Fundamentals of PHP
What do I need?
▫ To start using PHP, you can:
▫ Find a web host with PHP and
MySQL support
▫ Install a web server on your own PC,
and then install PHP and MySQL
2
Basic PHP Syntax
▫ A PHP script can be placed anywhere in
the document.
▫ A PHP script starts with <?php and
ends with ?>
3
Basic PHP Syntax
▫ The default file extension for PHP files
is ".php".
▫ A PHP file normally contains HTML
tags, and some PHP scripting code.
4
Example:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<h1>My first PHP page</h1>
<?php
echo "Hello World!";
?>
</body>
</html> 5
PHP Case Sensitivity
▫ In PHP, NO keywords (e.g. if, else, while,
echo, etc.), classes, functions, and user-
defined functions are case-sensitive.
▫ Note: However; all variable names are
case-sensitive!
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Example:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<?php
$color = "red";
echo "My car is " . $color . "<br>";
echo "My house is " . $COLOR . "<br>";
echo "My boat is " . $coLOR . "<br>";
?>
</body>
</html> 7
Comments in PHP
▫ A comment in PHP code is a line that is
not executed as a part of the program.
Its only purpose is to be read by
someone who is looking at the code.
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Comments can be used to:
▫ Let others understand your code
▫ Remind yourself of what you did - Most
programmers have experienced coming back
to their own work a year or two later and
having to re-figure out what they did.
Comments can remind you of what you were
thinking when you wrote the code
9
Syntax for single-line comments:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<?php
// This is a single-line comment
# This is also a single-line comment
?>
</body>
</html>
10
Syntax for multiple-line comments:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<?php
/*
This is a multiple-lines comment block
that spans over multiple
lines
*/
?>
</body>
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</html>
Using comments to leave out parts of
the code:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<body>
<?php
// You can also use comments to leave out parts of a code line
$x = 5 /* + 15 */ + 5;
echo $x;
?>
</body>
</html>
12
PHP Variables
▫ Variables are "containers" for storing
information.
13
Creating (Declaring) PHP Variables
▫ In PHP, a variable starts with the $ sign,
followed by the name of the variable:
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Example:
<?php
$txt = "Hello world!";
$x = 5;
$y = 10.5;
?>
15
PHP Variables
▫ A variable can have a short name (like x
and y) or a more descriptive name (age,
carname, total_volume).
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Rules for PHP variables:
▫ A variable starts with the $ sign,
followed by the name of the variable
▫ A variable name must start with a letter
or the underscore character
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Rules for PHP variables:
▫ A variable name cannot start with a number
▫ A variable name can only contain alpha-
numeric characters and underscores (A-z,
0-9, and _ )
▫ Variable names are case-sensitive ($age
and $AGE are two different variables)
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PHP is a Loosely Typed Language
▫ PHP automatically associates a data
type to the variable, depending on its
value. Since the data types are not set
in a strict sense, you can do things like
adding a string to an integer without
causing an error.
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PHP Variables Scope
▫ In PHP, variables can be declared
anywhere in the script.
▫ The scope of a variable is the part of
the script where the variable can be
referenced/used.
20
PHP has three different variable scopes:
1. local
2. global
3. static
21
Global and Local Scope
▫ A variable declared outside a function
has a GLOBAL SCOPE and can only be
accessed outside a function:
22
Example:
<?php
$x = 5; // global scope
function myTest() {
//using x inside this function will generate an error
echo "<p>Variable x inside function is: $x</p>";
}
myTest();
echo "<p>Variable x outside function is: $x</p>";
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?>
Global and Local Scope
▫ A variable declared within a function
has a LOCAL SCOPE and can only be
accessed within that function:
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Example:
<?php
function myTest() {
$x = 5; // local scope
echo "<p>Variable x inside function is: $x</p>";
}
myTest();
// using x outside the function will generate an
error
echo "<p>Variable x outside function is: $x</p>";
?>
25
The global Keyword
▫ The global keyword is used to access a
global variable from within a function.
▫ To do this, use the global keyword
before the variables (inside the
function):
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Example:
<?php
$x = 5;
$y = 10;
function myTest() {
global $x, $y;
$y = $x + $y;
}
myTest();
echo $y; // outputs 15
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?>
The static Keyword
▫ Normally, when a function is
completed/executed, all of its variables
are deleted. However, sometimes we
want a local variable NOT to be deleted.
We need it for a further job.
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The static Keyword
▫ To do this, use the static keyword when
you first declare the variable:
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Example:
<?php
function myTest() {
static $x = 0;
echo $x;
$x++;
}
myTest();
myTest();
myTest();
?> 30
PHP echo and print Statements
▫ With PHP, there are two basic ways to
get output: echo and print.
▫ echo and print are more or less the
same. They are both used to output
data to the screen.
31
PHP echo and print Statements
▫ The differences are small: echo has no
return value while print has a return
value of 1 so it can be used in
expressions.
32
PHP echo and print Statements
▫ echo can take multiple parameters
(although such usage is rare) while print
can take one argument. echo is
marginally faster than print.
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