PHP App Development Matters the Most

PHP is widely used by developers across the world as a server-side scripting language to build robust websites and web application. At the same time, many programmers also use PHP as a general-purpose programming language. Since its inception in 1995, the language has been installed on millions on websites and web servers.

Unlike other web programming languages, the PHP code is interpreted by the web server through a PHP processor module. So the code written using this scripting language can be embedded directly into the HTML source without requiring any external file.

As PHP is open source, it can be used by small, medium and large enterprises without paying any licensing fees. If you are exploring server-side scripting languages for your web development project, it is time to understand why PHP app development matters the most.

Significant Advantages Offered by PHP App Development

• Free to Use: An increase is noted in the number of enterprises opting for open source technologies to reduce application development cost. As an open source programming language, PHP complements the budget of all enterprises. So the language is the best option when one is exploring ways to bring down the website development cost. Further, the PHP developers understand how to optimize the usage of this free-to-use platform. The faster access ramp provided by the language makes it easier for programmers to implement innovative ideas.

• Compatibility across Operating Systems: Each website or web application, nowadays, needs to be compatible with major browsers and operating system. As the choice of platform varies from one user to another, programmers have to ensure that the application is working flawlessly on all operating system. The PHP web applications work on widely used operating systems like Windows, LINUX and UNIX with optimized functional efficiency. The cross operating system compatibility makes PHP the best option to develop web applications.

• Better and Efficient Integration: Programmers often integrate several technologies to optimize the website’s performance. Further, they explore options to deliver content to the users in a form desired by them. PHP supports both HTML and HTML5. So the programmers can easily include innovative features to make the web application more interactive and engaging. At the same time, the PHP application can automatically generate output in several file formats including PDF, Flash, XML and XHTML. The support for multiple file formats will make it easier for the website to impress users by delivering the output as text, PDF or video.

• Option to Enable GZIP: In addition to supporting several file formats, a web application also needs to render the files at a quicker pace. So programmers explore option to execute the script in a faster and quicker way. While developing PHP application, developers have option to enable GZIP to execute the script and render files quickly. As the PHP files are directly deployed in executable format, a compiler can execute the script more quickly. Further, the GZIP compression will reduce the size of compiled code to reduce the time required for script execution.

• Build Robust Ecommerce Websites: PHP is effective in building both static and dynamic websites. It is also being used widely to build robust ecommerce websites. Normally, the ecommerce websites are more complex, and also designed with third-party integration. Along with allowing users to browse through the products and services, the online portal must enable them to make payment in a fast and secure way. PHP is used to optimize the look and feel of the web store. At the same time, the scripting language further allows developers to seamlessly integrate third-party applications developed using different technologies.

• Use Loads of Tools and Databases: Most developers love to use the tools and components provided by PHP. Some of these tools enable them to test and debug the application in a hassle-freeway. At the same time, some tools like Google Maps and FirePHP make it easier for them to optimize user experience without writing lengthy code. Similar to the tools, a developer can also avail several database specific extensions. For instance, a programmer can use Open Database Connection Standard or PDO to connect to a database.

A developer also has option to choose from a wide variety of php web development frameworks including CakePHP, CodeIgniter, Zend, Qcodo, PEAR and PHPSpec. The frameworks come with loads of tools and functionalities to enable programmers to build a robust website without writing longer lines of code. Further, the frameworks make it easier for enterprise to evaluate the performance and scalability of the web application as part of their test-driven development plans.

We provide php development services. If you would like to hire php developers from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Lamp Development for Developing Dynamic Websites

Many developers look for innovative open source software to develop dynamic websites at rapid pace. Often developers have to adjust their code to make the internet application compatible with most operating systems, web servers, databases and browsers. But some free and open source software like LAMP enables web developers to avail advantages of several platforms. In fact, the term LAMP is an acronym that represents the first letters of Linux, Apache web server, MySQL, and PHP, Python or Perl.

However, the combination of the software included in a LAMP package may vary based on the web scripting software. The huge popularity of LAMP has further encouraged many companies by launching customized packages with different combination of web server, database, software language and operating system. For instance, the developers using Microsoft Windows platform can use the WAMP package that runs seamlessly on IIS. So a company can easily customize the open source product to meet specific requirements of its project.

