Learn Programming Languages
I want to learn how to install/configure MySQL databases and then to use PHP to build and maintain web pages. I have a few friends who work with MySQL and PHP, namely Joomla CMS yet they haven’t been much help in steering me the right way for me to be able to learn it myself. They tend to ask me what I want, and then 5-10 minutes later it is done, haha. With so many books and websites to choose from, I am never sure what some of the best materials to get or buy would be. I want to try to learn at least the basics of getting MYSQL database installed and putting a PHP front end designed web page on it as quickly as I can.
There are a couple online resources I absolutely love for learning programming languages. The first site I go to is W3Schools. It’s clean, simple and easy to understand. They cover everything from PHP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, AJAX…the list goes on and on. You can start with PHP here, and MySQL here.
The other resource I go to is xTrain.com. These are extremely well done video tutorials, and they use real experts to present the information. I like to think of it as Sesame Street for adults. They’re fairly new, so the library is still growing. They may not have everything you’re looking for right now, but keep an eye on them. I’m expecting it to grow fast. If you sign up with xTrain, you can use Promo Code “GBTV” and get 15% off.
The Code Project is another great site. The home page is a bit busy and can be a little confusing. Once you get to the tutorials and forums, the information is really helpful.
UPDATE (11/9): Christina reminded me of HTML Goodies, a site I used to use when I was learning HTML. I couldn’t remember the name of it when I was writing this, so I’m including it now. :)
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One forum that I found a while ago (I think about 3 years ago, at the time of writing) is http://www.gamedev.net, which is really for any sort of programming as well as game development related things (including music, art, etc). They also have a pretty good sized collection of articles on programming, etc. I know of quite a few other programming sites, but it sounds like he mainly wants web programming sites, and I don’t know a whole lot of web programming oriented sites other than the ones you listed.
Also, there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you, Cali, have you considered doing some programming news on the Brief? I’m a programmer myself, so I would find that interesting.
http://www.lynda.com has great tutorials presented as quicktime movies on a WIDE array of topics, including php and mysql. It is a pay site, but they really cover a lot. The PHP/Mysql course is a whopping 10.75 hours!
A site/company that I use is http://technicallead.com. They offer trainings is everything from Intro to Dreamweaver/Flash/HTML to Web Development with Coldfusion or PHP. they also offer some of their tips/trainings as podcasts on iTunes.
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My favorite website for learning html and css is http://htmldog.com
They have fantastic tutorials, taking you all the way from beginner to advanced, and in a very logical prograssion.
I like w3schools as well.
I liked “PHP and MySQL Web Development” by Luke Welling and Laura Thomson for coming up to speed on both PHP and MySQL, and making them work together.
http://www.amazon.com/PHP-MySQL-Development-Developers-Library/dp/0672326728/ref=sr_1_12/105-8796449-4288416?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194674660&sr=1-12
The guys over at 3dBuzz have a very good set of videos on PHP and MySQL. It is what got me interested in web dev. They cover the basics of installing apache, mysql and PHP and getting them to work together, then show how to set up a database and code a very basic page to interact with it. After that, it’s very easy to advance using books or other online resources.
Go to http://www.3dbuzz.com and click on the video training link. I think it requires free registration, but it’s worth it. They also offer for-pay training on many 3d software packages.
I love responding to blog posts 3 months after everyone’s stopped keeping track of the comments… :)
O’Reilly’s and HeadFirst both have top notch programming books on just about any platform you want. But. Tutorials, videos, and books are useful as a jumping off point and for reference (8+ years as a web developer, and I still use reference books), but the only way to learn how to program is to do it. Jump in and build something. Then get active in the community- find out what you’re doing right and what you’re doing wrong. Then keep improving.
Programming- from the simple to the very complicated- is a hands on process. You can’t learn it from a book or from a video.