PHP is a very cool scripting language for the Web. I like it because it allows you to concentrate on the content rather than the details of programming. In other words, you can create a normal HTML page, then drop in bits of PHP where some smarts are needed. That also makes it a good language for fast prototyping. I am currently working on a few projects using PHP, so stay tuned.
The first project is for multi-lingual web pages, where the user can choose which language(s) to display. You can see it in action on the 3x3 Eyes Digest Music pages. Select one of the CDs to view the track listing in Japanese, romanized Japanese, and English. This code is done, but I need to package it up. There's some other PHP code on that site, but it's all pretty simple.
Also in development is a simple PHP page that displays a CSV file as an HTML table. This will be used to display my LD and DVD collection, using the output of the Access database. The project has been delayed because the database is out-of-date, so I need to sit down with a pile of receipts and do some data entry.
I was planning a large database-backed web site based on PHP and SQL. This has been pushed back a bit due to design questions, but I may eventually get it going. I worked on a small PHP/SQL site at work, and it was surprisingly easy to get up and running. I think I might start with something simple like a specialized messageboard.
All of my PHP code will be released under the GNU General Public License, and I hope to provide support and regular updates.
© David Park