Now installed on more than 20 million Internet domains around the world, PHP is an undisputed leader in web programming languages. Database connectivity, powerful extensions, and rich object-orientation are all reasons for its popularity, but nearly everyone would agree that, above all, PHP is one of the easiest languages to learn and use for developing dynamic web applications. The ease of development and simplicity of PHP, combined with a large community and expansive repository of open source PHP libraries, make it a favorite of web designers and developers worldwide.

PHP in a Nutshell is a complete reference to the core of the language as well as the most popular PHP extensions. This book doesn’t try to compete with or replace the widely available online documentation. Instead, it is designed to provide depth and breadth that can’t be found elsewhere. PHP in a Nutshell provides the maximum information density on PHP, without all the fluff and extras that get in the way. The topic grouping, tips, and examples in this book complement the online guide and make this an essential reference for every PHP programmer. This book focuses on the functions commonly used by a majority of developers, so you can look up the information you need quickly. Topics include:

• Object-oriented PHP
• Networking
• String manipulation
• Working with files
• Database interaction
• XML
• Multimedia creation
• Mathematics

Whether you’re just getting started or have years of experience in PHP development, PHP in a Nutshell is a valuable addition to your desk library.

PHP in a Nutshell (In a Nutshell (O’Reilly))
Good book, I bought it used and you can see it is but it’s in average to good condition.

I’d buy from these people again.

A must have for the webmster
It’s not only a quite good reference book, but for the people with a good programming skill it’s actually anything you need to learn PHP.

Definitely a must in the bookshelf of everybody involved in working with the WWW. from webmasters to developers and support workers, but also for the geek who just enjoys playing with a programming language like this.

Poor. Lack or attention to detail (See list of errors, and decide for yourself)
Regarding the Oct 2005 - First edition. I sure hope O’Reilly hires a better proof-reader, and re-issues this book with some basic corrections, and 100% more attention to the index problems.

I think the author did a poor job. A dedicated proofreader should have caught all the errors I have listed. I am only 20% through this book. At this point, this author has built zero confidence in the accuracy of anything he has to present in the rest of the book. I will now proceed to prove where my ’poor’ evaluation comes from.


(My background: 25 years of programming, including skills with various machine languages,
assembly languages, Fortran, Pascal, PL/1, C, C++, Java, PHP, and Regular Expressions. )

Stated by the author: "This book assumes you are familiar with variables, lops, and other basic programming concepts [period]." This is incorrect, as other reviewers have noted. The author quickly drifts into examples of arrays, objects, advanced operators, etc. with no explanation, or even a reference to the section of the book that covers these new concepts.

Starting with "The PHP Language" section, I am finding an error or obvious omission, on an average of every three pages. This book has been poorly proof-read, and should not have made it past the publisher in this form. I expect far more accurate text that this, for an O’Reilly publication.

As for the six people whom the author lists as standing out particularly,
with regards to contributing corrections, improvements, and comments . . . I couldn’t imagine how bad this work would be without their efforts.

Page 32: Using complex data forms and concepts in examples, without providing page references.
Here, arrays are introduced. Would it be so hard to add a footnote
"See the extensive Arrays section, starting on page 61."?

page 32: Same comment, applied to ’Objects’

Page 32: Same comment, applied to the ’->’ object operator.

( Page 132: "use the special -> operator". Other PHP documentation calls this the ’object operator’, but this author does not use this literal phrase. There is also no index entry for this phrase, or any reference to it under ’operator’ or ’object’. )

Page 42: ’Returning by Reference’. This obscure concept really needs an explanation of what is happening in the 5-line example. According to the ’Variable Scope’ explanation (ten pages later),
the variable in this function is local, and is therefore not reference-able outside the function.
Yet the description of "Returning by Reference’ indicate that the value of the variable is accessible.

Page 45: Introducing the capability of the GLOBALS array, with no caveats, for the purpose of overriding
scope. Ten pages later, in a different topic (Superglobals), we find the warning: "two superglobals that you should avoid ... $GLOBALS...". The warning should be on page 45, where you first start describing this superglobal. Again, has this author never heard of the literary construct called a footnote?

