PHP and MySQL Web Development

Laura Thomson is a lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Information Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. She is also a partner in the award-winning Web-development firm Tangled Web Design. Laura has previously worked for Telstra and the Boston Consulting Group. She holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Computer Science) degree and a Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Systems Engineering) degree with honors, and is currently completing her Ph.D. in Adaptive Web Sites. In her spare time, she enjoys sleeping. Laura can be reached via email at laura@tangledweb.com.au. Luke Welling is a lecturer in the School of Computer Science and Information Technology at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. He is also a partner in Tangled Web Design. He holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Computer Science) degree and is currently completing a master's degree in Genetic Algorithms for Communication Network Design. In his spare time, he attempts to perfect his insomnia. Luke can be reached via email at luke@tangledweb.com.au.

I. USING PHP.

1. PHP Crash Course.


Using PHP. Sample Application: Bobs Auto Parts. Embedding PHP in HTML. Adding Dynamic Content. Accessing Form Variables. Identifiers. User Declared Variables. Assigning Values to Variables. Variable Types. Constants. Variable Scope. Operators. Using Operators: Working Out the Form Totals. Precedence and Associativity: Evaluating Expressions. Variable Functions. Control Structures. Making Decisions with Conditionals. Iteration: Repeating Actions. Breaking Out of a Control Structure or Script. Next: Saving the Customers Order.

2. Storing and Retrieving Data.


Saving Data for Later. Storing and Retrieving Bobs Orders. Overview of File Processing. Opening a File. Writing to a File. Closing a File. Reading from a File. Other Useful File Functions. File Locking. Doing It a Better Way: Database Management Systems. Further Reading. Next.

3. Using Arrays.


What Is an Array? Numerically Indexed Arrays. Associative Arrays. Multidimensional Arrays. Sorting Arrays. Sorting Multidimensional Arrays. Reordering Arrays. Loading Arrays from Files. Other Array Manipulations. Further Reading. Next.

4. String Manipulation and Regular Expressions.


Example Application: Smart Form Mail. Formatting Strings. Joining and Splitting Strings with String Functions. Comparing Strings. Matching and Replacing Substrings with String Functions. Introduction to Regular Expressions. Finding Substrings with Regular Expressions. Replacing Substrings with Regular Expressions. Splitting Strings with Regular Expressions. Comparison of String Functions and Regular Expression Functions. Further Reading. Next.

5. Reusing Code and Writing Functions.


Why Reuse Code? Using require() and include(). Using require() for Web Site Templates. Using Functions in PHP. Why Should You Define Your Own Functions? Basic Function Structure. Parameters. Scope. Pass by Reference Versus Pass by Value. Returning from Functions. Returning Values from Functions. Recursion. Further Reading. Next.

6. Object-Oriented PHP.


Object-Oriented Concepts. Creating Classes, Attributes, Operations in PHP. Instantiation. Using Class Attributes. Calling Class Operations. Implementing Inheritance in PHP. Designing Classes. Writing the Code for Your Class. Next.

II. USING MYSQL.

7. Designing Your Web Database.


Relational Database Concepts. How to Design Your Web Database. Web Database Architecture. Further Reading. Next.

8. Creating Your Web Database.


A Note on Using the MySQL Monitor. How to Log in to MySQL. Creating Databases and Users. Users and Privileges. Introduction to MySQLs Privilege System. Setting Up a User for the Web. Using the Right Database. Creating Database Tables. MySQL Identifiers. Column Data Types. Further Reading. Next.

9. Working with Your MySQL Database.


What Is SQL? Inserting Data into the Database. Retrieving Data from the Database. Updating Records in the Database. Altering Tables After Creation. Deleting Records from the Database. Dropping Tables. Dropping a Whole Database. Further Reading. Next.

10. Accessing Your MySQL Database from the Web with PHP.


How Web Database Architectures Work. The Basic Steps in Querying a Database from the Web. Checking and Filtering Input Data. Setting Up a Connection. Choosing a Database to Use. Querying the Database. Retrieving the Query Results. Disconnecting from the Database. Putting New Information in the Database. Other Useful PHP-MySQL Functions. Other PHP-Database Interfaces. Using a Generic Database Interface: PEAR DB. Further Reading. Next.

11. Advanced MySQL.


Understanding the Privilege System in Detail. Making Your MySQL Database Secure. Getting More Information About Databases. Speeding Up Queries with Indexes. General Optimization Tips. Different Table Types. Loading Data from a File. Backing Up Your MySQL Database. Restoring Your MySQL Database. Further Reading. Next.

III. E-COMMERCE AND SECURITY.

12. Running an E-commerce Site.


What Do You Want to Achieve? Types of Commercial Web Sites. Risks and Threats. Deciding on a Strategy. Next.

