I am looking for suggestions for a textbook for an undergraduate class
introducing PHP and MySQL (using PHP, not MySQL administration). Right now
I am using the McCarty book "PHP 4 A Beginner's Guide" but there might be
new and/or better books out there?
Both my "PHP for the World Wide Web: Visual QuickStart Guide" and my "PHP and MySQL for Dynamic Web Sites: Visual QuickPro Guide" are being used for similar classes at Northwestern, Penn State, and in high schools. People say they're pretty good, particularly for beginners.
For the online PHP class I teach through Berkeley, I use one of Julie Meloni's PHP books (couldn't use my own, in case you were wondering). Her books are great for beginners, although there's a lot of overlap between the two so pick just one. Finally, the Welling/Thomson "PHP and MySQL for Web Development" (or something similar to that) is excellent. A bit more expensive and more advanced in focus, but very thorough and well written.
Hope that helps,
Larry