This updated edition teaches everything you need to know to create effective web applications with the latest features in PHP 5.x. You'll start with the big picture and then dive into language syntax, programming techniques, and other details, using examples that illustrate both correct usage and common idioms. If you have a working knowledge of HTML, the authors' many style tips and practical programming advice will help you become a top-notch PHP programmer. Get an overview of what's possible with PHP programs Learn language fundamentals, including data types, variables, operators, and flow control statements Understand functions, strings, arrays, and objects Apply common web application techniques, such as form processing, data validation, session tracking, and cookies Interact with relational databases like MySQL or NoSQL databases such as MongoDB Generate dynamic images, create PDF files, and parse XML files Learn secure scripts, error handling, performance tuning, and other advanced topics Get a quick reference to PHP core functions and standard extensions