What Makes LAMP the Best Choice for Dynamic Web Development?

Innovative Development Tools

Most developers look for customized tools to avoid longer lines of code. The use of tools also contributes towards shortening the project timeframe. As a LAMP package includes Linux, Apache, PHP and MySQL, each developer has options to choose from a wide variety of tools to complement the needs of the internet application. Along with providing a huge amount of flexibility and freedom to users to implement their ideas, the tools also make it easier for them to optimize the look, feel and performance of the website without putting any extra time and effort.

Options to Build Platform-Independent Web Applications

The constant changes in the choices of modern users have made it essential for programmers to explore creative options to make the internet application dynamic. To become hugely popular, each application needs to be compatible with major operating systems, web servers and databases. Also, the choice of scripting language is also selected according to the nature of the application. So each programmer has to write and edit the code to optimize the performance and scalability of the website. With LAMP, a developer can easily develop web application that can avail the benefits provided by some of the widely used databases, web servers and programming languages. So the web application becomes effective in targeting users across the world.

Easy to Write Bug-Free Code

To become popular, a web application also needs to be bug-free. While writing the code, many programmers explore options to make it bug-free. The LAMP stack makes it easier for developers to write bug-free code. The option is more important for the enterprises that are yet to adopt the agile testing methodology. The stack will ensure that the code remains bug-free, and the programmer is not required to spend time in identifying and fixing bugs. The early identification and fixing of bugs also help the enterprise in launching the website as per the predetermined schedule.

Easy to Deploy the Web Application

Along with developing a bug-free web application, the programmers also need to deploy it in an exact manner. Many programmers find it more challenging to deploy a website. They also find it a daunting challenge to the programming language seamlessly with the database and web server. But the LAMP package does not require programmers to put any extra time and effort for integrating the programming language, web server and database. As PHP is used by the product as a standard Apache module, the developers can deploy the LAMP web application in a hassle-free way.

Build Applications Locally

Many companies prefer developing websites locally. They want to develop and test the web application locally, before deploying it onto the web. The features and tools provided by LAMP allow enterprises to build the website locally. Also, the performance of the application can be evaluated and optimized before deploying it online. The local development feature also saves resources, and contributes towards keeping the project cost under control.

As LAMP is an open source product and can be customized easily, it can complement the requirements and budget of all types of enterprises. Without investing a huge amount of money, an enterprise can use the product impress clients by building dynamic websites and web applications at a rapid pace. You can hire developers from top php application development companies in India who can help you build projects within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide php development services. If you would like to discuss with a certified php developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

15+ PHP Best Practices That You Must Follow

The world of web development is becoming interesting and challenging with advanced technologies. With each passing day hundreds of web applications are being created and in this maddening race, a website needs to have a higher usability and more attractive UI and robust backend to stand out from the crowd. This is where a web programming language like PHP comes to your aid. Defined as a Hypertext Preprocessor, PHP is a dynamic language which explains the popularity that it enjoys among the developer's community around the world.

It is a server side scripting language which when combined with HTML and CSS forms a lethal combination delivering best robust websites. This server side characteristic allows you to easily design and develop dynamic webpages using PHP. Different genre of websites such as chatting platforms, ecommerce stores and CRM solutions can be developed using PHP. It is also used in all major social networking sites such as Facebook and Wikipedia. Even WordPress and Drupal have the PHP touch and are very much used worldwide for making customized websites. No wonder PHP web development is a promising sector and hundreds and thousands of talented programmers are working with this technology across the globe. 

A good programmer should follow the coding standards for programming in any technology. It is a vital factor for achieving a high code quality. A common customized style, naming conventions and other technical settings allow producing a homogeneous code which is easy to read and maintain. Equally important is the style in which certain problems are solved during programming - It shows the workmanship and experience of the individual developer which shines through and ultimately makes the difference between a technically ‘okay’ code and a well systematic, ‘mature’ code. 

