more funny pictures

WTF?
Whether you listen to the Mayans, believe in Skynet or are actively trying to unplug your brain from the Matrix, all predictions of the future are catastrophic. How does this relate to your blog? I predict you will be hacked, lose all your posts, or lose all your comments. Even in the best case scenario you’ll be spending at least one weekend clearing out spam or trying to figure out why a plugin suddenly stopped working. This is not inevitable, it happens because you’re a lazy oaf.

Who are you calling an oaf!
Wordpress is great software, but it has bugs. Plugins are great extensions to Wordpress, but they have even more bugs! All software has bugs. Some are known bugs, some are not. Hackers like bugs; in particular exploiting them… Also working against you is the fact that it’s quite easy to discover information about the software running on your website. If you’re running old versions of Wordpress, some goons will hack you just because they can… Once an exploit is found, goons like to troll around looking for every opportunity to exploit the one and only bug they know they can exploit.

Where can I get bug spray?
Even with bug repellent, sometimes a mosquito still bites. Does that justify rolling around in the woods nude? Maybe if you’re an oaf… Even if you haven’t had any trouble with Wordpress or your blogging software yet, upgrade anyways! Sometimes a bug can be a small annoyance, other times it can be migraine material. Trust me, it sucks when your database becomes corrupted and you lose forum posts, blog posts, comments, etc… Always upgrade your software and plugins when a new version is released to minimize the risk

What do I do if the mosquito still bites?
Upgrading software is not enough. Upgrading minimizes the risk of catastrophe, it does not eliminate it. Always have a contingency plan ready. Not because it sounds cool, but because it could save you time and money. With Wordpress your contingency plan is simple; MAKE BACKUPS. Schedule it. Don’t forget. Do it often.

Should I bother with backups if my software doesn’t have bugs?
There is always a glitch in the application you are running. If it’s a good program that has been tested properly prior to release, then chances are you won’t run into that glitch right away. Maybe you will never run into it. Maybe nobody will. Maybe we’ll have world peace and maybe everyone will win the lottery. Software is never bug free. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise!

Even with the web, it’s survival of the fittest
If you want to live happily ever after, upgrade quickly and backup often. If you don’t, you’ll end up extinct. A chicken can only run around without its head for so long.

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PHP is a widely-used general-purpose scripting language that is especially suited for Web development and can be embedded into HTML. – www.php.net

But, but, what about ASP.NET (C#/VB.NET) and JSP?

I’m not going to say PHP is a better programming language than VB.NET, C# or JSP. I’m not going to say it’s faster, more robust, or more reliable. Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. PHP is however the most affordable and widely supported. But wait… JSP is free too isn’t it? Perhaps it is, but good luck finding affordable web hosting for your JSP website. So why not ASP.NET? Don’t even consider using it. Microsoft might make VB.NET or C# sound nice, but its proprietary and expensive. You should always support open source solutions whenever possible.

Great, I’ve decided to use PHP, now what?

You could open up Notepad and start coding away or you could read some PHP tutorials that you’ll quickly forget and never use. Either way you’ll accomplish nothing and probably quit before you’ve done anything useful. Tutorials are only good if you have a problem. Don’t read them for fun under the false pretext you might learn something. You won’t. When you’re stuck, they can help you, but you won’t learn anything until you go get yourself stuck. That’s also why you shouldn’t just start coding. You don’t know anything yet, you can’t possibly make anything useful, and so you’ll end up reading tutorials for beginners, get discouraged by your own incompetence, and buy Visual Studio because you can drag and drop buttons onto the screen… wow!

Ummm… so what do I do then?

You do something useful right from the get-go. You install some free open source PHP software on your web server like Wordpress, phpBB, Joomla, Drupal, or php-Nuke. These are quality web applications and your key to learning PHP. Pick one you like. I suggest Wordpress because that’s what runs this site and because most people interested in web development all feel the need to have their own blog anyways.

Once you have your PHP powered site up and running, start to modify it. Edit the theme to see how PHP is mixed with HTML. Make new plugins or modules to learn how to code with PHP. If you get stuck, these open source projects have forums where you can get support or find answers to common questions. There are usually experienced users who will be happy to help you and to test your code. Not only are you working on an application that is likely useful to you, but you are working on mods that can be useful to others. You can get feedback, suggestions and comments right away even as a beginner. Being part of a community as a beginner will give you the support you need to succeed. Working on something useful from the beginning will give you the motivation to continue.

But I really need a tutorial, plz plz plz!

If jumping right in and swimming with the sharks seems a little too over-whelming, you may prefer getting started with this introductory tutorial. Personally, I’d prefer to swim with sharks rather than get eaten by them, but it’s your choice…

What about MySQL, PHP’s partner in crime?

MySQL is a free open source database system. All useful web applications require a database in order to store information. MySQL is the one you will want to use. Using MySQL will require learning SQL syntax. Joomla, PHP-Nuke, phpBB and Wordpress all use MySQL. Examine their code, see how they interact with the database and try making modifications. Add new tables or fields to the database and have your website display them. Use new tables to store information for your new PHP plugin, etc… Most web hosting companies will have multiple MySQL databases available for you. That’s why you invested in PHP and MySQL for your projects, because it’s the most widely supported when it comes time to putting your application online.

Plz, plz, just one tutorial for MySQL…!

Here is a good PHP & MySQL Tutorial. In particular, it’s useful if you plan to run PHP and MySQL locally rather than immediately on an already configured web server. Let me again emphasize, your best bet is to just get started playing in the code. When you get stuck, use your good friend Google to look up the answer or post your question on the appropriate forums for the project you are working on. Tutorials are your enemy until you need them. Reading tutorials without having an immediate use for their contents is just another form of procrastination.

So I need a web-host?

If you’re using PHP and MySQL, the only thing that will actually cost you money is your web hosting. Your web hosting will provide you with online storage space as well as a domain name, the internet address used to access your site. I recommend you sign up with Host Gator. Host Gator is not only a hosting company, it is also a community. They have an active forum where you can discuss issues directly with staff members to resolve any problems you might encounter.

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