Bitterly disappointed

[Davidc316]

It's a point that's came up a few times on this forum...

but as an absolute beginner I'm finding it a total nightmare to obtain good information on how to get PHP up and running on my home computer.

So far I can do one or two simple scripts and then test them by uploading them to my website and checking to see if they work. Ok, maybe they are VERY simple, but at least they're working and I think I'm making good progress in that department. But uploading pages to the net every time I want to test a script seems like a slow process, so all I want to do is to be able to test some of the scripts on my own computer.

However, I'm feeling a bit disappointed because nobody nowhere seems to be able to provide a simple explanation of how to do this. SURE- I have a book right here with me that gives very complicated instructions and even a CD ROM (that doesn't work!). And SURE, I've no doubt there's a que of people who can tell me that I need to install and configure Apache and download such and such.

But nobody nowhere seems to be willing or able to explain WHY we need to do these things or HOW we do these things. I mean, I know it's a silly point, but to give an example... nobody has ever sat me down and said "here is what Apache is and THIS is why you need it." Nobody has written any books that say, "Ok, if you just want to test PHP on your home computer here is what to do."

I can get a hold of all kinds of great information about coding. I can read tonnes of really good tutorials on how to build shopping carts and so on. The trouble is... nobody seems to be covering the basics well at all.

Whenever the issue of instalation has been raised on this forum, I've noticed a few seemingly good links being recommended with all kinds of "wonderful" instalation wizards. I've downloaded every one of them, but I still can't get the scripts to work on my home computer. The wizards say things like "Enter your domain name". But nobody seems to tell you what to do if you're just wanting to use the thing for testing scripts offline!!!

Every time I build an html page on Dreamweaver then add some PHP script, then when I preview in the browser (IE) it doesn't seem to notice the script at all.

I know that this is a very confused sounding post. I realise that I've probably came across like some kind of a simpleton by revealing how clueless I am BUT I also know that I'm not the only person on these forums who is experiencing these kinds of problems.

Is there anyone out there who can give me some good information? Anything at all! A website link. A book I can read. ANYTHING.

So far, the experience of trying to learn PHP is making me totally miserable.

[TruckStuff]

Note: this info assumes that you are trying to install PHP/Apache on windows (which is incredibly easy).

1) Take a deep breath and relax.

2) PHP is a server-side scripting language. This means that all the processing of PHP code is done on the server, which then generates HTML to send to the client to display a page. If you view the source of a PHP web page (AFTER it is displayed in teh browser), all you will see is HTML.

3) Apache is the most popular web server on the internet today. It is the software pacakage that actually answers and serves requests for web pages. No web pages can be viewed without a web server of some kind.

4) In order to install Apache and PHP, you must install Apache FIRST, then install PHP. If you are isntalling on a windows platform (preferrably Win2k or WinXP), executable installation files are available for both PHP and Apache. Download the Win32 executables for Apache 2.0.45 abd PHP 4.3.2 from www.apache.org and www.php.net. To install them, simply double click the files.

5) Install Apache FIRST. If it asks you for a domain name, enter localhost (although I believe this is the default). localhost is a TCP/IP nickname for your computer. Note: by setting the domain name to localhost, you will ONLY be able to serve web pages to your computer (which is ideal for testing; I do this every day of the week). After the installation process has completed, make sure apache is started, then open a web browser and go to http://localhost. If you see a web page, Apache is properly installed.

6) Stop the Apache server service. Run the PHP installation executable. At the end of the installation process, you will probably recieve a message about being unable to install some lines in httpd.conf. You will need to alter <APACHE ROOT>\conf\httpd.conf manually to get PHP pages to be served properly. Read the installation documentation PHP.net to get the exact lines.

7) Restart Apache. Apache will ONLY serve web pages from a specific directory. The default is <APACHE ROOT>\htdocs, although this can be altered in the httpd.conf file. This is important because if you save a file anywhere else on your hard drive, it will NOT be viewable with Apache.

Example configuration: Install Apache to c:\Program Files. This creates the directory Apache Group\Apache2\ with folders called conf, htdocs, logs, icons, etc, etc,. Create the following PHP script:

<? phpinfo(); ?>

and save it in c:\Program Files\Apache Group\Apache2\htdocs\info.php. Then be sure the apache service is running (there should be a green arrow in your system tray), open a browser, and enter http://localhost/info.php as the address. If you see the PHP info page, you are successful.

Hope this helps you some. Post back if you have more difficulties.

[grieg]

if you are too lazy , then just go and take a look at this:http://www.mattjacob.org/server/
it is the simplest tutorial i've found on net that will help to solve your problem
after reading this you should NOT have any more problems on runnig your own webserver

[mo0ness]

Ok, download the below file - it comes with PHP, Apache, MySQL, PHPMyAdmin and Perl 5. I promise you - there is no real knowledge of how Apache/MySQL/PHP or Perl work required what so ever. You download the installation (*.exe) file - click it, press "Next" a few times...and walla.

