Not for 'how-to' coding questions but PHP theory instead, this forum is here for those of us who wish to learn about design aspects of programming with PHP.
I also steer clear of using existing code. I get pleasure from knowing I can write anything from scratch.
It also helps for the job market... would you hire a mechanic that can only install engines or a mechanic that can actually take em apart and rebuild em?
I'm sure one day I'll use some functionality of a library system but until then I enjoy building my own.
I also build my own. I have been burned too many times with buggy code and I have found it's tough to fix someone else's code, it's easier to fix my own code.
I wish I was the type of person that could just take code as is, but I have to know how it works.