Best Practices Followed in PHP

• Befriend the PHP Manual : For aspirants in web development, the PHP manual is the best friend. Because it is thorough and gives helpful comments following each step to be followed in web development. Before figuring out errors or steps one should read the manual and save time for easy and quick solutions. 

• Turn on Error Reporting : Error reporting in PHP is of great advantage. One can figure out the bugs in code earlier than before and can be aware of the working of an application. There are different levels of strictness in the reporting that one can use and  E_ALL command shows the most errors, be it critical and warnings alike. It is a feast to a programmer or a tester to detect errors and fix them.

• Try an IDE : Integrated Development Environments are useful tools for any developer. They can help in many ways such as syntax highlighting, code completion, error warnings, refactoring (reworking) and many other ways. There are plenty of great IDEs out there that support PHP.

• Try a PHP Framework: PHP Frameworks like CakePHP or CodeIgniter render PHP applications quickly, even if the developer is not an expert in PHP. It is a great way of increasing programming efficiency. The web world is full of several PHP frameworks which can be used as per the needs of the project. Hence PHP programmers have to decide which framework would suit and meet their best business requirement by evaluating the various unique features of the frameworks.

• Learn the DRY Approach: DRY approach is nothing but Don’t Repeat Yourself and it’s a valuable programming concept which deals with not to write redundant code.

• Indent Code and Use White Space for Readability: A developer needs to write a good readable code with proper indenting and makes use of white space. It ensures that a code is neatly organized and easy to search so that it can be referred to in future in case of change requests come up. IDEs and advanced text editors help in adding indentation automatically. Programmers use shortcuts unknowingly when declaring in PHP - For example, let’s take a look at the code snippet below. 

          <?

          echo"Hello world";

           ?>

          <?="Hello world";?>

          <% echo"Hello world"; %>

All of the above methods are depreciated and unofficial. Sticking with the standard <?php ?> as it will be guaranteed to be supported in all future versions. This simple malpractice can cause conflicts with XML parsers and can also make code incompatible with future versions of PHP. 

• Use Meaningful, Consistent Naming Conventions : Naming conventions are very important in case of good programming practice. Help others by using names that make sense for classes and functions. One can easily understand what the code is about or for which database table the data is fetched; easy for the programmers who can deal with the code in future for maintenance and updates.

• Comment, Comment, Comment : A good programmer always gives comment for each line of code he or she writes. As they understand the importance of comments in the long run. White space and indentations have been used to separate the code; one also wants to use inline comments to annotate code. It is very useful to go back and find something in the code, or if what a certain function did. It’s very useful for every developer who needs to look over the code. Not sure how the code instead of keeping a comment on the code one must write the code formatting standards expressive with a good, because one can get confused with the semantic coding standards both in web design and PHP development.

• Install MAMP/WAMP : MySQL is the most popular type of database to use with PHP. If you want to set up a local environment to develop and test your PHP applications on your computer, look into installing MAMP (Mac) or WAMP (Windows). Installing MySQL on computer can be a tedious process and can be installed in a clean and simple way.

• Upgrade to the Latest Version of PHP : One should be aware of the advantages and new versions of PHP. There are lots of performance increases between PHP 4 and PHP 5. Check a server to make sure one is up to date with the new version and an application is compatible with the upgrades.

• Reduce the Number of Database Queries : A good developer knows very well that database queries take lot of time to load the applications. With the lesser number of database queries executed the better a PHP code can perform. There are many tools such as Process Explorer (Windows) and Stace (Unix) that allow redundant processes.

• Know the Difference Between Single and Double Quotes: It is more efficient to use single quotes in strings as the parser doesn’t have to sift through the code to look for escaped characters and other things that double quotes allow. It is always better to use single quotes whenever possible.

• Give Scripts Limits : Putting a time limit on PHP scripts is a very critical thing. It is a time when scripts fail and to avoid that the set_time_limit function is used for database connection timeouts and infinite loops. The set_time_limit puts a time limit on the maximum number of seconds a script will run. After that time it throws a fatal error.