The packages are installed in the C:\apache\ directory - where C:\apache\htdocs\ will be where your "web-files" would be stored and where apache recognizes it as the "root web directory" kinda thing.

PHP gets automatically installed there is no required configuration; and since you wanted a simple explanation - i wont go into how to edit your PHP settings 🙂

In order to start apache, click Start > Program Files > PHPTriad > Start Apache. Here a DOS box will appear; you need to keep this open in order for apache to be ran and for you to view your web files. To test if your webserver is working, in your interner browser type in: http://localhost in the address bar.

Now...if you wish to run MySQL; go to C:\apache\mysql\bin\ - and click "winmysqladmin.exe" to run MySQL. A window will pop up prompting you with a username and password; here is where you make your MySQL username and password - so put in the information accordingly, make sure it's something you will remember. When MySQL is running, in the bottom right of your screen you will see a set of "traffic lights" - green indicates MySQL is up and running fine, and red indicates that it is not. On your first installation - it may be red; just do a quick restart and everything should then be fine. There is not shortcut to winmysqladmin.exe in Start > Program Files > PHPTriad - so its up to you if you wish to have it there, I'd recommend it, saves you having to browse through numerous files each time.

You don't have to configure PHPMyAdmin; once your webserver is up, and MySQL is up - go to http://localhost/phpmyadmin - here you can easily manage your databases and tables and any query's.

I hope this explanation was ok for you? 🙂

Download name: PHPTriad
Link: http://download.com.com/3000-2165-6474268.html?tag=lst-0-1 -- if PHPTriad isn't displayed (that shouldn't happen; but still) just go to http://downloads.com and type in the search box "PHPTriad".

Best of luck.

[Davidc316]

These replies have been great. The link was very good and the two long replies have made me realise that maybe computer programmers ARE human after all.

Thanks!

But, before I can even make my way to the starting blocks with any of these things... I have to tell you, I'm in a bit of a mess and I could really do with a few tips to point me in the right direction.

Here goes (but if I ask anything daft, then please realise I've only being doing this php stuff for about 3 or 4 days): IF YOU DON'T WANT TO REPLY TO THIS THEN I WON'T BLAME YOU. It's one big nightmare!!!!!

PROBLEM 1:
This problem about configuring PHP, Apache and MySQL is not a new one for me. Although I posted my original thread late last night, I've spent the past 3 days downloading and "installing" pretty much everything I can get my hands on. I've even "installed" via a CD ROM I got with a book that I bought the other day (teach yourself PHP in 24 hours! Ha!).

Anyway, what you've got to realise is that so far I've attempted to install a billion different versions of PHP, Apache and MySQL (there seems to be lots of different versions around). You name it and I've installed it! I've followed the instructions as best as I could each time and guess what? - I've even got those little traffic lights that you speak of on the bottom right side of my screen (the green light's on)! I've also got a little feather thing too and I'm not sure, but I think I've "Installed" PHP also!

But before we all go celebrating, there's just one little problem. NOTHING HAPPENS!!! I mean, when I go to Dreamweaver, build a page with a bit of PHP in it, then click F12 to preview in browser, I STILL get the same thing happening- i.e., NOTHING!

It just ignores my PHP script and it's as if all my installation has been for nothing.

SO (takes a deep breath)... should I just de-install everything and start again from scratch (carefully following the good advice given in this thread) OR am I already at the finishing line and I just don't know how to take that final step????

PROBLEM 2:

What's all this talk about PHP admin? As I understood it, we need Apache (so that we've got a server to run the stuff on), we need MySQL (to build and store databases) and we need PHP installed (which as far as I was aware is nothing but a programming engine that runs in the backgorund).

So, what's all this stuff about PHPadmin or PHPmyadmin????

I mean, even if there IS a PHP admin, I'm sure it's lovely and maybe if you're a computing geek then your ideal weekend would be playing around with a PHP admin panel. But in my case, I'm not interested in an admin panel. All I want is for the PHP engines to read and execute my scripts. I have no need for an admin panel. Right?

PROBLEM 3:

Actually, those two are pretty big problems so I'll leave it at that. But please let me clarify one or two things...

When this has all been said and done, will I be able to build PHP webpages on Dreamweaver, hit F12 (preview in browser) and then SEE the scripts running?

Will I EVER be able to achieve that one seemingly simple goal?

[Davidc316]

Once again, I'm sorry for taking this to such a low level, but to put you in the picture... I emailed my webhosts last week and told them that I'm interested in learning PHP and I'm hoping to run some PHP scripts on my website and I also asked if they could set up MySQL for me (*apparently you need to ask them to set it up for you).

