Book recomendations?
Hi everybody,
I have finally decided to order some books on differnt aspects on web design and need some help. I need some basic book on programming for web. I do not have any programming expearance and I do not want to become a programmer, but I do want to be able to write or at least be able to understand ready made scripts. Specially Perl and PHP, scripts like e-mail form handler and so on. I can understand some simple JavaScript, but with all the rest I am totally out. Can somebody suggest a book for starting.
Thanks!
Sandra
Abhishek Reddy posted this at 04:24 — 28th May 2002.
He has: 3,348 posts
Joined: Jul 2001
Wrox has a pretty good line of books for web-programming. You might also look at Sam's collection of "learn in 21 days" books as well.
Personally, I'd just stick to learning online. I gained knowledge of basic scripting only by working hands-on with these scripts, and reading web tutorials.
But if you're a book person, it'd pay to get a book or two.
mmi posted this at 15:31 — 28th May 2002.
They have: 457 posts
Joined: Jan 2001
hey Sandra - I hear good things said about JavaScript: A Beginner's Guide
reviews:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0072131403/qid%3D985719293/104-3107866-4733550
http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?isbn=0072131403
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Megan posted this at 13:31 — 31st May 2002.
She has: 11,421 posts
Joined: Jun 1999
The problem is that it's hard to find general books on web programming or any aspect of webmastering for that matter. They all seem to be specifically devoted to one technology or another. This is great when you want to learn a language, but not-so-grat if you just want a basic overview.
In this case I would agree that you should probably just save your money and do some online tutorials (Webmonkey.com's are always good). These will usually give you enough info to at least understand the basics of a language. When you want to gain more in depth knowledge about a typical language then it would be a good idea to buy a book.
Megan
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cds posted this at 06:49 — 1st June 2002.
They have: 359 posts
Joined: Mar 1999
Wrox as mentioned has some good books. I personally have "Professional PHP Programming" which I think is excellent, especially as a reference manual.
Another way to learn is to go to a site such as Hot Scripts and download a simple script. Then use the PHP Website to look up the functions etc and figure out what the programmer did to make the script work.
In the meantime, here's a simple php script for you to play with:
<?php$sum = (2 + 2);
if($sum == 5){
echo (\"Right, 2+2=$sum\");
}else{
echo (\"Wrong, 2+2=$sum\");
}
?>
Dan
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Stupidity killed the cat, curiosity was framed!
OB_redemption posted this at 05:00 — 6th June 2002.
They have: 11 posts
Joined: Mar 2002
funny how nobody mentioned O'Reilly
... they have pretty good books imho...
and to start learning server-side scripting, i suggest you go with PHP because that's probably the easiest language to get started with... and here's a list of the PHP books at Amazon -> http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/102-5982148-6079302
also, online resources are a treasure trove of tutorials and tips from which to learn stuff... you can also take part in a community where you can ask questions should you have any (i suggest here or you can go to SitePoint Forums which has an excellent PHP community
)...
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justa posted this at 22:53 — 12th June 2002.
They have: 7 posts
Joined: May 2002
If your looking to get into PHP and MySql you will not be able to go past Kevin Yanks Build your own datadriven website using PHP and MySql found here
Cheers,
Justa
OB_redemption posted this at 01:04 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 11 posts
Joined: Mar 2002
to be fair, Kevin Yank's book works assuming register_globals on and i personally wouldn't recommend any book that does (sorry kev, SitePoint)... we get a quite some posts at SitePoint Forums stating some code bug which is usually due the the poster having register globals set to off (which is the way things should be!!) in his installation of PHP... not good for someone new to PHP...
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mairving posted this at 01:14 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 2,256 posts
Joined: Feb 2001
Most hosts would have Register Globals on since they would rather fudge a bit on security than have to support all the scripts that require register globals to be on.
Mark Irving
I have a mind like a steel trap; it is rusty and illegal in 47 states
OB_redemption posted this at 01:32 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 11 posts
Joined: Mar 2002
yes you're right but it's no cause for anyone to start learning by doing things the wrong way and then find out that's it's the wrong way and have to unlearn it right?
btw, register_globals will be deprecated
...
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mairving posted this at 02:08 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 2,256 posts
Joined: Feb 2001
So they say. They've been promising that for awhile. I think that maybe one of the 4.2? versions.
Mark Irving
I have a mind like a steel trap; it is rusty and illegal in 47 states
nike_guy_man posted this at 02:21 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 840 posts
Joined: Sep 2000
What exactly is deprecated?
When is 4.2 supposed to be released?
I learned PHP and PERL online looking at other scripts, then using php.net to see what stuff does. It really wasn't that hard to figure out
mairving posted this at 12:09 — 13th June 2002.
They have: 2,256 posts
Joined: Feb 2001
Deprecated means that it is on the way out.
Mark Irving
I have a mind like a steel trap; it is rusty and illegal in 47 states
OB_redemption posted this at 00:52 — 18th June 2002.
They have: 11 posts
Joined: Mar 2002
it's already released (for quite a while in fact) -> http://www.php.net/release_4_2_1.php
and yeah the beauty of PHP is it's easy for a beginner to catch on
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