“One of the most important factors driving PHP’s popularity over
the last couple of years has been its support for a variety of
databases, including mySQL, mSQL, Oracle and Microsoft Access. By
simplifying and streamlining database access, PHP allows developers
to build complex data-driven Web applications while enjoying short
development cycles because of the simplicity and flexibility of the
language.”
“One of the most powerful combinations in the open source arena
is the PHP/mySQL combination. For those of you new to open-source
technology – where have you been, you galoots?! – mySQL is a fast,
reliable, open-source database management system. By using PHP and
mySQL, developers can provide customers with huge savings on the
licensing costs of other commercially-licensed software, and also
benefit from the tremendous amount of thought that PHP and mySQL
developers have put into making sure that the two packages work
together seamlessly and smoothly….”
“In this issue of PHP 101, we’re going to show you how to use
PHP to extract data from a database, and use that data to build a
dynamic Web page. All you need are the usual pre-requisites: a
sense of humour, and a willingness to try something new. Some
knowledge of SQL (Structured Query Language, the language used to
interact with a database server) would be helpful, though not
essential.”