Anway, they emailed me back and they were like "What's your database username and your database password?" So I'm like 😕 I mean, how can I give them a username and a password for something that doesn't even exist!!!?

...and then later on in the email they were like "if you want us to install PhpMyAdmin you will need to give us your user and password for FTP". So by that point I was just wanting to kill myself!

I mean, like I said in my last post "What IS PphMyAdmin and why do I need it in the first place?"

please remember, when I'm installing MySQL and PHP and Apache on my own computer at home, it's just for testing scripts. But when it comes to putting these scripts and databases online on my real* website then I would need to get my webhosts to sort that our from their end. 😕

PS- this is the first thread I've ever posted in my life on any forum where I've used a footnote. It just goes to show how much of a mess I'm in!

[TruckStuff]

1) Forget about Dreamweaver for a few minutes. If you have the green arrow in your system tray, that means that apache is running. Open a new browser and type http://localhost in the address bar. If you get a web page, Apache is running properly. If you get a 404 error, that means Apache is either not running or not configured properly.

I've never sued it before, but my guess would be that the Dreamweaver preview attempts to run the page in some sort of internal web server imitation. These page previews are very limited and not designed for dynamic web pages. My hunch is that the preview you are seeing is being pulled from where you saved the file on your hard drive. As I said earlier, Apache will never display the page from this location because it outside of the htdocs folder. Some editors allow you to specify external web servers for page preview. If this is the case with Dreamweaver, you should use the Apache you just installed and point all pages to the domain http://localhost. Read the dreamweaver help files for more info.

Start with verifying that Apache is even working, then work your way up from there.

2) PHPmyadmin is a "front end" for MySQL. Its a web based, graphical interface that allows you to create/manage MySQL databases without using the mysql client command line. It makes admining MySQL much easier, especially for newbies.

3) I have never used Dreamweaver, I have always used editors specifically designed for PHP. Many of them have built-in page preview that allows you to preview a PHP page from anywhere on your computer.

But again I stress: KISS (keep it simple stupid). Verify that Apache/PHP is even working at all on your computer before you try and do more advanced things like dreamweaver previews. You are never going to get any previews working if you don't have a proper installation.

[Davidc316]

Ok. I have studied every single word on this thread and at last I think I seem to be getting somewhere.

The state of play is that I basically uninstalled or deleted everything from previous attempts and started again from scratch. I have to say, the download that was recommended by Mooness was a beauty. It seems to have taken care of the installation business and now when I type in http://localhost then for the first time, I finally get a webpage coming up! Yeehaaa!

But, there's just one or two things that I need to sort out now. I can confidently say that these are probably minor issues so please don't give up on me now!!!

Ok, now that I have these things (PHP Apache etc) installed on my computer (and presumably they are talking to each other) my question is... how do I test a simple PHP script on my home computer? What is the standard procedure for doing this task?

[Davidc316]

And just to retype a slightly more complicated version of that question...

How do I integrate a simple PHP script with a HTML webpage that I've built and then test it on my home computer?

[TangLiSha]

Just save your file in the /Apache Group/Apache2/htdocs folder to view it, and make sure that you name it with a .php extension.

Here is a simple file to try out:

<?php
print "It works!";
?>

Cut and paste the above code into notepad, and save it in the htdocs folder as indicated above. Name it test.php, or something like that. Make sure that notepad doesn't save it as a text file. Then, go into your browser and type in the address that you previously got to work (//localhost?), and add the extension to the end /test.php.

On my computer, I have to use my 127.0.0.1/test.php to get it to work.

As far as integrating it with html, you have two options:

1. You can add the php in anywhere inside html with the <?php ?> tags like this: <p>My name is <?php print $name; ?> <p>

2. You can use php to print out your html like this: print "<p>This is html<p>";

I normally use a combination of the two, it depends on the circumstances.

[Norman_Graham]

Hi David

Whereabouts in Scotland you located?

Are you getting anywhere? If not, let me know. I struggled with all this stuff about 7 months ago when I first started with PHP/Apache/MySQL. Still struggling, but not with the installation.

Best o luck

Norman

[Davidc316]

Hello there!

I'm in Glasgow. Are you from Scotland too?

The state of play so far is that (thanks to the positive responses in this thread) I've finally managed to install PHP and Apache and maybe even mySQL (but I'm not sure about that one).

It's not all good news though because the PHP triad package that I downloaded seems to have a bug in the PHP admin thing. Every time I open it (using XP), it says an error has occured and the program has to shut down. But, in truth, I'm not really too bothered about that cos right now I'm not using the admin panel and so far I can't even see it getting mentioned in this book I'm working through.

There is of course an endless supply of other problems which are bound to come up (coding problems and so on), but I suppose that's normal for a guy just starting out with this stuff.

