PHP Basics

AGENDA
1.What is PHP?
2.What is a PHP File?
3.Why PHP?
4.Basic PHP Syntax
5.Variables in PHP
6.Arrays in PHP
7.PHP Functions
8.File Handling
9.Cookies
10.Sessions
11.My SQL Intro
12.Error Handling
13.Conclusion
What is PHP?
• PHP stands for PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor
• PHP is a server-side scripting language, like
ASP
• PHP scripts are executed on the server
• PHP supports many databases (MySQL,
Informix, Oracle, Sybase, Solid,
PostgreSQL, Generic ODBC, etc.)
• PHP is an open source software
• PHP is free to download and use
What is a PHP File?
• PHP files can contain text, HTML tags
and scripts
• PHP files are returned to the browser
as plain HTML
• PHP files have a file extension of
".php", ".php3", or ".phtml“
Why PHP?
• PHP runs on different platforms
(Windows, Linux, Unix, etc.)
• PHP is compatible with almost all
servers used today (Apache, IIS, etc.)
• PHP is FREE to download from the
official PHP resource: www.php.net
• PHP is easy to learn and runs
efficiently on the server side
Basic PHP Syntax
• A PHP scripting block always starts with <?php and ends with
?>
• A PHP scripting block can be placed anywhere in the

document.
. <?php
?>
• A PHP file normally contains HTML tags, just like an HTML

file, and some PHP scripting code.
An example of a simple PHP script which
sends the text "Hello World" to the browser
<html>
<body>
<?php
echo "Hello World";
?>
</body>
</html>
• Each code line in PHP must end with a semicolon.
• The semicolon is a separator and is used to distinguish

one set of instructions from another.
• There are two basic statements to output text with PHP:

echo and print.
• In the example above we have used the echo statement

to output the text "Hello World".
• The file must have a .php extension.
• If the file has a .html extension, the PHP code will not be
executed.
Variables in PHP
• Variables are used for storing a values, like text strings,

numbers or arrays.
• When a variable is declared, it can be used over and over

again in your script.
• All variables in PHP start with a $ sign symbol.
• The correct way of declaring a variable in PHP:
• $var_name = value;
Example:
<?php
$txt="Hello World!";
$x=16;
?>
• PHP is a Loosely Typed Language
• In PHP, a variable does not need to be

declared before adding a value to it.
• PHP automatically converts the variable to

the correct data type, depending on its
value.
• In PHP, the variable is declared

automatically when you use it.
Naming Rules for Variables
• A variable name must start with a letter or an

underscore "_"
• A variable name can only contain alpha-numeric

characters and underscores (a-z, A-Z, 0-9, and _ )
• A variable name should not contain spaces.
• If a variable name is more than one word, it should

be separated with an underscore ($my_string), or
with capitalization ($myString)
What is an Array?
An array is a special variable, which can hold

more than one value, at a time
• $cars1="Saab";
• $cars2="Volvo";
• $cars3="BMW";
In PHP, there are three kind of arrays:
• Numeric array - An array with a numeric index

• Associative array - An array where each ID key is
associated with a value
• Multidimensional array - An array containing one
or more arrays
PHP Functions
To keep the browser from executing a
script when the page loads, you can put
your script into a function.
• A function will be executed by a call to the
function.
Syntax:
function functionName()
{
code to be executed;
}
Example:
<html>
<body>
<?php
function writeName()
{
echo “ ragavan;
}
echo “this is ";

writeName();
?>
</body>
</html>
Output:
This is ragavan
PHP $_GET Function
The built-in $_GET function is used to

collect values from a form sent with
method="get“
When using method="get" in HTML forms,

all variable names and values are displayed
in the URL
Note: This method should not be used

when sending passwords or other sensitive
information
PHP $_POST Function
The built-in $_POST function is used to collect values from a

form sent with method="post“
Information sent from a form with the POST method is
invisible to others and has no limits on the amount of
information to send
Example:
<form action="welcome.php" method="post">
Name: <input type="text" name="fname" />
Age: <input type="text" name="age" />
<input type="submit" />
</form>
When the user clicks the "Submit" button, the URL will look like
this:
• http://www.w3schools.com/welcome.php
The PHP $_REQUEST Function
• The $_REQUEST function can be used to collect form data

sent with both the GET and POST methods
Example:
Welcome <?php echo $_REQUEST["fname"]; ?>!<br />
You are <?php echo $_REQUEST["age"]; ?> years old
PHP Date() Function

The PHP date() function is used to format a time and/or date
Some other functions
• PHP include() Function
The include() function takes all
the content in a specified file and
includes it in the current file
• PHP require() Function
The require() function is identical
to include(), except that it handles
errors differently
PHP File Handling
The fopen() function is used to open
files in PHP
Syntax:
fopen("welcome.txt","r")
The first parameter specifies the name

of the file and the second specifies in
which the mode should be opened
Modes Description
• r Read only. Starts at the beginning of the file
• r+ Read/Write. Starts at the beginning of the file
• w Write only. Opens and clears the contents of
file; or creates a new file if it doesn't exist
• w+ Read/Write. Opens and clears the contents of
file; or creates a new file if it doesn't exist
• a Append. Opens and writes to the end of the file
or creates a new file if it doesn't exist
• a+ Read/Append. Preserves file content by writing
to the end of the file
• x Write only. Creates a new file. Returns FALSE
and an error if file already exists
• x+ Read/Write. Creates a new file. Returns FALSE
and an error if file already exists
Closing a File
The fclose() function is used to close an open

file:
<?php
$file = fopen("test.txt","r");
//some code to be executed
fclose($file);
?>
Check End-of-file
• The feof() function checks if the "end-

of-file" (EOF) has been reached
• The feof() function is useful for

looping through data of unknown
length
What is a Cookie?
• A cookie is often used to identify a user.

