Web development has come a long way since the early 90's and dynamic content is now the leading way to go with all the information going around. One of the many dynamic languages out there is PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor or just known as PHP. PHP is a suitable web development language used for many CMS sites including this one here. PHP is an HTML-embedded scripting language. Much of its syntax is borrowed from C, Java and Perl with a couple of unique PHP-specific features.

Why should you learn how to program in PHP?

- Many people argue their sides to learning or not learning PHP but it really depends on what you are using it for. I learned it early on with HTML and stuck with it, which is why I like it so much. It can be used to replace other languages such as Coldfusion or ASP, but in the same context, could not be used to replace those same languages. PHP is a server side code and executes before displaying any results.

What is needed to use PHP?

- Most hosting servers now have either PHP4 or PHP5. If your host does not have PHP running, you can ask them to enable it or ask them to install the current versions avaliable. The current version can be found here http://us2.php.net/downloads.php.

What are the differences between PHP4 and PHP5?

- PHP4 is considered to be the current generation of PHP while PHP5 is still a very new and developing language. The biggest difference though between the two version are the Zend Engines powering each. Zend Engines in both are powerful but Zend Engine 2 inside PHP5 has much more OOP functions offered.

Now once PHP has been varified to be installed, you can write a simple page to see the various extensions that are installed along with it including the version of PHP you are running.

<?php
phpinfo();
?>

Copy paste this inside a new PHP file and Save As "phpinfo.php". (It really can be named whatever you want, but make sure you know what it is.) After that upload it if needed and test the page. It should render a lot of information describing different variables about your currently installed PHP. You can see what extensions your host is allowing you to use.

This is just an introduction on PHP, please visit the FAQ on PHP along with the other insightful tutorials to help you on your way with PHP.