Event #4466: Columbus, OH PHP Training

Date: 2010-12-10 Country: USA Category: Training URL: http://www.wjgilmore.com/training/event/ten_steps_to_php_mastery This December 10, 2010 Workshop will be held in Columbus, OH at a cost of just $85! Join PHP expert and bestselling author Jason Gilmore in a day long workshop introducing students to the fundamental language features, utilities, tips, tricks and secrets which professional PHP developers rely upon every day. By the workshop’s conclusion, you’ll not only understand how to write PHP code, but also understand what PHP utilities and other software you should take advantage of in order to assemble, debug, and test your websites. Over the course of the day we’ll cover ten fundamental topics, including: Step #1. PHP Fundamentals While the PHP language no doubt consists of some pretty slick features, your ability to effectively take advantage of these great features is going to stem directly from your understanding of language fundamentals. So we’ll kick off the workshop with a survey of crucial PHP syntax, showing you how to properly output dynamic data, create and manage variables, working with looping and conditional structures, and work with arrays. We’ll conclude this step with instruction regarding executing PHP functions, as well as creating your own custom PHP functions and libraries. Step #2. Object-Oriented PHP Many beginning programmers adopt PHP because an understanding of object-oriented programming isn’t a prerequisite to getting started. However, PHP also happens to offer pretty powerful object-oriented capabilities, and having at least a basic understanding of these features is going to play a major role in your success as a PHP developer. Plus, it’s nowhere near as hard as you’ve been led to believe! In this step I’ll acquaint you with object-oriented programming fundamentals from the PHP developer’s perspective, introducing classes, objects, method, and attributes. You’ll also learn about class inheritance and other useful features such as object arrays. Step #3. Introducing PEAR Avoiding repeatedly reinventing the wheel is going to factor greatly into your ability to quickly and efficiently create powerful PHP-driven websites. One of the easiest ways to quickly assemble new websites is by taking advantage of the enormous community resources at your disposal, including notably the PHP Extension and Application Repository, better known as PEAR. In this step I’ll introduce you to PEAR, and show you how to install and incorporate several powerful PEAR packages into your websites. Step #4. Processing Form Input Much of the web’s popularity stems from the fact that it is a two-way communications platform. In fact, whether it’s accepting credit card payments or encouraging users to comment on blog posts, you’ll need a convenient, reliable, and above all, secure way to obtain and process this data. In this step I’ll show you how to create PHP scripts capable of accepting and processing form data, and introduce you to the powerful Validate_US PEAR package which makes data validation a breeze. You’ll also learn how to populate a form with dynamic data, and display user-friendly error messages. Step #5. Sending E-Mail From a PHP Script Whether you’re creating a feature for confirming new user accounts, recovering lost passwords, or merely forwarding visitor questions to your support staff, you’ll need to know how to send e-mail from a PHP script. In this step I’ll show you how to configure PHP to send both text- and HTML-based e-mail directly from your PHP scripts. Step #6. Managing Your Website Layout Creating a website layout which can evolve over time without affecting the underlying PHP code is a challenge faced by novice and expert developers alike. This problem is so common that a great deal of time has been put into creating templating engines capable of simplifying this integration process. One of the most powerful such solutions is Smarty, an open source templating engine capable of not only separating your website logic from the interface, but also does so in a way which allows designers to continue using their favorite HTML editing programs to tweak the website design. In this step I’ll talk about the layout challenges faced by developers, and show you how Smarty can play a major role in helping you to effectively manage your layouts. Step #7. Integrating a MySQL Database MySQL has long been the most popular database for PHP users, and for good reason. Like PHP, MySQL is an open source database used by millions of developers around the world, and boasts a straightforward syntax, reliable security model, and ubiquity among web hosting providers, making it an ideal choice for PHP users seeking a no-nonsense database solution. In this step you’ll learn how to configure MySQL for use in conjunction with a PHP-powered website, connect to a MySQL database via a PHP script, and carry out commonplace data creation, retrieval, update, and delete operations. Step #8. Ajax-enabling Your Website The allure of building highly responsive, interactive websites is undeniable, and thanks to Ajax the sky is the limit in terms of what’s possible. In this step I’ll introduce you to Ajax, and show you how to use a powerful JavaScript framework named jQuery in conjunction with PHP to create web pages capable of dynamically changing without requiring a page reload. We’ll look at several practical examples, including demonstrations involving both sending data to and retrieving data from a MySQL database. I’ll conclude this section with a quick look at the Google Maps API, which you can use in conjunction with PHP and MySQL to build powerful location-based applications. Step #9. Debugging and Testing Your Websites Writing code is the fun part, but it’s an undeniable fact that most of your time will be spent testing and debugging your websites. In this step I’ll show you some of the most effective ways to identify, diagnose and fix problems which creep into your PHP code, and introduce several great utilities including FireBug and FirePHP. You’ll also be introduced to test-driven development using a powerful tool called PHPUnit. Step #10. Deploying Your Website Launching even the simplest website almost invariably involves much more than simply transferring the files to the web hosting provider. You’ll often need to update database connection variables, file upload paths, and other configuration-related data. Further, it can be very easy to forget an important file or directory when updating a website, potentially resulting in an unscheduled outage and an irate client. Eliminate the hassle and possibility for errors by automating the deployment process! In this final step I’ll introduce you to a great tool named Phing, which is a PHP-based scriptable deployment utility capable of migrating a development site to a production server, in addition to carrying out various other build-related tasks. Venue Information The Residence Inn Marriott classroom instruction room is a comfortable learning environment limited to just 15 students in order to provide an optimized instructor-student ratio. Each student will have access to a power outlet. About the Instructor W. Jason Gilmore is the author of six books, including the bestselling “Beginning PHP and MySQL, Fourth Edition” (Apress, 2010), “Easy PHP Websites with the Zend Framework (W.J. Gilmore, LLC, 2009), and “Easy PayPal with PHP” (W.J. Gilmore, LLC, 2009). His writings on PHP and other web technologies have been published within Linux Magazine, Developer.com, JSMag, and numerous other online and print publications. Over the years, Jason has instructed hundreds of developers in the United States and Europe. -- https://master.php.net/manage/event.php?id=4466&action=approve https://master.php.net/manage/event.php?id=4466&action=reject https://master.php.net/manage/event.php?id=4466