Where to start

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lance_kidd
Forum Newbie
Posts: 5
Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2011 2:34 am

Where to start

Post by lance_kidd »

Hi,
I am thirty seven and attend a small community college where I am majoring in computer technology with a focus on web design. I'm taking a PHP class this semester (and am done with all the assignments), but have not learned a whole lot. I guess no one can learn it all in three months. I also took Java this semester and these were the first two programming classes or experience with programming that I've ever had.

My question is: How did you guys learn all this? Did you take classes, read books, or what? I know HTML and CSS like the back of my hand and create full web pages with just a text editor, but I'm wondering where I should really start to get a good grasp on PHP. I want to learn it well enough to be able to pick apart and manipulate WordPress and Joomla any way that I choose, or at least understand what it is I'm reading in all these files.

What do you guys suggest? The book we're currently using is PHP 5/MYSQL Programming by Andy Harris. Actually, a lot of what we were taught is actually deprecated.

Thanks for any suggestions!
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social_experiment
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Posts: 2793
Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 11:08 am
Location: .za

Re: Where to start

Post by social_experiment »

PHPDN is a good start; lots of experienced users, different view on different subjects and lots of experience that you probably wouldn't read about in published works.

The php manual is a must for reference and to learn more about functions, classes, etc. You can find it at php.net but if you can, download a copy somewhere. The book i used to get started was PHP in 24 Hours by Matt Zandstra, an old book but it gave a good explanation of the basics. Apart from that i read anything i could find about PHP. I didn't take classes, my knowledge on php is self-taught and experience from working with php in the last few years.
“Don’t worry if it doesn’t work right. If everything did, you’d be out of a job.” - Mosher’s Law of Software Engineering
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Celauran
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Joined: Tue Nov 09, 2010 2:39 pm
Location: Montreal, Canada

Re: Where to start

Post by Celauran »

If you want books, read this, then this.

Another great way to learn is to pick a project and just build it. Don't pick something you know will be easy because you'll get bored and won't learn anything. Pick something you think will be interesting and useful. That gives you the motivation to finish it, and the hard parts can be a good learning experience and a fun challenge at the same time.
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