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PHP has been good to me. I started using it over 7 years ago as a Perl refugee, and it really allowed me to get a strong understanding of programming in general because it was so easy to use. I started playing with PHP when PHP 4 came on the scene. I will admit that I probably didn't learn great design patterns, but things were simple, and there were basic objects. As I learned more about good programming through other languages, that was able to influence my PHP work. Java was probably the most influential in teaching good style. Unfortunately PHP was not originally designed for objects, but was strapped on there in PHP 4 in a sort of hodgepodge way. But with PHP 5 I really gained confidence that PHP was getting serious, as it's support for objects was much improved. Is PHP a child's language? It is if it is in a child's hands. I think that the great thing about PHP is that it doesn't limit you that much. If you want to make a terribly unorganized mess of code, that's your perogative, and PHP doesn't get in your way. However, if you want to be disciplined, and do things elegantly, it provides the language support for that as well. Anyone who criticizes PHP for being ugly, messy or anything else need only to say to the programmer that they are ugly and messy, because I have seen some very elegant PHP code, and have seen some utterly terrible code. Anyhow I don't think the usefulness of PHP can be discredited, as it is used in many major websites, such as facebook, digg, and others that escape me. It has proven to be a real performer when it comes to scalability. PHP was my "gateway drug", it allowed me to get immersed in web programming technology without being overwhelmed by anything; I just got things done. It also helped to provide experience that later could be built upon while maturing into a professional computer scientist.
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