So... I suppose this thread is pretty much coming to an end. I came here with an installation problem and thanks to a great gang 'o' guys, it seems to be up and running now.

But whilst I have your attention, can I hit you a question that has been on my mind?

I took up this PHP stuff with the goal of one day being able to add a database to my website (which is www.topgig.com by the way! 😃).

I also hope that some day I'll be able to build my own online shop.

Are these goals possible or is this just TOTALLY overambitious?

I mean... even if I DID learn how to write good PHP codes for online shops, I'd still have the problems of making the site secure, right? After all... the online shop programmes that you can buy have all got 128 bit (or whatever it is) incription.

So, at the end of the day... I'm having fun, but do you think this is really worth the effort?

[Davidc316]

Woops! I just noticed you're from Germany so I guess my "Are you from Scotland too?" question was a bit daft! 😛

By the way, let me just say... you guys certainly know how to make great cars! I picked up a second hand Audi the other day (it was going really cheap at an auction) and I have to say, so far it's the best set of wheels I've ever had- Really comfy seats and it drives good too!

[dartcol]

Intersting read - subtitle "Trials and Tribulations of a Web Server and its Slave".

Hi David, seems like you're going through pretty much what a lot of us went through.

One thing, yes, it is possible to build any site you want but you have to be prepared to go really slowly at the beginning, listen to those with more knowledge and eat humble pie because you got a semi-colon wrong! It can also take a long time especially if you're a part-timer like me who gets to spend about one or two hours a day coding.

You will need to get MySQL running in order to test your site offline and the easiest way is by using phpmyadmin which you can download from phpmyadmin.net. I had to do this again and again only a short time ago to get it right. But I do advise reading the basic info about MySQL first and then read the phpmyadmin installation instructions really carefully, It's all there just a little hard to understand and that's on the third reading!

There is plenty of other information out there as I'm sure you've discovered but unfortunately you need more than a degree in pure logic to work out half of it and for those of us with less of the logic it's a bit of an uphill struggle.

Good luck.

Here's two on MySQL that helped me.

sqlcourse.com
http://www.mysql.com/articles/mysql_intro.html

[Norman_Graham]

Originally posted by Davidc316
Woops! I just noticed you're from Germany so I guess my "Are you from Scotland too?" question was a bit daft! 😛

Sadly, I can claim no responsibility for the cars, since I'm from Glasgow myself, but now at home in Berlin since 1997.

Like the site - now lemme see, Steve Naismith, fairly common name, but I'm sure I know that man - school, uni ... can't remember, but I sure as hell remember King Tuts.

Btw, I don't have time to check it out right at the minute, but does Topgig specialise in bands frae north of Carlisle, because if it does I'll be adding a link to my site. I have a site on all things Scottish (and nae f***in' clan shit) which was basically a little project designed to help me learn how to publish on the web. It's now live but I'm keeping it a secret for a couple of weeks because it's almost devoid of real content. I shall reveal the URL soon and I'll send an e-mail to Topgig if I decide to do a link.

Did you code the site yourself? It looks very professional indeed. I notice there's some serious Javascript in there, which means you'll have no problem getting your head round PHP.

Best o luck

Norman

[stolzyboy]

not to belittle Davidc316 and your thoughts on his javascript abilities, but i am pretty sure that the javascript you are seeing
is created from an image program capable of doing rollovers and such, i believe this may be code from Macromedia Fireworks, or the like, maybe ImageReady, anyway, just thought you'd like to know

anyway, again, the site looks nice and i hope you have good luck
with your apache/php/mysql adventures

🙂

[Davidc316]

Aaaaah you're from Glasgow too!

Cool. I guess that means it's ok to mention the war then! :p

About the javascript issue. Well, thanks for mentioning it, but in truth there is not a single item of Javascript on the entire site! If I managed to fool some of you into thinking it had Java script, then maybe that's not a bad thing! Incidentally, what part did you think had javascript???

Norman, the vibe with topgig.com was that it was originally meant to be just for Scottish bands, but lately I've had a few English and American bands sign up, so it's probably not worthy of getting onto your site when the time comes.

I'll be sure to check out that article when I get a chance, dartcol, but right now I feel as if my heads about to explode.

Be cool!

[kevinsequeira]

site http://www.topgig.com/

view source ...

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if (a.indexOf("#")!=0){ d.MM_p[j]=new Image; d.MM_p[j++].src=a;}}
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if(!x && document.getElementById) x=document.getElementById(n); return x;
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i guess thats the javascript that was mentioned, if the site was right

reg
kevin

[Davidc316]

I must admit... I haven't got a clue what that is or how it got there.

My suspicion is that Dreamweaver must have slipped it in at some point without me knowing.

[stolzyboy]

yeah i know it is javascript, and i know it is either macromedia dreamweaver, or macromedia fireworks javascript work