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About the Book

Ever wanted to learn PHP? Then you probably ran into the most common problems along the way. Be it outdated learning resources, half-assed explanations or just simply no clear path to follow. Programming is hard enough on it's own so all of us would do better with a resource that is up to date and sticks to the point. Since we finally get a new major PHP release after a whole decade it is time to review the status quo. A lot has happened in the last 13 years and there was never a better time to write a book about it.

In this book you will learn PHP 7 completely from scratch. There is no PHP knowledge required to start reading. What you do require is a very basic knowledge of HTML (especially Forms) and maybe some CSS. All of PHP7's new features will be naturally included in your learning experience and everything will be done in the way it should be done in 2017. No old stuff, no unneeded fluff, in this book we learn only the important stuff!

Each Chapter in this book comes with a specific set of practical challenges in multiple difficulties and the solutions can be found either at the end of the book or in the included zip file. Some of these challenges will even require you to use Google to find the methods needed to complete them. This has the purpose of preparing you for your own development career after this book. Knowing how to find the answers you need is already half the battle!

The book also includes hands on practical exams between chapters. These practical exams include things like capturing form data or creating a simple shopping cart and they will show you first hand how your knowledge is used in the real world. The best way to learn programming is by doing and not by reading. This book takes good care of that!

A Quick list of what the finished book includes:

• A complete guide for Mac OSX and Windows on how to start developing in a virtual environment with Homestead.
• PHP7 from Hello World to OOP. Including all new features and a step by step approach to modern testable and maintainable code.
• Testing with PHP Unit
• Modern Design Patterns and how to use them
• Lot's of hands on challenges and practical examples to deepen your knowledge.
• My personal contact data in case you got questions or get stuck.
• And much, much more!

About the Author

Thomas Pichler

Hi there!

I am a 34 year old PHP Developer living in Los Angeles and I am terrible at marketing myself! I started with PHP when I was 13 years old and I am now looking back on a 16 year long journey of learning and improving my skills. I have worked as a Webdev all over the world including Austria, Canada, USA and Hong Kong. Most of my time these days is spent with Laravel and of course watching Laracasts.