That the book should cover MVC architecture might be a bit too much, although a general idea of the concept would be a good idea. After all, not everyone will want to build large systems, and those who want, could buy a specialized book on MVC frameworks. There are many books that cover this subject.

Most people begin programming by writing a “hello world” program. After that it takes quite some time to move on to the more advanced topics like dealing with datasets, paging results, optimizing the database structure, manipulating data with the help of arrays, using CSS to style the presentation, etc… Too much information would likely stall the beginner out.

I think an introductory book should definitely cover the ideas of .htaccess, mod_rewrite, and MVC architectures, etc. Anyone looking into the subject is not interested in building a simple “mom and pop” sort of website. I understand that the book is not intended to go in-depth on these issues, but I think they should be presented as, “this is the way it’s being done now”.

I can’t tell you how many times, I’ve searched for something or read something and only gotten half the answer. You then go and do it and learn the other half. Which is great for enhancing the understanding of things, but I also think it would be incredibly helpful if the popular and credible resources told more of story, etc. I don’t mean to imply the book by Kevin is lacking is such regard, these are just some thoughts.

However, I think sometimes a disservice is done to “beginners” or the development community by dumbing it down too much. The more information, the better.

Thanks for posting that. I certainly couldn’t have put it any better.

I too jumped to the mod_rewrite option and also saw the likelihood of code duplication (although not necessarily depending on dependency structures), but what I know is true is that there is almost always more than just one way to peel an orange (or some such cliche) and you’re not going to learn all of them in a one-off scenario. The templates and separation is a good place to start of beginners and will get them off bad habits before they ever start.

For you folks that say designers and programmers don’t come in the same package, think again, it may be rare, but I know it’s possible. Now maybe a jack of all trades will be less a master at all, but can still be a master.

Thanks for letting me have my word.

I think you’ll agree that if someone who has never written any type of computer program before can pick up a 400 page book and learn to write a simple, secure PHP application structured in this way, that’s a pretty solid achievement.

Although I’ve seen some graphic types who can grasp engineering principals, the creative side is the wrong side of the brain for serious software engineering.

At best, a graphic designer can be a good amateur in programming. It took me a couple of years to accept that and give the programming to someone who doesn’t do anything else. However, it is important for a graphic designer to have an understanding of programming so that he/she knows what can be done and what not.
Thereofroe, a graphic designer without any knowledge of programming is a

If for some odd reason your server does not support mod_rewrite and you cannot install it or have it installed, GET ANOTHER SERVER. The medium-long term cost of maintaining this mess is much higher than a simple server swap for any project where this would be a possible solution in the first place.

I’m assuming that the concept of modular programming and reusable code aren’t new concepts for seasoned pros, but I do think that those are concepts not immediately obvious to newbies and/or casual programmers. I lump graphic designers into the latter category. Although I’ve seen some graphic types who can grasp engineering principals, the creative side is the wrong side of the brain for serious software engineering. Yes, I know that will be offensive to some, but before you knock me down to size, consider your attitude towards engineers who try to draw things and make pretty pages.

I read your book ages ago… It must have been when it first came out because it was in article format on the site and I printed out every page… I still have it in my bookshelf full of highlighter and postit notes : )

It sounds like the new book is introducing the reader to design patterns or at least agile development practices. I’ve got the first 4 chapters and may just buy the book to go with the rest of my SP arsenal. The original was a great read so I expect the new one will be even better.

Cheers,
Andrew

<IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
	RewriteEngine On
	RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-f
	RewriteCond %{REQUEST_FILENAME} !-d
	RewriteRule (.*) index.php [QSA] [L]
</IfModule>

$requestData = explode( $_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'] );

I honestly don’t see why examples of how to configure this in Apache via pass thru wouldn’t have been ten times better. That way you also get to promote single point of entrance, you don’t need to duplicate lots of code and best of all you get to actually have URL arguments properly instead if /your/pretty/url/?which=is&not=prettyreally

I realize this book is aimed at beginners, but that doesn’t mean you have to dumb down everything to a level where it will just confuse more than help.

That said, we are offering a generous discount on the 4th edition for 3rd edition owners. If you haven’t yet received an email about it, drop us a line and we’ll hook you up.