Some pathetic first attempts at PHP scripting.Using the book PHP for the World Wide Web by Larry Ullman I am learning to do some really, really basic PHP. I don't kid myself that I'll ever do much with it; all I want right now is a feedback form and perhaps a few other features. I created this little easy form by following along with the book. Try it! It works, it really works. (Don't worry, it doesn't send any information to me. It's just a simple exercise.) I managed to do this after reading just a few pages of the book. Also, you'll notice that I have created a feedback form, thanks to this site. It actually works! But don't test it out unless you want to send me an email. I decided to attempt to learn PHP because most of my sites are hosted on Linux servers, which offer PHP. (Windows servers more often offer ASP and sometimes, ColdFusion.) Web hosts that use Linux are inexpensive, usually have many features I like (easy hotlink protection being a biggie for me) and there are so many of them available! Because I design my sites on a Mac, I can easily test my pages with the built-in server that comes with OS X. Following the instructions on this page, I managed to set up the PHP on my own Mac computer (PHP comes bundled with OS X.3 Panther, but you have to "enable" it). It took a bit of doing since you are required to edit stuff in (shudder) the Terminal (using Unix commands). But I eventually did it! (I used the "alternative" method as described on the link above.) I am not a very technically-minded person, so going into the "command line" world of Unix really sends chills down my spine. But it was okay. If I can do it, anyone can. Just read the directions carefully. (And do a backup before you start, just to make yourself feel better.) Having PHP installed on my home computer is a good thing because it makes it so much easier to test out current web projects, on my own Mac. I don't have to always upload it to my site, test it, and fiddle with it, uploading it each time, ad nauseam. Using a local testing server is a good thing. Return to Bearclover.com Home.
|