Customer Reviews

PHP for the World Wide Web: Visual QuickStart Guide

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Larry Ullman provides a clear and excellent intro to PHP in this 2nd edition. I am a beginnning programmer and I have found this to be not only a really clear introduction, but also a reference manual as I go along.

Plus, the author has created an online discussion forum that is actually active and works.

From my somewhat thorough review, this is the best intro PHP book out there!

Joshua
Ogden Little Bags
http://www.ogdenlittle.com

This is the third PHP book I read and covers PHP versions 4 and 5. I worked through all its examples without any problems. Somebody reviewing it said there were errors, but I did not find them using PHP V4.3.2. Following the examples were a lot easier than in other computer books, like Visual Basic 6 by Petroutsos, which I had to abandon three years ago for lack of error-free exercises.

The VQS format appears to waste a lot of space, but it has its advantages. There is never any doubt what the script has to be, because it is repeated in its entirety even when only a few lines change. Some books cut this short, and give frugal explanation for what the clear script should be. In the end, one often wastes time in such cases.

I have the PHP Manual on my hard disk, and consulting it aids in extending the applications on hand. Once I learned the examples in the book, I was able to extend the scripts, make them more versatile and produce more attractive displays.

I started out stating it is my third book on PHP, and reading this book serves as an in-depth review. This book clarified some of the features I thought I learned before. This does not imply that one must have used other PHP books previously. It is an excellent first book on PHP. Of course, one should know some HTML before using this book.

Because of the VQS format I would like to rate this four and a half stars, even though the format improves on clarity. Even with this view, the book deserves five-stars.

This book is great for those new to PHP. I came in with only a little knowledge of HTML, and came out with the basics of PHP + better HTML skills. If you want to learn PHP's basics fast before you use a more complex book, this should be your choice. Its cheap, and a great learning utility along with reference. I recommend it for everyone who wants to learn PHP with close to no knowledge of any other languages.

just a quick addition to my review. i noticed that the badly needed 2nd edition i said was needed is indeed coming out in january of 2004. do yourself a favor and wait for it if you can.

I am familar with Perl and shell scripting but decided to purchase this since I had no familiarity with PHP.

The book is too simplistic if you currently know the basics of programming such as loops, if/else, how to assign variables and the like. So if you can write a Perl script or a shell script of medium complexity I would skip this book and look for something more advanced.

In addition to this, it is pretty obvious that this book was written for PHP version 3 and then a few paragraphs added to say it is version 4 compliant. I would say they need a new edition of this book to really say it covers version 4. The most annoying and obvious example of this is how values are passed from a form to a PHP script. There is a major change between version 3 and 4 and the book only uses version 3 examples. If you go to the author's web site there is an errata section that tells you how to do it in version 4. The problem is, since you are just learning PHP, you will probably spend a good 30 minutes thinking you are screwing up somehow before you realize the book is wrong. Then after you figure it out you have to constantly do things a different way throughout the entire book and it is not always straight forward.

2 years ago this book would probably be a solid 4 stars perhaps even 5. Now in late 2003 going on 2004 it is outdated and riddled with known errors. It is in dire need of a new edition to bring it up to date. If you have very little experience with scripting/programming, don't mind checking a website a couple times each chapter for errors, and are strapped on cash, this book is not so bad. Otherwise I would recommend you look elsewhere.

Unlike many other programming books, "PHP For the World Wide Web" takes the high-quality low-fluff approach to introducing readers to PHP. Don't let the small size of the book fool you; it is jam-packed with the most important information you'll need to start programming in PHP right away. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned programmer, this book will take you step-by-step through the core concepts of the language in the least amount of pages possible. It's hard to say if the shortness of the book is due to the teaching mastery of Larry Ullman or the genius of the PHP language. Either way, this book will serve as an excellent tutorial and great reference guide for future projects.

PHP is very similar to other languages and my programming background made learning PHP much easier. However, this book's approach and working examples should serve as an excellent tutorial for beginners as well as programmers. Keep in mind that the book is designed to give you a working knowledge of the language and is not a comprehensive course on PHP programming. After reading the book, however, you will be in a much better position to continue your PHP education through PHP's homepage (PHP.net), learning additional functions and techniques as your projects dictate (and as the PHP language continues to grow).

(To me, the chapter on databases alone was worth the price of the book. PHP is amazing when it comes to building web-based applications around databases and this book gives you what you need to get started as well using files and directories, cookies and even an intro on creating web applications.)

Visual Quickstart guides are incredibly clear and easy-to-use. This book tackles basic PHP features like date functions and making text appear on screen, goes through conditions and loops and includes more advanced chapters on arrays, basic MySQL integration, cookies, and dealing with external files.

I've always found it easier to try to figure things out from examples - this book displays clear code examples with explanations side-by-side. Highlighting the new code examples in red is a real help.

This book can get you from no knowledge of PHP to an impressive intermediate level in just a few days, even if you don't have a background in programming or scripting.

Finally - while there's no CD, the accompanying website allows you to download the script examples chapter-by-chapter.

After a good deal of searching for a good PHP book, I finally found this one. It's a great book, yeah, and I went through it without problem and found the layout of the book extremely easy to understand. For beginners, Ullman did a very good job of explaining the -basics- of PHP.

That said, after a good number of phrases like 'beyond the scope of this book', I grew to feel like it was just meant to be a stepping stone for PHP Advanced for the World Wide Web. The object-oriented side of PHP was not discussed, along with other aspects of the language. Ullman often tells you to go to various sites (including the PHP home page) instead of explaining it himself, which I found particularly annoying. I did not buy the book to be redirected to other sites I could have gone to anyway.

The examples, although I don't feel that they are an important aspect of the book, are usually pretty useless. This is something I have found with a lot of the Visual Quickstart books, but I don't feel that it should bring the book's value down much.

Overall, PHP for the World Wide Web is a useful book if you don't mind spending [$] to learn the very basics of PHP.

This book is very easy to use. It's organized so that you can go right to the stuff you need. Some of the examples continue from previous chapters but they are clear enough that you can apply them to your needs at any point. The companion website it amazing. The author moderates a forum where he and other knowledgable PHP'ers respond with useful, thoughtful suggestions very quickly.

Some of the code is outdated because of new releases of PHP, but that's the nature of the topic. The website identifies many of the most important changes, and how to modify your scripts to work with newer releases.

I'm glad I bought it when I did, but the author has since come out with "PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites." I'd probably buy that instead since I'm also trying to learn mySQL.

Easy to follow and useful subject matter I've been able to put to use right away. The book's companion website forums were (and are) active with other folks of varying skill levels ready to offer help and feedback as I worked through the sample scripts in the book.