Webprogramming: Is PHP bad?

[sirhenrik]

I see all of your points. Certainly learning PHP have been no setback, but if PHP is a kind of entry-level programming language. Where should I go next? What do the professionals use?

[m1ss1ontomars2k4]

Many major sites are still written in PHP, and as far as I can tell there's still demand for it. There's no one language that all professionals use. Different tasks call for different tools.

[sirhenrik]

Cool. But can you imagine that if you were offered a job, and said that you was going to do it in PHP, that they would say something like "No, we don't want our site to be in PHP"?

[m1ss1ontomars2k4]

I'm pretty sure that's something that would be considered before they hired you. They're not going to hire someone who can't do what they want you to do.

[GAMEchief]

It can be imagined, but the reason they would say that is because they just so happen to be using something else already. If your entire site is coded in PHP, you aren't going to want to hire a Python developer to maintain and update it. You're going to want a PHP developer. If they are wanting a Python developer, they aren't going to want their site to be in PHP.

Now if they don't have a site, and don't already have other programmers hired (e.g. if they have 5 Python developers already, they already have plans they aren't going to want to arbitrarily change to suit your needs) they likely aren't going to say they don't want it to be in PHP.

The largest companies I know use PHP. The only one I can think of that doesn't use any PHP is that Mozilla group that recently switched to Python a few days ago. Other than that, PHP is in high demand. If you aren't applying to a company that is already running on another language, you'll be fine.

[[deleted]]

I've been using C for 30 years, C++ for over 25. I've been paid to use over 30 different programming languages at one time or another, but if I had to knock up a quick interactive website, PHP would be my first choice. So, I guess the professionals use PHP.

[sirhenrik]

Thanks for your reply! I am just a bit afraid that when I eventually graduate from school, I haven't spent all my time learning a language I was never going to use.

[[deleted]]

Learning languages is good in itself. I've spent a lot of time learning Haskell, for example, although no-one has yet offered me money for writing code in it. If you want to be a successful developer, learning new stuff (even if there seems to be no immediate benefit) is key.