Hello, I have learned HTML on my own but was wondering: is there anyway I could learn PHP on my own or will I need college? I feel a little intimidated about PHP because there are so many security risks that I could open up making my own script...if you have any suggestions, please let me know (like tutorials, advice, etc.)

Thanks a lot!

I would recommend getting a book on it; that is how I learned.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/MySQL-Dynami...9078696&sr=8-3 << this is the book I used. I also recommend XAMPP (A server simulator kinda thing) as it makes editing code a lot faster and the environment is safer.

I'm not sure what college is like where you are, but where I am (UK) a ICT course tends to not even cover web development. That and the techniques there teaching you could be old (like my college (they still work in tables!)).

It really is up to you though, I'm self taught and I loved working at my own pace.

I'm not quite 2 years into college, and I've learned all of my PHP outside of classes in just the past year, primarily by creating my own sites. I'm not even aware of a PHP class that my college offers. Just install a local webserver (like XAMPP) or buy some cheap PHP hosting ($3/mo), and dive into it.

One of the tutorials I remember using to get started was
http://www.tizag.com/phpT/. You will learn the basic syntax of PHP from there, and http://www.tizag.com/mysqlTutorial/ helps with using MySQL together with PHP. If you've done other programming before like C or even VB, it shouldn't be too tough. After that, I think the best kind of tutorial is to pick something relatively simple (like a simple blog), and create it from scratch using PHP and a MySQL table. From there, it's really all about practice.

As for security, I don't think it's something I would fret about too much in start. It IS very important, but don't let it bog you down to get started. This stickied thread has a few links to the most common security issues.

I didn't learn from a book, but it might actually be a good idea. A book would likely contain useful information such as object-oriented concepts and web security that are not as often found in online tutorials.

Frost has yet again out done me with a good response :P

I started with a cookbook to PHP what explained it most of the way, once I got a good grip on PHP (making simple CMS's, blogs and so on) I just into MySQL, once I got a good understanding of mysql I made me a "MySQL Query Generator".

I think coding is one of these things best learned on your own (techniques wise) as once you get a goood understanding you can make almost anything.

Of course not! Assess your learning methods. Do you learn best when reading a book, or trying something out yourself. Learning PHP involves a mix of both, but the percentage of time you spend on either will depend on how you learn best.

I'm learning a lot of PHP now by working practically with PHP. Reading a few online tutorials to get the concepts and then putting them into practice. It really helps if you have previous programming knowledge of some sort. If you don't, then I recommend more book/online tutorial reading so that you can grasp how and why everything works.

College courses though are not necessary, and you may find it better to learn on your own at your own pace. I also recommend discussing things with a knowledgeable PHP programmer so that you can get them to help you point out errors and everything, and help you learn yourself.

Dan

They don't teach PHP at my university, but going to college made it much much easier for me to pick up PHP. Of course there's no reason why you can't just pick up a book and learn it on your own.

Like the majority, I learned PHP from tutorials and looking through other downloadable scripts as an example and guidance. I never done any other programming style before then, but was originally inspired by a colleague of mine.

All it takes is a desire to learn, and you will. In a matter of time, it will just start to "click" and then you will begin to master it.

PHP is one of the easiest scripting languages to work with. Once you start diving into it, you will see how other languages become more clear such as javascript for example.

Just pick up a book at Borders or an eBook and you can get started .

Thanks

Or you can simple go here: http://www.php.net/ thats where i began.

I have a degree - in mathematics. I minored in CIS (Computer Information Systems). I learned a lot of valuable information about algorithms and calculational efficiency (i.e. "Big-O"). I have friends who received their degrees in CIS from the same college. None of us learned about web technologies and most of the teaching was done by people whose degrees were issued at least a decade before the web as we know it today. A degree is optional. A degree does, however, provide you with a solid foundation in other programming concepts which are timeless: OOP, Big-O, data structures, memory management, ... If you want to code, just read things online. If you want to code well, get a degree. Is the money worth it? Probably not if you're comparing money earned (except where you're working for a company which specifically pays you based on educational background, but I'm assuming you work for yourself, as do I). I, however, value the quality of my code and so the degree was worth it (and the $150/mo payments on the loans).

BTW: This is coming from a guy who slept through his advanced data structures class to be awoken by the instructor when he/she got stuck. One day I'll tell you about when one of those instructors irritated me. Quite funny, actually (but, only for a nerd.)

I'm 14 and I would say that I knew a fair bit of PHP - a little dedication and practice is really all you need. I always advocate a bit of book reading though - my local library is particularly useful for that for me - just choose some books on PHP from yours (make sure they're fairly up to date though) and start reading. It depends how much you'd like to spend I suppose, my cost so far - £0.00 (or $0.00 if you prefer).

Im still definetly a beginner but the best and EASTIEST website with the most straightforward instruction I have found is www.w3schools.org. I love those guys :P.