• Don’t Put phpinfo() in your Webroot: Phpinfo (http://us2.php.net/phpinfo)is a beautiful thing. By simply creating a PHP file that has

          < ? php phpinfo(); ? >

And dropping it onto the server somewhere could be dangerous; one can instantly get to know all information about the server. It is not good to drop a file containing phpinfo() in the webroot of the server. This is a really insecure practice and could  potentially spell doom for server. Make sure phpinfo() is in a secure spot and could    be removed after use.

• Never, Ever Trust your Users: If an application has places for user input, one should always be prepared that they’re going to try to input naughty code. A great way to keep any website hacker-free is to always initialize variables to safeguard a website from XSS attacks (http://ha.ckers.org/xss.html). Therefore PHP.net has an example of a properly secured form- http://talks.php.net/show/php-best-practices/19

• Store Passwords with Encryption : Good way of saving passwords in encrypted format in the database. Many programming newcommers often plunk sensitive data like passwords into the database without applying any encryption which is a faulty approach. 

Code is the foundation of any website and a framework catalyzes how to write beautiful code with aesthetics. Websites having bad coding style can lead to a mess in the near future. Good code is the first start to any search engine optimization and it is very important for a website template builders or new beginners who build one of their first sites. It’s too big of an investment for things to get screwed up, coded poorly or any number of possibilities. Since good coding is the foundation of any website with a strong web presence, establishing a secure and a classy website with clean, flawless code which goes much further than one thinks.

We provide PHP development services at Mindfire Solutions. If you would like to speak to one of our PHP programmers or you would like to hire PHP developers from us, please do reach out to us. We will be glad to assist.

PHP Web Programming and Business Benefits of PHP Development

PHP is a popular scripting language that evolved from what was called the Personal Home Page by Rasmus Lerdorf. Initially developed as a series of scripts that was used to track visitors to a webpage, it has turned out to be an interpreter on most operating systems and platforms and is considered the most popular language in the field of web development today.

PHP can be used to create a range of web applications including personal websites, e-commerce applications as well as community web portals. As per statistics, about 35% of web traffic is handled by it while a vast majority of websites including those of Facebook and Wikipedia have used this language. Even the best blogging platforms like WordPress or Joomla are built using the platform.

It is not without reason that this language has become so widely preferred as well as used. Several factors have contributed to its success.

Here is a brief overview of how businesses benefit from PHP web development:

It’s Open Source and Therefore, It’s Free
The platform is freely available for use. In addition, the community of open source PHP developers not only offer technical support but are also on the lookout for updating the core functionalities of the language. It, along with the other required software such as Apache Server, MySQL and Text Editors are obtainable free of cost under PHP General Public License. For businesses, this appears to be a very cost- effective option.

It’s Powerful
The programming platform is powerful enough to allow an effective performance of several web tasks. Different types as well as natures of websites can be developed using PHP. These encompass informative forums, e-commerce shopping carts, e- business, community websites and even the rather huge database driven websites.

It is Highly Compatible
The language is best- suited for cross-platform applications while also being highly compatible with the prominent web servers and operating systems. The scripts of this particular language can run across Linux, Solaris, OpenBSD, Windows as well as Mac OSX. It offers support for servers like IIS, Apache, iPlanet and more.

It Helps in Faster plus Easier Web Development
PHP not only works well with the web but also allows in quick web development. With this particular language, accessing the GET and POST or operating with HTML and URLs is easy apart from being flexible.

It Offers Complete Security
The platform is widely preferred also because of its ability to offer top level security and prevent malicious attacks. Thus, hacker proof websites can be built while the security stages can be attuned in the .ini file.

It Provides Extensions to Expand Functionalities
A range of extensions along with libraries are made available by PHP for those willing to extend the core functionalities of their websites. Even the source code of the language can be modified to incorporate the custom created components as well as extensions. This automatically increases the extensibility.

It Comes up with Great Community Support
One of the main advantages of PHP is its offer of community. For instance, if a particular developer is looking for certain script, he can check within the PHP community for availability and oftentimes, he will get something similar to what he wants, created by another developer. Others can also take advantage of certain function that you have created.

Refreshes Automatically
This is yet another advantage of PHP when it comes to web development. The platform enables automatic refreshing, hence, does not require any kind of manual changes to be made. This characteristic makes it quite sought after for building the dynamic websites in particular.