Page 51: In an example, ’(int)’ is used to typecast a bool into an integer. At the top of the next page, the typecast operation is written in another example as ’(integer)’. If both syntaxes are supported, this sure would be a good place to note that.

Page 64: In the example, function_load_member. A $ID parameter is passed, but not used. Probably the "Bob" literal should be $ID.

Page 64: Same code example as above. This two line function has one assignment, and one return statement (’return true;’). The calling code evaluates the completion of this function as if there are multiple
methods of return; i.e. true or false. The text ahead of his example loosely implies that if the function was not ’successful’ (whatever that means), the returned boolean will be ’false’.

Page 66: Array_intersect() with multiple arrays parameters. There is no indication if this is an AND or an OR operation, with multiple secondary arrays. That is, will an array1 entry be returned if it is in array2 *OR* array3, or must it be in array2 *AND* array3?

- - -

One thing the author did get correct is in his list of web-sites. The TOP entry is www.php.net/manual , and it consistently clears up the errors the author makes. I recommend it.

Not a Nutshell Book
The O’Reilly "in a Nuthsell" series is the best reference to standard libraries and language features available. PHP in a Nutshell sullies the name, however, with what amounts to an introductory survey in the course and little, if any, analysis of standard libraries. Certain tips, such as those on flash and pdf handling are interesting, but irrelevant to most programmers. This goes doubly for the discussion of PHP’s 2D drawing API; it seems as though the authors decided they would provide a schizophrenic volume which is on the one hand a beginner’s tutorial and on the other hand a survey of the more esoteric, unused portions of the language.

Good review material but many errors
I am pretty familiar with PHP and worked with it some time ago, but I needed a book to quickly refresh my knowledge of it for a project, and this book did a pretty good job of that. It gets to the point on the right topics (including chapters on OOP, Cookies and Sessions, and Databases) and has a short, useful function reference instead of listing every function under the sun.

Nonetheless, there are many errors both in the code and in the writing. If you don’t have a solid foundation in PHP and programming, these errors can really throw you off. Sometimes I would get confused as I tried to figure out why a line of code does what the author says it does only to realize it was an error that made it into print. If the editing had been better and caught these errors, the book would have received a four-star rating from me.

Bottom line, if you know PHP and need a good reference book or a book to quickly review concepts and functions, this book is for you. Don’t buy this book if you are new to PHP.

excellent writing
I bought this book after studying PHP with the author’s online tutorials. They covered quite a bit of what was in the book but I enjoyed the online version so much, I decided to thank him for putting a free online version out on the net by buying his book. In addition, I like to have the hard copy for a reference. Excellently written and one of the clearest and easiest programming books I’ve every read. It is also one of the few programming books I have read without any programming errors in it.

Decent broad coverage of many PHP basics
A decent broad coverage of many PHP basics but I didn’t really learn much more than I had found on my own by randomly poking around in the online PHP manual every time I needed a function to get a job done. I was hoping that reading a book like this from cover to cover would expose some parts of PHP I missed or teach some techniques and best practice that I didn’t figure out myself. Unfortunately it did not.

For someone who known no PHP at all (and no C) I would give that a 4 star rating. But every PHP programmer has access to great free online PHP manual so I think this book has less value. And anyone who knows C can start programming PHP right away without reading much of anything. I assume the average programmer knows some C or Java and can read the online PHP manual. For those people, this book is no better than 3.

Well done and to the point.
Doesn’t waste my time with how to run an editor and doesn’t assume I know too much, either. The examples are concise.

This book works well as a handbook and as a text. Highly recommended!

Great Reference
This is a great reference for beginning and advanced PHP programmers alike. I have used this book to furhter my knowledge with PHP and still use it when I need to refer to a paticular feature or tag in PHP.

Good overview of PHP
A good overview and reference for PHP. Readers should have some knowledge of other programming languages or scripting languages. A couple of typos here and there, but overall has very high quality just like all the other books in the "in a Nutshell" series.

