What Is PHP?
PHP(Hypertext Preprocessor) is a server-side scripting language that is used to create dynamic and interactive websites. It was designed for web development and can be paired with HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
PHP has been around since 1994 and has grown in popularity over the years. It’s currently one of the most widely used programming languages in the world. PHP powers more than 80% of websites on the internet today!
Advantages
1. Portable
Meaning you can run it on multiple platforms without having to rewrite your code every time you change machines or operating systems; just make sure that you have the right libraries installed on each platform.
2. Easy to learn
Anyone familiar with HTML can write basic PHP code in no time. If you know JavaScript, you’ll have an even easier time learning PHP because many of the same concepts apply to both languages.
3. Easy to use
PHP can be added directly into HTML files using tags such as <?php ?>, which makes it very easy to use without having to write separate programs or scripts separate from your HTML documents.
4. Open-source
PHP is released under a dual license consisting of the GNU General Public License (GPL) and a BSD style license. This means that software developers can use the language freely in both open source and proprietary projects without having to worry about licensing issues or paying royalties for using PHP functions in their codebase.
5. Cross-platform
It is cross-platform compatible which means it can run on any operating system including Windows, Linux, Mac OS X, etc., without any changes in codebase or configuration settings.
6. Powerful
It can be used for everything from simple scripts to complex applications with thousands of lines of code, anything from a basic website to a large-scale e-commerce platform or social media websites like Facebook or Twitter.
7. Integration with other languages
Easily integrated with other languages like JavaScript, HTML5, and CSS3 using tools like jQuery or YUI Compressor while still maintaining separation between them so that there won’t be any conflicts or cross-site scripting issues when running your code on various devices or platforms
8. PHP has excellent support for database access
You can connect to databases like MySQL, Oracle, and PostgreSQL using just a few lines of code. This makes it easy to store information in your database and retrieve data when needed by your website visitors.
9. Dynamic functionality
It allows dynamic functionality by using a server-side scripting language, which means that the source code is processed at runtime by an interpreter and not precompiled into machine language beforehand like C++ or Java. This gives you more control over your web pages than other server-side technologies such as ASP or JSP because you can dynamically add content to the page without having to reload it entirely each time you make an edit.
10. PHP Requires No Compiler
Unlike many other languages, you don’t need a compiler or any other program to run your code in PHP. All you need is a text editor like Notepad or Sublime Text and follow the instructions on how to run your code.
Disadvantages
1. Poor Performance
The performance of PHP is poor when compared with other languages like Java or Python. This is because it uses interpreted code instead of compiled code like C++ or Java codes. This means that every time a page is accessed by a browser, the entire code must be run through an interpreter before it can be displayed on the screen. This makes the whole process much slower than if compiled code was used instead.
2. Not suitable for large applications
PHP is not suitable for large web applications due to its high resource consumption and low performance when compared to server-side languages like Java or C#.
3. Security issues
Since it’s a server-side language and runs on the browser’s side, it can be easily hacked by hackers who want to steal your data or destroy your website altogether by using SQL injections or cross-site scripting attacks (XSS).
4. Weak at handling errors
It lacks strong debugging tools, which are necessary for detecting and debugging issues, resulting in poor program maintenance.
In summary, PHP is a powerful and popular language that can be used in a lot of different ways. The advantages of PHP are numerous, compared to drawbacks.
If you’re comparing it to other languages, it’s worth noting that some of its strengths are also disadvantages and vice versa. Ultimately, the choice is yours; knowing how to make that choice will help you use PHP more effectively.
Recommended Reading:
17 Advantages And Disadvantages Of Java
