PHP is the most commonly used language in web. Being opensource PHP developers enjoy lots of unofficial tutorials and support. But following are the resources that will really turn you into an advanced PHP developer. Its doesnt matter at what level of php you are working on right now. Wether you are beginner or advanced you will certainly benefit from some great tips in these resources.
1. w3schools.com
If you are a beginner than PHP and SQL tutorial sections will give you good insight about the basic functions involved to start yourself as web developer. If you have read both this section you are all set to start building your first webapplication using PHP and MYSQL. Its CSS and HTML sections are also worth reading but as I am talking here about LAMP(Linux, Apache, MYSQL, PHP) I will stick to PHP and MYSQL only.
2. Zend PHP5 Certification study guide by Davey Shafik
This is a great book to read once you have some basic knowlege of PHP. This book will cover all the topics that you would have read in w3schools and some more advanced also. Its chapter 6 of object oriented programming in PHP and chapter 10 of Security will give you good insight about object oriented programing and common security measures that you should take care of being PHP developer. You will also have an oppurtunity to go for Zend Certified Engineer(ZCE) certification exam after finishing this book.
3. Practical Web 2.0 Applications with PHP by Quentin Zervaas
Though PHP is very easy and efficient language to work on, it is always better to use a framework so that you dont have to reinvent the wheel everytime. It will save you from most of the donkey work and enable you to concentrate on your code. This book is a great Zend Framework tutorial, which covers everything including installation and building your personal blog right from the scratch.
4. High Performance MYSQL By Baron Schwatrz, Peter Zaitsev, Vadim Tkachenko, Jeremy Zawodny, Arjen Lentz & Derek Balling
This book will be really helpful when your websites grow and database load increases. This book gives good insights about MYSQL. It would be worth reading chapter 4 Query performace optimization so that you keep few tips in mind for writing optimized queries.
5 .Search Engine Optimization(SEO) Bible by Jerri Ledford
As the name suggest this book gives good explaination about search engine optimization. This is the book worth keeping in your collection as websites are made to attract traffic and search engines are the best sources to attract traffic free of charge.
Have I left any of your favorite resources? please leave your comments.