Enables Easier Access to the Other Tools
PHP allows for easier access to web based tools. Now, tools such as Google maps are extremely useful for the creation of business websites. It is for this reason that the language is popular in this respect too.

We provide php application development services. If you would like to hire php programmers from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Why You Should Choose PHP for Website Development

For businesses, a well- developed website is of utmost importance, as it guarantees success for an organization in the long run. With the widespread realization of the necessity of developing functional websites, there has also been a rise in the number of languages available for web development. The task of choosing the right language is essential and quite elaborate at the same time. PHP is considered the most beneficial platform for developing websites. Now, it is not without reason that the language is widely preferred as well as used by some of the most talented developers across the world.

Let us delve deeper into the advantages of PHP in order to find out why one should choose the same for web development.

Faster and Reliable Service

To begin with, the amount of speed along with the level of reliability that PHP offers are incomparable. This particular language facilitates easy usage, configuration and synchronization to certain possibilities. It is simpler to follow than any other language too. Its use of a number of system resources apart from the retention of speed while working with other software applications makes it highly sought after in the field of web development.

Works Independently

It works independently and perfectly well with various platforms such as Mac OS X, Linux, UNIX as well as Windows. Quite a few number of back-end databases such as MySQL, Oracle etc are also supported by PHP. Thus, this platform is considered more independent and hence, suitable for deployment in any environment.

Better Performance and Higher Flexibility

It paves the way for easy building of high performance applications. Apart from performance, the flexibility, scalability as well as the opportunity for enhanced graphics offered by PHP makes it the choicest platform for web development.

Open Source plus Cost- Effective

PHP comes up as an open source language used for a variety of purposes. The platform can be downloaded for free from the internet at the same time. This particular ‘open source’ feature has made the programming language popular among the developers. The PHP updates involve no cost and therefore, emerge as one of the most budget friendly language available for developing websites. Developers working on tight budget projects prefer this platform for this very reason.

Easy Availability of Help and Support

It, being one among the most popular as well as widely used languages that it is, makes it rather hassle-free to find support or helpful documentation online. Essential help can be obtained through blogs, social media, support forums and PDF/video files. The users of the language actually form a community. Consequently, they can be accessed for further help and support.

Higher Level of Security

PHP has syntax, which is very similar to the C as well as the C++ language syntax. Additionally, it is included within a variety of libraries such as that of the graphics, encryption etc. All these features make it easy for the developers to learn, add, edit module, delete, manipulate functions and even fix the bug, as and when it arises. Chances of malicious activities are lowered by means of high level of security offered by PHP.

Reduces Complexity in Programming

PHP offers a whole lot of advantages in web development. Perhaps the greatest benefit of using this platform is that it reduces the overall complexities of programming. Future changes can be accommodated without trouble with this specific language in use.

Business entrepreneurs or organizers looking for a perfect website to represent their website enlist the services of the expert and experienced PHP developers who can make the best use of this web development platform. They exploit it sufficiently to build a strong website that stands out among others in this highly competitive market while also promising the desired exposure to the organization eventually. PHP web development teams can help you build projects within allocated budgets and time schedules.

We provide php application development services. If you would like to discuss with a certified php developer from our team, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.

Why is PHP web development getting valuable?

PHP is indeed the most frequently visited technology in the web for web apps development. It rules the other scripting languages for website development, a leader in the web world. As technology is seeping to every area of our lives the need for recognition for every business is getting important, people are aware that internet can reach out to the large audience from all around the world.

PHP has emerged as one of the most useful and yet completely free web programming platforms, along with Linux and MySQL. It is actually host side scripting dialects with regards to producing websites. Various PHP web programming solutions include CRM solutions, eCommerce solutions, shopping carts with content management system, chat software as well as conversation forum. Nowadays Php along with MySQL database will be accustomed to develop some of the most potent online sources and it is powering some of the great web applications.

PHP has had many stable releases since its arrival, and getting better with every release. PHP has many great features,d functions and frameworks that helps every developer create powerful dynamic websites according to any business demand. PHP developed websites and web applications have much simpler code to write or understand. Its a versatile and well-established language with more new versions that are under wraps. It can be customized according to online web development needs and is a flexible enough so that one can develop greater websites that is compatible with any browser.

