Learn PHP in 8 Weeks
Want to learn PHP? Let us break it down into a simple 8 week program. By spending just a few minutes every week, before you know it you'll know all the basics of this language. This is a great way to learn a new language over the summer, or any time! Each lesson is short, and can be read and mastered very quickly. You then have the rest of the week to reread and practice the skill before moving on to the next skill.
Let's get started!
Week 1:
Your first program - Your first PHP program will be the traditional "Hello World", the typical first program in any language you might learn. In this lesson you'll learn how to start and end a PHP file, as well as two different ways you can great the world. You will also learn how to format your hello using HTML right inside of your PHP.
Week 2:
Variables - In PHP, and all programming, you often use variables to represent other values. Variables can be used to represent anything from the total cost of a person bill to the name of the states where your customers reside. It is important to know how to use variables. This lesson gets you going with the basics of what variables are, and how you can use them in PHP programming.
Week 3:
Making choices - When you write a program you will often need the program to make some choices. For example, if you have a database with people's contact information you may want your program to do something different for people in New York than for people in Colorado.
All decisions in a computer program are based on Yes and No, there is no in between. This lesson teaches you how to write your program to make these decisions.
Week 4:
Commenting your code - Before you get too involved in programming, you need to learn how and why to put comments into your code. Commenting your code is very important, especially if you start working with a team, or start creating very large projects. This lesson shows you how to comment your code in PHP.
Week 5:
Date and Time - This week you learn how to use the date and time functions in PHP. You will learn how to pull a time stamp off the server, as well as how to create a time stamp for any date in the past or future. You will also learn how to format the time stamp into something easily read by human eyes.
Week 6:
Arrays - An array is similar to a variable in that it also holds information, but unlike a variable it holds a whole series of items instead of just one. This week we are going to learn more about arrays and how to use them.
Week 7:
Loops- Often in a computer program you will want to repeat the same thing over and over again. You may want to repeat it a set number of times, or you may want to perform an action on all of the data you have. Any time you are doing the same thing over and over again you probably want to use some type of loop. In this week's lesson we learn about the different types of loops you may want to use.
Week 8:
Functions - PHP has a number of built in functions that you can use while writing your program. When you need something more than just these basic functions, you need to write your own functions. In this lesson you will learn how to create your own functions in PHP.
Having completed these eight lessons you should now have a grasp on the basics of PHP programming. You can use this strong foundation to build upon. If you can master these concepts, then moving forward in any direction that suits you should be no problem!
Let's get started!
Week 1:
Your first program - Your first PHP program will be the traditional "Hello World", the typical first program in any language you might learn. In this lesson you'll learn how to start and end a PHP file, as well as two different ways you can great the world. You will also learn how to format your hello using HTML right inside of your PHP.
Week 2:
Variables - In PHP, and all programming, you often use variables to represent other values. Variables can be used to represent anything from the total cost of a person bill to the name of the states where your customers reside. It is important to know how to use variables. This lesson gets you going with the basics of what variables are, and how you can use them in PHP programming.
Week 3:
Making choices - When you write a program you will often need the program to make some choices. For example, if you have a database with people's contact information you may want your program to do something different for people in New York than for people in Colorado.
All decisions in a computer program are based on Yes and No, there is no in between. This lesson teaches you how to write your program to make these decisions.
Week 4:
Commenting your code - Before you get too involved in programming, you need to learn how and why to put comments into your code. Commenting your code is very important, especially if you start working with a team, or start creating very large projects. This lesson shows you how to comment your code in PHP.
Week 5:
Date and Time - This week you learn how to use the date and time functions in PHP. You will learn how to pull a time stamp off the server, as well as how to create a time stamp for any date in the past or future. You will also learn how to format the time stamp into something easily read by human eyes.
Week 6:
Arrays - An array is similar to a variable in that it also holds information, but unlike a variable it holds a whole series of items instead of just one. This week we are going to learn more about arrays and how to use them.
Week 7:
Loops- Often in a computer program you will want to repeat the same thing over and over again. You may want to repeat it a set number of times, or you may want to perform an action on all of the data you have. Any time you are doing the same thing over and over again you probably want to use some type of loop. In this week's lesson we learn about the different types of loops you may want to use.
Week 8:
Functions - PHP has a number of built in functions that you can use while writing your program. When you need something more than just these basic functions, you need to write your own functions. In this lesson you will learn how to create your own functions in PHP.
Having completed these eight lessons you should now have a grasp on the basics of PHP programming. You can use this strong foundation to build upon. If you can master these concepts, then moving forward in any direction that suits you should be no problem!
