Practical PHP Programming:Writing PHP
From IpbWiki
While it is almost certain that you read this book to learn the PHP programming language, I believe that there is a lot more to learning a language than just memorising its syntax and functions. For example, learning to program to a fixed style means your code will be easier to maintain by yourself and by others, and learning to debug properly means your code will have fewer bugs and you will have fewer headaches.
This chapter is designed to fill you in on the practical aspects of being a PHP programmer, and should hopefully make your programming life easier, as well as help you find and solve problems with the minimum of fuss.
The topics covered in this chapter are:
- How to analyse your system requirements
- Using a development tool to help you code
- File layout schemes and group development
- Documentation and testing
- Distribution your code and licensing your work
- How to debug your scripts
- Troubleshooting hints and tips
- Where to get help if you still have a problem
Chapter contents
- 18.1. Practical_PHP_Programming:The design process
- 18.2. Practical_PHP_Programming:Which IDEs are good
- 18.2.1. Practical_PHP_Programming:Line numbering
- 18.2.2. Practical_PHP_Programming:Syntax highlighting
- 18.2.3. Practical_PHP_Programming:Online help
- 18.2.4. Practical_PHP_Programming:Code insight
- 18.2.5. Practical_PHP_Programming:Interactive debugging
- 18.2.6. Practical_PHP_Programming:Profiling
- 18.2.7. Practical_PHP_Programming:Popular IDEs
- 18.3. Practical_PHP_Programming:Laying out your files
- 18.4. Practical_PHP_Programming:Group development
- 18.5. Practical_PHP_Programming:Documenting your project
- 18.6. Practical_PHP_Programming:Checking your syntax
- 18.7. Practical_PHP_Programming:Distributing your code
- 18.7.1. Practical_PHP_Programming:Charging for your work
- 18.7.2. Practical_PHP_Programming:PHP Encoders
- 18.7.3. Practical_PHP_Programming:Loading extensions at runtime
- 18.7.4. Practical_PHP_Programming:Operating system-specific extensions
- 18.7.5. Practical_PHP_Programming:Path and line separators
- 18.7.6. Practical_PHP_Programming:Coping with php.ini differences
- 18.7.7. Practical_PHP_Programming:Checking the PHP version
- 18.8. Practical_PHP_Programming:Debugging
- 18.8.1. Practical_PHP_Programming:What is a bug?
- 18.8.2. Practical_PHP_Programming:The most basic debugging technique
- 18.8.3. Practical_PHP_Programming:Making assertions
- 18.8.4. Practical_PHP_Programming:Triggering your own errors
- 18.8.5. Practical_PHP_Programming:Source highlighting
- 18.8.6. Practical_PHP_Programming:Handling MySQL errors
- 18.8.7. Practical_PHP_Programming:Exception handling
- 18.8.8. Practical_PHP_Programming:Backtracing your code
- 18.8.9. Practical_PHP_Programming:Debuggers
- 18.8.10. Practical_PHP_Programming:Custom error handlers
- 18.8.11. Practical_PHP_Programming:Custom exception handlers
- 18.8.12. Practical_PHP_Programming:Temporarily disabling errors
- 18.8.13. Practical_PHP_Programming:Getting information about your PHP configuration
- 18.9. Practical_PHP_Programming:Debugging practice
- 18.10. Practical_PHP_Programming:Coding style
- 18.11. Practical_PHP_Programming:Output style
- 18.12. Practical_PHP_Programming:Troubleshooting
- 18.13. Practical_PHP_Programming:Getting Help
- 18.13.1. Practical_PHP_Programming:The documentation
- 18.13.2. Practical_PHP_Programming:Mailing lists
- 18.13.3. Practical_PHP_Programming:Websites
- 18.13.4. Practical_PHP_Programming:IRC
- 18.13.5. Practical_PHP_Programming:Conferences
- 18.13.7. Practical_PHP_Programming:Submitting a bug
- 18.13.8. Practical_PHP_Programming:Contacting the author
- 18.14. Practical_PHP_Programming:Getting qualified