Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

The URL provided by Layla is a direct link to the web application itself, while the URL provided in Merchant response is a link to the website from where you can browse the source code or run the application. running the application is done by clicking a link named "run the application" which takes you to the link Layla mentioned.

Hence she was in the right URL.

The errors on the page might be caused by a PHP upgrade, I would love to make correction to the source code to make it work since the application is actually a nice one..

Unfortunately the book is outdated now and the book website is not maintained well.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

To the respected authors (Hugh E. Williams and David Lane):

Usually, before buying a book the customer checks the authors website to know more about him.. I went to the website: http://www.webdatabasebook.com/ and decided to see the wine store application.. so I went to: http://www.webdatabasebook.com/2nd-edition/winestore/index.php and there I saw a nice long page of errors which really does not give a good impression for someone who wants to buy a good book..

But still I believe the book idea is great.. the table of contents looks promising, and the authors are experienced people.. so I hope we will see a more professional website for this book in the future, or maybe an entire new edition of the book.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

I think that this is a solid book for non-newbie php programmers. Typical of many O'Reilly titles, it is refreshing to read and the code snippits are often good examples which well illustrate the point that is being explained.

If you expect simply to cut and paste the code for the entire example application (i.e. wine store), and then have it work as you wish in your server environment with little or no modification whatsoever, then you probably should be using canned apps instead of writing your own app anyway.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

I bought two PHP/SQL books, and prefer this one. But I'm not totally satisfied with my purchase. I enjoy the writing, and feel the pace and organization make sense.

I don't mind there is no CD, I think a quick download is usually a better alternative. But the download for this book left me wondering what was what.

And of course, it is disappointing to see the Wine Store example program on the OReilly web site throws an error and refuses to run.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

Well, it is allright, not great or so. I am a db-programmer, and just started using php. A need a sort of winestore-application, but I can't get the application working without a huge list of errors. The other examples in the book worked ok. I wouldn't recommand it for people wanting to start webbased db-apps...

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

This is an excellent book for the moderately experienced programmer. I disagree that one does not need to have programming experience to read this book. This is not a book that teaches programming concepts, top-down design or even object orientation. True, one can gain some understanding, but I don't think this is the first book to pick up.

However, if someone is already familiar with other languages, this is the perfect book to learn PHP and MySQL. The wine store example that is performed throughout the book is an excellent way to showcase PHP and MySQL. Personally, I'm able to learn faster if I have a project to work on and to apply the language. This example served that purpose for me.

Once again, a great book, an easy read for programmers.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

I enjoyed this book. It was well written and organized. The authors did a great job of explaining the install proceedure for Apache, PHP, and MySQL for Linux, Windows, and Mac. No small challenge, to say the least.

As they explain before delving into matters, PHP was transitioning from version 4 to 5, and the book was being published before/during the new versions release. Anyone familiar with the differences between these two realizes that some major changes were occuring, like OOP for example. This sometimes made for confusing reading as the code from each version can look much different yet perform the same task. MySQL also had a version change, which was not quite as impacting.

I was using a Windows install, but had already installed Apache, PHP, and MySQL on my own. So during the discussions of installations and configurations, it was sometimes difficult to match up my install with the one recommended in the book, especially when it came to setting up PEAR components. I suspect that someone following the book exclusively, from install to the final project, might avoid this confusion.

All in all, for not being familiar with PHP before reading this book, I learned a lot very quickly. I would definitely recommend it if you need a comprehensive crash course in LAMP, which is becoming ever more popular.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

Lane and Williams are clearly well-versed in all aspects of their subject matter and practiced wordsmiths and teachers. If you're a "non-programmer" looking to build an interactive web-site, get the book, use it, and keep it for when your goals expand. If you're an experienced programmer looking to start work in the latest Apache/MySQL/PHP environment, it spans syntax to OO design patterns you can adopt and adapt.

The first problem experienced by the authors of every book of this type is that of deciding how much knowledge to assume in the reader and where to start explaining. It states clearly that "You don't need to know how to program to use this book ..." While true in fact, I think this is a tall order for a single book, although the appendix of references to other resources is very good.

Consequently, there are parts of the book that will be hard going for novice developers who must absorb and apply new terms and concepts in order to work through. Less-experienced readers must necessarily pace themselves, not just fiddle with example code from the book: pause along the way to create your own experimental applications that can be embellished and refined as your knowledge builds. The information is all there for anyone, but the conceptual baggage can be a bit heavy at times.

This is not a failing of the book but a fact of current technology: thoroughness requires broad knowledge (contributed by entire teams in enterprise environments) beyond the mere use of a particular language and attention to details. The authors would have been remiss if they had avoided important aspects of web application design invoked by loftier issues such as object orientation, re-usability, maintainability, data modeling, server configuration, security, etc.

The book culminates in a five chapter study of the sample application, the on-line Wine Store - complicated enough to be instructive, simple enough to keep track. It was written for Linux but I had it running under WAMP in no time. The material throughout the book constantly refers forward to the application description and the application description refers back to the more formative sections of the book. These guys are good.

If I was teaching a course in open source web development, this would be my text book.

Comments about oreilly Web Database Applications with PHP and MySQL, Second Edition:

I decided to purchase this book to answer the numerous question I have had about php/mysql. I had previously finished an ambitious first project using another book.

I come from a publishing background with limited experience with programming. This book is a wonderful guide for an experienced programmer who wants to learn everything about PHP/MYSQL. As an accomplished 'beginner' I am finding this book very difficult to use. The tools along the way are useful but lacking enough depth saving the details for the 'final-exam-like projects' at the back of the book. The Winestore project is detailed and elaborate making it quite difficult to analyze small pieces of code if you are confused. To simply the experience, the author attempts to simply the code by relying on referenced files. Although I can see this is a good habit to use in coding, chasing down the references feels trying during the learning phase.

In essense, I wish the complex code at the back of the book spent an extra chapter slowly constructing the final project.