How this Book is Organized

This book is divided into eight parts, corresponding to particular topic groups. The chapters within each part build on the information found in those before it:

• Part I, "Getting Started," walks you through the installation and configuration of MySQL, Apache, and PHP. You'll need to complete the lessons in Part I before moving on, unless you already have access to a working installation of these technologies.

• Part II, "The Absolute Basics of Coding in PHP," teaches you the basics of the PHP language, starting with variables and the core structure of the language. The numerous hands-on examples will get you in the habit of writing code, uploading it, and testing the results.

• Part III, "Start with the Simple Stuff," builds on the basics learned in the previous chapters, and helps you to create multi-part scripts and display dynamic content, among other things.

• Part IV, "Getting to Know Your MySQL Database," introduces you to the concept of working with databases in general and MySQL in particular, and shows you how to create PHP scripts to communicate with MySQL and perform various tasks.

• Part V, "User Authentication and Tracking," shows you how to use PHP to restrict access to your applications, and how to set cookies and work with user sessions, including the storage of user preferences.

• Part VI, "Creating Your Own Contact Management System," contains several chapters which walk you through the design and creation of a specific type of application, in this case a contact management system, also known as a web-based address book.

• Part VII, "Additional Project Examples," contains chapters devoted to other popular types of projects, such as managing a mailing list, creating custom reports, and working with XML.

• Part VIII, "Appendixes," contains several handy references for the PHP and SQL languages, as well as other information including how to use SQLite and where to go to find help and additional tutorials.