Fix the *!$@$!* Index!
I bought this book to lead me into my first foray into PHP. It was just what I needed, except for one problem: the index. Basic PHP functions such as "print" and "echo" are covered in the text, but you won’t find them in the index. The data type "mixed" is used in the code examples, but isn’t explained anywhere that I could find, and also lacks an index entry. As others have remarked, there are a few errors in the text, but they’re pretty obvious and didn’t get in the way of writing workable scripts. An excellent introduction to PHP, but a number of needless annoyances.

Not Up to Snuff
When I purchase a Nutshell book from O’reilly, I anticipate a very formal, detailed overview of a language and an in-depth coverage of that language’s standardized libraries and features. PHP in a Nutshell is very lax with informal explainations and coverage. I am not saying that the book lacks information; it just lacks the typical detail of a usual Nutshell book. This book also has simple errors that should have been caught if the author had reviewed his own work; this is simply unexceptable. I, today, counted over 4 simple mistakes on the chapter about operators. This is something unheard of from O’reilly. I have been programming with PHP for a while now and was hoping to find a definitive reference ... well, this isn’t it!

A Great PHP Reference
’PHP in a Nutshell’ is a fantastic book for learning the ins and outs of PHP so you will be able to start programming quicker, smarter, and better than ever!

Some of the ’Nutshell’ books are simply too short to do proper justice for many topics, but that is not the case here. Densely packed into 350 pages, all the yummy stuff is covered here:

object oriented programming
databases
file i/o
XML
regular expressions

plus all the standard jargon for learning a new programming language: variable declaration, control structures, etc etc etc

If you are going to be programming in PHP (and why wouldn’t you, being open source and sooo easy to use) and you want to get a headstart on how to begin doing just that, you owe it to yourself to read this wonderful guide. Well written, and a nice size that is easy to digest, I found this book to be a pleasure throughout.

Buyer beware only that this is not for the savviest of PHP programmers, but the majority will find it well worth the time and money.

***** HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Simply Awesome
I am Fan of Hudson’s writing since the day I saw online version of this book in his website, much before than this book published. He writes smoothly and maintains consistency which doesn’t disappoint readers. This book targets quite experienced developers as well as just fresher.

This book describes almost every chapter in depth. Some really Basic chapters like variables, operators," Object Oriented PHP" and "The PHP Language" are really worthy for fresher. I never saw any book which discusses these in such a depth. Chapter 7 "Function and Reference" discuss some pretty useful functions and their real life uses. Professionals will find "Output Buffering", "Files"; "Distributing your Codes" chapters are simply awesome.

However, beside PDFLib as the PDF generation library for PHP, I think he must highlight some other well structured open source libraries serving the same purpose, like FPDF.

I just bow Hudson for such an awesome Book. Those who are preparing for ZCE will find this book extremely handy for exam, no doubt. Hudson tried to describe almost everything in a simplistic way so that everyone likes his writing style. Hudson, you simply make this book a great knowledge base for PHP developers, Kudos.

A DESK LIBRARY MUST!!
Are you an existing PHP developer who is looking for a complete, compact, and portable reference guide to the language? Well, you’re in luck! Author Paul Hudson, has done an outstanding job of writing a book that is a complete reference to the core of the language; as well as, the most popular PHP extensions.

