The Future of PHP

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No one really knows what PHP 5.0 will bring. However, a few interesting ongoing projects might suggest how PHP will develop in the future:

• PHP GTK: The PHP GTK project is a departure from most PHP projects in that it is aimed at creating client-side applications complete with a GTK GUI. You can learn more about this project and download the code at http://gtk.php.net.

• Zend: Zend will undoubtedly bring more commercial products to PHP. A PHP compiler is in the pipeline. This means that PHP will be able to compete with the new breed of compiled web applications, such as Microsoft's ASP.NET. See the Zend web site at http://www.zend.com.

• ActiveState : As I mentioned, ActiveState has Rasmus Lerdorf on its advisory board. It has added support for PHP development and debugging to its Komodo IDE editor. Although this is sheer speculation on my part, I hope ActiveState will produce a PHP distribution/installer and bring to PHP what it has brought to Perl and Python ”its expertise in Microsoft .NET and SOAP. Visit ActiveState at http://www.activestate.com.

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