PHP (recursive acronym for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor) is a widely-used open source general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited for web development and can be embedded into HTML. The advantage of learning this programming language is that unlike, other programming languages this is simple for a new comer, but at the same time offers many advanced features for a professional programmer. PHP is a widely-used, free, and efficient alternative to competitors such as Microsoft's ASP.

What Can PHP Do?

• PHP can generate dynamic page content
• PHP can create, open, read, write, and close files on the server
• PHP can collect form data
• PHP can send and receive cookies
• PHP can add, delete, modify data in your database
• PHP can restrict users to access some pages on your website
• PHP can encrypt data

With PHP you are not limited to output HTML. You can output images, PDF files, and even Flash movies. You can also output any text, such as XHTML and XML.

Advantages of PHP

• PHP is Open Source.
• It is Fast, Stable and Secure.
• PHP supports many databases (MySQL, Informix, Oracle, Sybase, Solid,SQL Generic ODBC, etc.)
• PHP runs on different platforms (Windows, Linux, Unix, etc.)
• PHP is compatible with almost all servers used today (Apache, IIS, etc.)
• It is very easy to learn because PHP is based on C++ language and the syntax used in PHP is quite similar to C/C++.
• Loosely typed language, Non-case sensitive.
• It is free to download and use.

Who can learn PHP?

Freshers, MCA, BCA, BE, Btech, ME, Mtech, Bsc, MSc, non technical background students. Working corporate who wants to shift into web development.