Hudson, begins by covering the general characteristics of the PHP language and its implementations, and discusses where to get help and information. Then, he explains how to obtain and install PHP. The author continues by covering the PHP interpreter and its use for running PHP programs on a web server or on the command line. He also covers PHP syntax, variables, control structures, includes, and user-defined functions. He continues by examining the different variable types in PHP. In addition, the author next outlines the basic operators in PHP. Then, he looks at the most commonly used built-in functions of PHP. The author continues by explaining object-oriented programming in PHP. He also provides an introduction to creating HTML forms and processing them in PHP. The author also explains the tools for using cookies and sessions in PHP. He continues by describing how to buffer your output, and when you would want to do so. The author also covers a few essential security considerations when running PHP websites. Next, he provides a reference to the functions for interacting with files. Then, the author gives a brief introduction to accessing mySQL and SQLite databases in PHP, and to PEAR::DB, which provides a consistent interface to many different database packages. Next, he covers some powerful ways to process strings, including matching, extracting substrings, and replacing text. Then, he shows you how to create and alter images with the GD library that ships with PHP. The author also shows you how to create PDFs in PHP by using PDFlib. He continues by showing you how to generate Flash movies in PHP by using the Ming library. Then, the author covers modules for processing XML with PHP. Next, he explains socket programming, custom HTTP headers, HTTP authentication, sending email, and sending data over FTP and HTTP with Curl. The author also describes a few considerations when you prepare to distribute your code to other users. He continues by looking at the tools that are available to help you track down errors in your PHP code. Finally, he offers a few tips on getting the most out of PHP.

This excellent book is designed by the author to provide depth and breadth that can’t be found elsewhere. Thus, this book provides the maximum information density on PHP, without all of the fluff and extras that get in the way.

definitive
I’m fairly new to PHP, having implemented a couple of basic features in one of my websites. That said, this book is an invaluable aid, complementing the online PHP manual as a useful, concise reference guide. It not only covers the language core, but also looks at PHP extensions. Covers how to install PHP5, object-oriented PHP, file and string manipulation, HTML forms and other topics such as XML and multimedia.

As with all O’Reilly books, this one is liberally strewn with excellent examples and clear diagrams, and is well written for its target audience. It does presuppose some knowledge of basic programming concepts such as variables and loops, but would still appeal to the beginner as an addition to the online user guide.

Definitely recommend this book.

I agree with the reviewer who wants a better index!
It is a bit more difficult to find what you want in the index than absolutely desired, but it is also the price we pay for a low-cost, desktop reference.

I too am relatively new to PHP. I’ve dabbled a bit with it over the past few years, but recently started to write my first "major" web-centric application using it and MySQL. I can definitely say that PHP In A Nutshell has not let me down! I’ve been avoiding learning "yet another programming language," but PHP In A Nutshell has given me the ability to jump into it without needlessly wasting my time.

The author’s writing style is very easy to embrace, which makes reading this book a breeze. The author clearly knows PHP very well and provides many, many resourceful nuggets of experience in the paragraphical excursion through this insightful book. It "reads" well and "references" well-enough.

While this book may not be the best tutorial for a total newcomer to programming languages, for anyone with experience in any modern programming language, it should be very easily read and received. How much of this is the writer’s style versus O’Reilly’s "common sense in book layout?" I’m not sure, but the two blend together well to make a fine wine in PHP In A Nutshell.

The section on databases is well worth the asking price, but I found way more than that to be of real, immediate value to my "emerging" PHP skills. However, perhaps like the other reviewer, I’d like to have a nice little appendix that contrasts the "C" or "Java" way of doing something to the PHP way of doing it as an added benefit that would negate the need for a massive index. Indexing is nearly a lost art today, it seems...only library sciences majors seem to know the first thing about it while the rest of us rely on our word processing software and some manual hacking of its results.

Don’t let this "semi-rant" deter you from finding the real value in this book, which is still exceptionally useful but may mean a bit more reading. At least it flys by quickly and enjoyably due to the entire team involved in its production.

While the section on Manipulating Images is really fantastic for content, somehow the "smooth, blue gradient" looses its luster when reduced to gray scale. Yeah, I realize that something has to bite the bullet to be competitive in today’s market, but blue skies in grayscale? Oh well, the book is still very excellent and useful. It is the first thing I reach for when I need PHP help. Perhaps someone with hardcore PHP experience may point out flaws that I’d miss, but for a programmer getting going in PHP, I’ve found it to be a massive, err...in a light and easy way, help!