13. E-commerce Security Issues.


How Important Is Your Information? Security Threats. Balancing Usability, Performance, Cost, and Security. Creating a Security Policy. Authentication Principles. Using Authentication. Encryption Basics. Private Key Encryption. Public Key Encryption. Digital Signatures. Digital Certificates. Secure Web Servers. Auditing and Logging. Firewalls. Backing Up Data. Physical Security. Next.

14. Implementing Authentication with PHP and MySQL.


Identifying Visitors. Implementing Access Control. Basic Authentication. Using Basic Authentication in PHP. Using Basic Authentication with Apaches .htaccess Files. Using Basic Authentication with IIS. Using mod_auth_mysql Authentication. Creating Your Own Custom Authentication. Further Reading. Next.

15. Implementing Secure Transactions with PHP and MySQL.


Providing Secure Transactions. Using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). Screening User Input. Providing Secure Storage. Why Are You Storing Credit Card Numbers? Using Encryption in PHP. Further Reading. Next.

IV. ADVANCED PHP TECHNIQUES.

16. Interacting with the File System and the Server.


Introduction to File Upload. Using Directory Functions. Interacting with the File System. Using Program Execution Functions. Interacting with the Environment: getenv() and putenv(). Further Reading. Next.

17. Using Network and Protocol Functions.


Overview of Protocols. Sending and Reading Email. Using Other Web Sites. Using Network Lookup Functions. Using FTP. Generic Network Communications with cURL. Further Reading. Next.

18. Managing the Date and Time.


Getting the Date and Time from PHP. Converting Between PHP and MySQL Date Formats. Date Calculations. Using the Calendar Functions. Further Reading. Next.

19. Generating Images.


Setting Up Image Support in PHP. Image Formats. Creating Images. Using Automatically Generated Images in Other Pages. Using Text and Fonts to Create Images. Drawing Figures and Graphing Data. Other Image Functions. Further Reading. Next.

20. Using Session Control in PHP.


What Session Control Is. Basic Session Functionality. Implementing Simple Sessions. Simple Session Example. Configuring Session Control. Implementing Authentication with Session Control. Further Reading. Next.

21. Other Useful Features.


Using Magic Quotes. Evaluating Strings: eval(). Terminating Execution: die and exit. Serialization. Getting Information About the PHP Environment. Loading Extensions Dynamically. Temporarily Altering the Runtime Environment. Source Highlighting. Next.

V. BUILDING PRACTICAL PHP AND MYSQL PROJECTS.

22. Using PHP and MySQL for Large Projects.


Applying Software Engineering to Web Development. Planning and Running a Web Application Project. Reusing Code. Writing Maintainable Code. Implementing Version Control. Choosing a Development Environment. Documenting Your Projects. Prototyping. Separating Logic and Content. Optimizing Code. Testing. Further Reading. Next.

23. Debugging.


Programming Errors. Variable Debugging Aid. Error Reporting Levels. Altering the Error Reporting Settings. Triggering Your Own Errors. Handling Errors Gracefully. Next.

24. Building User Authentication and Personalization.


The Problem. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Implementing the Database. Implementing the Basic Site. Implementing User Authentication. Implementing Bookmark Storage and Retrieval. Implementing Recommendations. Wrapping Up and Possible Extensions. Next.

25. Building a Shopping Cart.


The Problem. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Implementing the Database. Implementing the Online Catalog. Implementing the Shopping Cart. Implementing Payment. Implementing an Administration Interface. Extending the Project. Using an Existing System. Next.

26. Building a Content Management System.


The Problem. Solution Requirements. Editing Content. Using Metadata. Formatting the Output. Image Manipulation. Solution Design/Overview. Designing the Database. Implementation. Extending the Project. Next.

27. Building a Web-Based Email Service.


The Problem. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Setting Up the Database. Script Architecture. Logging In and Out. Setting Up Accounts. Reading Mail. Sending Mail. Extending the Project. Next.

28. Building a Mailing List Manager.


The Problem. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Setting Up the Database. Script Architecture. Implementing Login. Implementing User Functions. Implementing Administrative Functions. Extending the Project. Next.

29. Building Web Forums.


The Problem. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Designing the Database. Viewing the Tree of Articles. Viewing Individual Articles. Adding New Articles. Extensions. Using an Existing System. Next.

30. Generating Personalized Documents in Portable Document Format (PDF).


The Problem. Evaluating Document Formats. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Problems with Headers. Extending the Project. Further Reading.

31. Connecting to Web Services with XML and SOAP.


The Problem. Understanding XML. Understanding Web Services. Solution Components. Solution Overview. Installing the Project Code. Extending the Project. Further Reading.

VI. APPENDIXES.

Appendix A. Installing PHP and MySQL.


Running PHP as a CGI Interpreter or Module. Installing Apache, PHP, and MySQL Under Unix. Installing Apache, PHP, and MySQL Under Windows. PEAR Installation. Other Configurations.

Appendix B. Web Resources.


PHP Resources. MySQL and SQL Specific Resources. Apache Resources. Web Development.

Index.