How does one become great at php and mysql?

[lexijensjacejack]

I have been coding for past 2 month with php , like login script ect.

I wana know how and what must one do to become better at php , in order to get into job market for example. What books or videos do you recommend?  im using  mysqli as a beginner of course. but many times i feel so lost with php when i get an error. HOW to avoid this? How can i understand this language better? How do you before you code, draw out ur plans on what u going to do for the project and how u will structure if 

 

 

ps i dont know a super lot about php jargon

 

 

 

 

 

thanks guy would like to know erveryones thoughts

 

 

[ignace]

You can find some good books in this thread:

http://forums.phpfreaks.com/topic/2307-good-programming-and-web-design-books/?p=11836

 

You might also want to read:

http://www.phptherightway.com/

[Ansego]

Start reading:

 

http://www.php-fig.org/

https://github.com/php-fig/fig-standards/blob/master/accepted/PSR-1-basic-coding-standard.md

http://www.phptherightway.com/

https://getcomposer.org/

http://www.php.net/

Edited June 1, 2014 by Ansego

[davidannis]

I like to mock up pages in a word processor, describe what they'll do, lay out the database in phpMyAdmin or even excel, then start coding. I look for things I am already doing that can be done better with automation. So far I have done business valuations (which I do for work), Japanese learning (for fun), and SEO tracking (for both). I also volunteer to code for non-profits which brings interesting projects.

 

I'm not great, but I code well enough to get things done. The ability to get things written is a better starting goal IMHO.

Edited June 1, 2014 by davidannis

[Clarkey]

You've just got to keep going at it.. If you see something you don't understand, research it until you can make sense of it.

 

Think of difference PHP classes / functions that you can create, and then keep trying to improve that class / function until it's solid and super fast.

 

Once I understood the basics of PHP I moved onto learning object orientated PHP and grasped the concept of that.

I was then able to study the methods used in popular PHP software packages, such as MVC-frameworks and forums to learn more about them.

 

Just keep coding!