How to become an php expert?

[pinkonomy]

Hi,

I would like to become a php expert.

How to achieve this?

I have already read 2-3 books but I don't feel like knowing php.

How to sharpen my skills?

Thanks for your answers

[Genesis730]

The best way is to make stuff, do a forum or make a program, something to keep challenging your skills, maybe learn better and more efficient ways to code

 

 

[hyster]

set urself a project to work on.

find a site u like n try to emulate it.

 

i do part of my company's intranet site so i do some intrestin stuff using mysql.

[Fadion]

Expert is big stuff, so my advice is to stay away from it for a while - unless you have good general programming knowledge and been on PHP for a few years. Anyway, this is a subject where's there's lots to learn, be it PHP-related or not, so using the term "expert" is very subjective.

 

The best way would be telling an experience, so I'm telling mine [hopefully] briefly. I did start PHP with an absolute beginner's book (can't remember the title) and that set me in for the basic principles. Then I started working on a few small projects just to test what I did learn. In the meantime I was active in this forum and I have to say it: it has helped me more than any book. I tried to help people by researching myself, read other's opinions and also asked questions when there was no way I could find an answer. When I felt confident enough, I started reading more advanced topics about objects, patterns, performance, the environment, etc, and tried writing more logical and modular code. As I said previously, there's a lot going on so you better start exploring it right now.

 

By the way, I started PHP by 2007 and have been working full-time (employed and from 1 and 1/2 years freelance) as a web designer and developer. It helps a lot being in the "field".