Overview

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This book is divided into three main parts, plus appendixes. Each of these parts and the chapters within them are discussed next .

Part I: Getting Started with PHP

Part I is aimed at developers who might have little or no PHP development experience. If you are an ASP developer, you will find information on how PHP differs from what you know and how to apply what you know to learn PHP.

Chapter 1: Introduction to PHP

What PHP is and how it came about are both important and interesting to know. You will learn how PHP has developed, why it develops differently from the way most software develops, and what the future might hold for PHP on the Windows platform.

Chapter 2: Installation and Optimization

You'll learn how to install and optimize PHP on the various common Windows web servers.

Part II: Introduction to PHP Programming

Part II is aimed at developers who might have a moderate amount of PHP experience and who want to dig deeper into PHP syntax and functions.

Chapter 3: PHP Programming

If you are completely new to PHP, this chapter teaches you the language's syntax and functions.

Chapter 4: PHP and Files

Accessing files is an important part of the functionality of your applications. Here you'll learn how to access files using PHP.

Chapter 5: PHP and Sessions

Maintaining state in your web applications is often vital . Here you'll learn how to use PHP's built-in state management functions and how to use WDDX to transfer state between PHP applications and applications written in other languages, such as ASP.

Chapter 6: PHP and Databases

Databases are commonly used in your web applications. You'll learn how to use PHP with common Windows databases, such as Microsoft Access and Microsoft SQL Server, and other databases, such as Oracle and MySQL, using PHP's built-in functions and ODBC functions.

Part III: Advanced PHP Programming

Part III is aimed at experienced PHP developers who want to learn how to use some of the more advanced features of the Windows platform with PHP.

Chapter 7: PHP, COM, and .NET

COM is the cornerstone of the Windows platform. Here you'll learn how to create COM objects with Microsoft Visual Basic and use them in your PHP applications. You'll also learn about the future of the Windows platform with Microsoft .NET and how you can start working with .NET and PHP.

Chapter 8: PHP and XML

XML is fast becoming the standard language of the Internet. You'll use it more and more in your web applications. In this chapter you'll learn how to use PHP's built-in XML functions and how to use COM to access Microsoft's XML functions.

Chapter 9: PHP and Web Services

Web services are set to change how the web works. Here you'll learn what web services are and how you can create them using PHP and SOAP.

Chapter 10: PHP and ADO

ADO is a fast and powerful way to access databases. This chapter shows you how to use both COM and PHP functions to take advantage of ADO.

Chapter 11: PHP and Active Directory

An important part of a Windows 2000 network is its management and structure. The Windows Active Directory plays a vital part in this. You'll learn how to use PHP with Active Directory using both COM and PHP's LDAP functions.

Part IV: Appendixes

Part IV includes some useful appendixes that help you establish ODBC database connections and install a variety of web servers.

Appendix A: Creating an ODBC Connection

You'll learn how to install an ODBC database connection for Access and SQL Server databases on the Windows 9x, Windows 2000, and Windows NT platforms.

Appendix B: Installing a Web Server

You need a web server to start developing PHP applications. This appendix shows you how to obtain, install, and set up the most common Windows web servers, including Microsoft PWS, Microsoft IIS 4 and 5, and Apache.

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