friend who you can go hey how would i do this in PHP? (obviously after you have googled you head off trying to find the answer first!)

One thing you cant do with a book or anything else pre-written is ask it a question or ask for advice...

Dan

Originally Posted by dansgalaxy

I would also suggest finding someone who knows a reasonable amount of PHP who wont get hacked off by noob questions, dont over do it but it is handy to have a friend who you can go hey how would i do this in PHP? (obviously after you have googled you head off trying to find the answer first!)

One thing you cant do with a book or anything else pre-written is ask it a question or ask for advice...

Dan

yeah that would be nice if i had a friend like this who knows php,but i dont have,so i must learn it with google and tutorials

Hi,

I started my carrier in PHP :-). I started with MAMBO CMS as a fresher and slowly got grip over the language.When you have a reason to learn you work hard more on that stuff.

In 3 years for PHP i have only buyed one book . rest everything i learn from active forums.To understand the basoc i use to pop my basic question and i was always lucky to find the answers of my queries which helped me grow as a good professional in PHP.

the best way to get in to this language according to me is e-tutorial,create a dummy porject set the goals to reach with your coding and you will slowly in some time find comfortable with this language.

Have a great day !!

Originally Posted by priti

Hi,

I started my carrier in PHP :-). I started with MAMBO CMS as a fresher and slowly got grip over the language.When you have a reason to learn you work hard more on that stuff.

In 3 years for PHP i have only buyed one book . rest everything i learn from active forums.To understand the basoc i use to pop my basic question and i was always lucky to find the answers of my queries which helped me grow as a good professional in PHP.

the best way to get in to this language according to me is e-tutorial,create a dummy porject set the goals to reach with your coding and you will slowly in some time find comfortable with this language.

Have a great day !!

Tnx,so far best tutorial i have found is http://devzone.zend.com/node/view/id/627,its really amazing how tutorial author explains things there.

Before I learned PHP, I studied Perl for a short time, but quickly found that PHP was going to be a more powerful, or at least an easier solution, so I bought a book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Beginning-PH.../dp/1590595521 . I chose this book because it has good details about the Object Oriented structure of PHP5, which some books apparently do not cover.

However, I totally agree with the sentiment that it is wise to have a basic understanding of programming in general before you may really dive into something like this. When I was young, I learned programming by doing BASIC on old PCs and Apple computers. I also messed around with FORTRAN, and then learned Pascal. When I started studying PHP, it was not hard because I already had a foundation of understanding to build on. Even though I had not programmed for several years, I found that the basic idea had never left me, and although it took me some time to work up to an advanced level, the experience I had when I was younger helped me greatly.

There are basic ideas that are in all programming languages, FOR, WHILE, IF, etc, that you must understand. You need to understand the concept of operators, and return values. These are very, very, very basic concepts that are sometimes difficult to put together for absolute beginners. If you are good with mathematics it should not be difficult for you, however.

Here is a book about general programming that has been recommended to me: http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Prog.../dp/020161622X

I believe books are good to start out with, because if you only study on your own from resources online, there is no telling what you may miss. Books are easier on the eyes to read, and there is a tendency to approach the material in the order it is presented. Once you have read a book about the subject, it will be easier to reference things online.

Originally Posted by wayfarer07

Before I learned PHP, I studied Perl for a short time, but quickly found that PHP was going to be a more powerful, or at least an easier solution, so I bought a book: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Beginning-PH.../dp/1590595521 . I chose this book because it has good details about the Object Oriented structure of PHP5, which some books apparently do not cover.

However, I totally agree with the sentiment that it is wise to have a basic understanding of programming in general before you may really dive into something like this. When I was young, I learned programming by doing BASIC on old PCs and Apple computers. I also messed around with FORTRAN, and then learned Pascal. When I started studying PHP, it was not hard because I already had a foundation of understanding to build on. Even though I had not programmed for several years, I found that the basic idea had never left me, and although it took me some time to work up to an advanced level, the experience I had when I was younger helped me greatly.

There are basic ideas that are in all programming languages, FOR, WHILE, IF, etc, that you must understand. You need to understand the concept of operators, and return values. These are very, very, very basic concepts that are sometimes difficult to put together for absolute beginners. If you are good with mathematics it should not be difficult for you, however.

Here is a book about general programming that has been recommended to me: http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Prog.../dp/020161622X

I believe books are good to start out with, because if you only study on your own from resources online, there is no telling what you may miss. Books are easier on the eyes to read, and there is a tendency to approach the material in the order it is presented. Once you have read a book about the subject, it will be easier to reference things online.

ok i am gonna buy these ebooks,because i really want to learn it,tnx for your answer

I just wanted to recommend getting actual books. E-books can get erased, you can't take them with you wherever you go and it's really, really a ***** to keep opening/closing windows when you're programming an example in the book. Read SAMS PHP in 5 hours. It honestly takes a lot more than 5 hours, but you will learn the language quickly, in a straightforward way that won't confuse you, and you will learn the basics you need to know so you can go off and learn advanced PHP on your own (it's easy when you know the basics). Just go to the library. It's free :P.

Originally Posted by Mattmaul1992

Just go to the library. It's free :P.

yes tnx,i didnt think about that

Ah that brings me back heh, I wanted to impress/**** a Geekette so I got a book from Amazon and learned the basics. Then I talked to other coders, looked at other peoples code and with the helps of php.net I was ok at php.