Web Programming using PHP/MySQL Part 1

The short course broadly comprises the fundamentals of programming with PHP, relational database design and operations with MySQL, and web solutions using PHP and MySQL.

By the end of the short course, you will be able to:

• Understand the basics of programming in PHP
• Write and debug procedural PHP scripts
• Understand fundamental relational database concepts
• Design a relational database suitable for a blog
• Code a simple content management system
• Understand the importance of web application security

Who is it for?

If you are already familiar with HTML, this course will enable you to build more powerful web solutions. You will advance to dynamic, database-enabled, website/intranet programming and applications using the open-source PHP scripting language and MySQL database.

Timetable

This practical course takes place over ten weekly evenings.

Benefits

PHP with MySQL is a very popular combination for creating small web apps. With PHP developers can create dynamic websites and apps with greater functionality.

• PHP, MySQL, LAMP: what they are and what they do. Static vs dynamic pages. Client-side vs server-side scripting. Obtaining PHP and MySQL software. Resources and tools e.g. manuals, books, websites, and development environments. Using XAMPP as a development environment.
• Basics of programming with PHP - variables, constants, data types, operators, expressions, control structures & decision making, functions, type-casting, program flow. Documenting your code. Simple templating with PHP. Organising your application. Finding and fixing bugs in your code. HTTP client-server communication: HTTP headers, server response codes.
• MySQL: What is SQL. Relational databases vs spreadsheets. MySQL in the terminal. Relational database design. MySQL's data types. CRUD operations: create, read, update and delete data. Primary, foreign and unique keys. Getting results from more than one table: joins. One-to-one, one-to-many, many-to-many relationships. Column and table aliases. Changing table structure. Table types. Aggregate queries.
• PHP, MySQL and Apache admin: php.ini, my.ini & httpd.conf. Understanding PHP errors.
• PHP and MySQL on the web: Connecting to MySQL using PHP. Querying the database and using the results. Dynamic templating. Single and multi-article templates. PHP's superglobals. Accepting user input through the URL and forms. Forms: validation and giving user feedback. Database CRUD operations through a web front end. Defensive programming. Security considerations. Working as a web developer. What to learn next.

By the end of the course, you will be able to

• Understand the basics of programming in PHP
• Write and debug procedural PHP scripts
• Understand fundamental relational database concepts
• Design a simple relational database
• Code a simple content management system
• Understand the importance of web application security.

You will be awarded an official City, University of London certificate if you attend over 70 per cent of the classes. The course is not formally accredited.

Assessment

Class time consists of theory supported by live coding, problem solving exercises and discussion in class. You will be provided with extensive notes and code packages. Homework exercises are available, for which individual feedback can be given.

Successful completion of Building Websites with HTML5 and CSS3 or good understanding of HTML and how web pages work.

English requirements

Applicants must be proficient in written and spoken English.