Certain benefits of PHP Web Development can be enlisted as follows.

• It supports major databases such as MySQL, Oracle, Sybase, etc.
• It supports major platforms like Unix, Windows, Linux and more.
• IIS, Apache servers can work with PHP which proves to be the versatile scripting language.
• It meet one's custom requirement of solutions like e-shopping carts like CMS, CRM, web calendars, etc.
• The easy functions, methods and the syntax of this language help PHP Web Developers deploy the solution in less time.
• It can be customized with new technology seamlessly in future if required.
• It decreases the loading time as its source code need not be compiled every time it loads.

A PHP framework has the best practice oriented approach which help one build complex rich internet applications quickly, saving a lot of time reusing code snippets that are already available. There are so many useful PHP frameworks available on the web. Depending on requirements and need, one can select from a wide range of web development frameworks offered in the web market. Most interesting part is they are freely available and got a huge community driven forum where stuck developers can get their solutions quickly and build their website up and running in no time.

Top PHP(Rapid Application Development) frameworks are:

• CakePHP is an opensource rapid development PHP framework that provides an MVC architecture for developing, maintaining and deploying customized applications. It comes in with great tools for form tampering protection, XSS prevention and SQL injection prevention which helps in building secure websites. The MVC conventions guide in properly to build in richer web applications and blogs. Developers and users find it more interesting because of flexible code generation, free licensing, user-friendly community, compatible with all the latest versions of PHP, cookie, security, data sanitization, email, session and request handling components,works from any website directory, with little to no Apache configuration involved etc.
  
  
• Laravel has a well fabricated toolbox which allows to write less code, with less risk of error. And using this framework developers can build websites with greater value and productivity, such as managing guiding principles, side effects, etc. A structured approach is followed using this framework, using best practices and standards where complex websites can be efficiently deployed. It is well said that Laravel is for web artisans and creative craftsman where wonderful applications can be built with less code and expressive syntax which gets easier for programmers who build complex apps with cleaner and understandable code.
  
  
• Symfony is a full-stack framework comprising a library of cohesive classes written in PHP5. It provides a classy architecture, components and tools for programmers to build rich complex web applications quicker. Choosing symfony allows to release applications quicker, host and scale them without any problem and can be maintained over time. It was originally conceived by the interactive agency Sensio Labs for the development of customized websites for its esteemed clients from various sectors. Symfony was published by the agency in 2005 under MIT Open Source license and today it is among the leading frameworks available for PHP web development.
  
  
• Zend Framework is based on simplicity, object-oriented best practices, user-friendly corporate licensing and agile codebase which is regularly tested. This framework is focused on making simple, reliable secure and new web 2.0 applications & web services and consuming widely available APIs from leading vendors such as Flickr, Google, Yahoo, Amazon, as well as API providers.

The above popular PHP frameworks are unique in nature and can very well suit to any business need. They play a vital role in making websites richer and attractive adding value compared to other counter websites.

Everyone wants a website that looks appealing, attractive, customized and very much interactive with users and all this is possible with PHP allows one to customize their websites keeping everything simple and yet classy. PHP possesses all the main points of a successful programming language. PHP Website Development has maintained vast developer group of people around the world and lots of PHP professionals regularly enhance this. The web application developed in PHP costs less and affordable for website owners who can save a lot of money though it is having a multi-featured web application.

It has literally revolutionized the web development industry with a dynamic brand fresh structure.

There are many choices available to create robust and classic Website Development yet PHP will be action ahead of all and offer many useful features and functionalites. PHP based website is an ideal platform to flash and graphics for giving striking and attractive looks to the site. The versatility of PHP as a web design language is pretty much unmatched by any other scripting language,and since it was initially created it has been consistently used to produce the same excellent results. Using these frameworks, PHP developers would shorten the development timeframe for PHP web development projects.

We provide php development services. If you would like to hire php programmer from our 100% certified team of PHP developers, please contact us at Mindfire Solutions.