• A cookie is a small file that the server
embeds on the user's computer. Each time
the same computer requests a page with a
browser, it will send the cookie too.
• With PHP, you can both create and retrieve
cookie values.
• The setcookie() function is used to set a
cookie
Continue…
The setcookie() function must appear
BEFORE the <html> tag
Syntax
• setcookie(name, value, expire, path,
domain);
The PHP $_COOKIE variable is used to
retrieve a cookie value
When deleting a cookie you should
assure that the expiration date is in
the past
PHP Sessions
A PHP session variable is used to store
information about, or change settings for a
user session
Session variables hold
information about one single user, and are
available to all pages in one application
Sessions work by creating a unique id

(UID) for each visitor and store variables
based on this UID.
The UID is either stored in a cookie or is

propagated in the URL.
• Starting a PHP Session
• Before you can store user information in your
PHP session, you must first start up the
session
• The correct way to store and retrieve session
variables is to use the PHP $_SESSION
variable
• <?php
• session_start();
• // store session data
• $_SESSION['views']=1;
• ?>
• The unset() function is used to free the
specified session variable
syntax
<?php
unset($_SESSION['views']);
?>
You can also completely destroy the session by

calling the session_destroy() function
syntax
<?php
session_destroy();
?>
PHP MySQL Introduction
• MySQL is the most popular open-source database system
• The data in MySQL is stored in database objects called

tables.
• A table is a collections of related data entries and it

consists of columns and rows
• A database most often contains one or more tables
• Tables contain records (rows) with data.

Queries
• A query is a question or a request
• With MySQL, we can query a database

for specific information and have a
recordset returned
SELECT LastName FROM Persons
• The query above selects all the data in

the "LastName" column from the
"Persons" table, and will return the
lastname
PHP MySQL Connect to a Database
Before you can access data in a
database, you must create a

connection to the database
In PHP, this is done with the

mysql_connect() function
Syntax
• mysql_connect(servername,username,pass
word);
Continues….
Parameter Description :
• servername Optional. Specifies the server to

connect to. Default value is "localhost:3306"
• username Optional. Specifies the username to log

in with. Default value is the name of the user that
owns the server process
• Password Optional. Specifies the password to log

in with. Default is ""
PHP Error Handling
• When creating scripts and web
applications,error checking code
should be included.
Error handling methods
• Simple "die()" statements
• Custom errors and error triggers
• Error reporting
die statement:
<?php
if(!file_exists("welcome.txt"))
{
die("File not found");
}
else
{
$file=fopen("welcome.txt","r");
}
?>
Creating a Custom Error Handler
Create a special function that can be called

when an error occurs in PHP.
Function handle two parameters(error

level and error message) but can accept up
to five parameters (optionally: file, line-
number, and the error context)
Syntax:
error_function(error_level,error_message,
error_file,error_line,error_context)
• Trigger an Error
In a script where users can input data it is useful to

trigger errors when an illegal input occurs
In PHP, this is done by the trigger_error() function
<?php
$test=2;
if ($test>1)
{
trigger_error("Value must be 1 or below");
}
?>
Output:
Notice: Value must be 1 or below
in C:\webfolder\test.php on line 6
Conclusion
• Hence it’s a powerful tool for making interactive
and dynamic web pages
• It is widely used free and also efficient alternative
to competitor such as Microsoft’s ASP
• PHP scripts are used in three main areas such as
Server side scripting, command-line scripting and
in desktop applications
• It is compatible with almost all servers
today(Apache,IIS etc)
• PHP runs on different
platforms(UNIX,LINUX,Windows etc..)
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AGENDA

• A PHP scripting block can be placed anywhere in the

• A PHP file normally contains HTML tags, just like an HTML

• The semicolon is a separator and is used to distinguish

• There are two basic statements to output text with PHP:

• In the example above we have used the echo statement

• The file must have a .php extension.

• Variables are used for storing a values, like text strings,

• When a variable is declared, it can be used over and over

• All variables in PHP start with a $ sign symbol.

• The correct way of declaring a variable in PHP:

• In PHP, a variable does not need to be

• PHP automatically converts the variable to

• In PHP, the variable is declared

• A variable name must start with a letter or an

• A variable name can only contain alpha-numeric

• A variable name should not contain spaces.

• If a variable name is more than one word, it should

An array is a special variable, which can hold

In PHP, there are three kind of arrays:

• Numeric array - An array with a numeric index

echo “this is ";

The built-in $_GET function is used to

When using method="get" in HTML forms,

Note: This method should not be used

The built-in $_POST function is used to collect values from a

• The $_REQUEST function can be used to collect form data

PHP Date() Function

The first parameter specifies the name

The fclose() function is used to close an open

//some code to be executed

• The feof() function checks if the "end-

• The feof() function is useful for

• A cookie is often used to identify a user.

Sessions work by creating a unique id

The UID is either stored in a cookie or is

You can also completely destroy the session by

• MySQL is the most popular open-source database system

• The data in MySQL is stored in database objects called

• A table is a collections of related data entries and it

• A database most often contains one or more tables

• Tables contain records (rows) with data.

• A query is a question or a request

• With MySQL, we can query a database

SELECT LastName FROM Persons

• The query above selects all the data in

Before you can access data in a

database, you must create a

In PHP, this is done with the

• servername Optional. Specifies the server to

• username Optional. Specifies the username to log

• Password Optional. Specifies the password to log

Create a special function that can be called

Function handle two parameters(error

In a script where users can input data it is useful to

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