Most developers prefer PHP to conventional scripting language to build engaging, interactive and robust web applications. As an open source language, PHP can be learned and used by new web application developers within a very short span of time. Along with a variety of websites and web applications, the language is also used to develop customized content management systems (CMS). Regardless of your experience in developing PHP applications, it is always important to understand and implement some best practices to avail major PHP development benefits.
7 Best Practices to Avail Major PHP Development Benefits
1. Have Control Over the Source Code: Nowadays, most companies develop projects through distributed teams. So it is always important for each member of the distributed team to ensure that the source code of the project is under control. When a developer makes any addition or modification to the code, he must add appropriate comments to make others understand the updates. Also, the comments will make it easier for you to communicate the changes made by you to others, along with getting information about the changes made by others.
2. Follow Naming Standards Consistently: The choice of naming standards vary from one developer to another. Normally, developers use one of the two widely used naming standards. Under the CamelCase naming standard, the first letter of each word other than the first word is capitalized. On the other hand, as per the Underscore naming standard, a developer places _ (underscore) between two words. Based on the coding and convenience, the programmer can use any of the naming standards. But he must use a single naming standard throughout the code to maintain consistency and uniformity throughout the project.
3. Turn the Error Reporting Off before Deployment: You will find the error reporting function in PHP handy while developing a website. Simply by enabling the options, you can spot a variety of problems during the coding stage. Also, you have options to use several levels of error reporting to identify both errors and warnings. However, you must turn the error reporting off once the application is developed and is ready for deployment. You can avoid displaying the potential errors to end users simply by disabling the error reporting option.
4. Initialize the Variables Securely: Most web applications are designed with features to accept input from end users. But you must not trust the users to submit 100% relevant and authentic information. Regardless of the nature of the application, you need to always assume that a user can always try to insert irrelevant and malicious code. You can easily prevent such website hacking efforts by initializing the variables properly. The exact initialization of variables will further contribute towards the safety and security of your website.
5. Avoid Putting phpinfo() in the Web Root: You can use the function phpinfo() to know detailed information about the web server environment. But many developers compromise the security of their web application by placing the function in the web root. The placement of phpinfo() will further affect the performance of the server negatively. So you must check and ensure that the function is not kept inside the web root. It is a good idea to put the function in a place that is more secure, and also delete it as soon as its usefulness is over.
6. Use Coding and Libraries Repeatedly: You can always save a huge amount of time by reusing the existing libraries and coding. As a specific piece of coding is already used by other programmers to solve a specific problem or perform some activity, you can simply reuse these to avoid writing code from the scratch. Also, the available resources will contribute towards reducing your project completion period. However, you can still create solution from the scratch to solve some fresh problems. If you develop fresh PHP code, the same must be shared with the community of PHP developers to make the open source language more popular.
7. Avail the Advantages of PHP Frameworks: You have options to choose from a wide variety of PHP application to fit the nature and type of your project. But each PHP framework will make it easier for you to develop robust web application without putting any extra time and effort. Some of the most popular PHP frameworks like CakePHP, Zend Framework, CodeIgniter, Kohana and Symfony are designed based on Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture. The MVC pattern makes it easier for developers to write good coding by separating the business logic. Further, you can use the libraries provided by these frameworks to avoid writing lengthy codes.
Along with the PHP development best practices, you can also consider some of the common web application development tips and tricks. The combination of several best practices will make it easier for you to maximize PHP development benefits.
We have deep expertise in developing custom web applications in PHP and its various latest frameworks. To outsource PHP development needs of your organization, or to discuss with a certified PHP developer, please get in touch with us at Mindfire Solutions.
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