PHP In A Nutshell - Excellent Reference
I have 8+ years of programming experience, and I am very interested in expanding my skillset. PHP is one of the skills I would like to acquire. With that in mind, I think that this book is aimed towards experienced PHP developers; if you are just starting out with PHP, this book makes an indespensible companion to a tutorial such as "Programming PHP" by Rasmus Lerdorf and Kevin Tatroe , but "PHP In a Nutshell" is not a tutorial in its own right.

I like the examples throughout the book on how each function is used, and I found it well organized by sections. This book has also helped me think outside the box on redesigning an application currently written in VB.

At the beginning the author provides a website for downloading and installing Apache, PHP and MySQL foe Windows. I had a hard time with the configuration on Windows XP as suggested by the book, and found everything I needed in one simple package (Apache, PHP and MySQL)at:

http://www.e-novative.info/software/wamp.php

I highly recommend this book for experienced PHP developers, and as a companion to a tutorial for beginners.

Not for beginners
This really is an outstanding programming book. However, I believe that the target audience is the semi-experienced php programmer, as many concepts are covered with a light stroke of swiftness that requires prior knowledge of php in order to keep up. That said, there are so many neat tips and tricks and a brief, but excellent section on regular expressions that explains the concept of stored sub matches much better than any reference I have seen - in book or online.

There is also a very good section on how to create images using GD, plus a fairly good explanation of object oriented programming concepts.

I am very happy that I bought this book.

More depth than the online docs
At first I felt that PHP’s vast online documentation makes redundant a book like this. Then, after looking more carefully, I realized O’Reilly did it right once again, producing a finely balanced desktop reference. I don’t work with PHP very often, and whenever I do, I often need to refresh a few concepts. PHP’s online docs are great if you need details about a specific function, but due to its very own nature, it miss some depth. That’s why this book becomes handy

A must-have and a keeper...
This book is written in a clear straightforward voice. The well-placed examples illustrate the function or concept at hand. More often than not, the code examples have been directly useful to the problem I’m trying to solve. More than just a reference, this book provides many useful tips and resources for getting the most out of PHP.

This outline gives an idea of the book’s scope and coverage:

1. Introduction to PHP...1
2. Installing PHP...11
3. The PHP Interpreter...19
4. The PHP Language...23
5. Variables and Constants...47
6. Operators...79
7. Function Reference...89
8. Object-Oriented PHP...128
9. HTML Forms...157
10. Cookies and Sessions...170
11. Output Buffering...181
12. Security...190
13. Files...195
14. Databases...216
15. Regular Expressions...234
16. Manipulating Images...244
17. Creating PDFs...271
18. Creating Flash...277
19. XML & XSLT...284
20. Network Programming...293
21. Distributing Your Code...313
22. Debugging...317
23. Performance...335
Index...339

One good book and one good rant...
This PHP reference has some extras I liked. It is always good to have a portable and compact programming statement reference at hand. It is even better to have one that goes into more detail where that extra background may be of value. The chapter on the object-oriented programming support in PHP 5 is one of those extras.

I also appreciate the chapters on creating Flash and PDF and the tips on server performance optimization.

PHP in a Nutshell falls far short of adequate in one respect -- the index. A reference should provide a way to find information without having an exact knowledge of the information you are looking for.

As a relative newcomer to PHP, I gave the book’s index a good workout. A typical session would go like this: After getting my simple form application running, I noticed that the return from the database was not case-insensitive. I knew I could massage the value to the server with JavaScript, but was there an equivalent PHP statement? I went to the book index. "Case switching" -- no, that is about a conditional. "Case-sensitivity, variables" -- no, that is not about user input values. Finally, after other failed guesses, I recalled from JavaScript that such a function, if it existed, worked on strings. I look up "strings" and move down the sub-indexing to my goal: strtolower() function.

Success, yes, but unnecessarily delayed. I would fault this book for that and knock down my rating except for the fact that the index is no worse than the typical computer book index. Decent indexing, and even full-text searches on books, are distant hopes as ever.

Despite my occasional rant on book indexing, this book will be kept in a handy place as I continue forward in my progress in coding PHP.