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Decoy · Aug 15, 2002, 17:30

Hi,

After looking into PHP a couple of months ago, I downloaded PHPdev4 and installed it on my home PC. This was a useful bundle as I had no joy in configuring them to work by downloading each individually.

I have recently been asked to do a demonstration next Monday on the current site, and the only means is with the use of a laptop. Ideally I'll need to download a bundle again to put on there, as this is required to view the forum section.

After searching the sitepoint forums, I have come across a few bundles that all seem to do the same job. Such names are 'PHP Triad', 'PHPdev5', 'PHP Home Edition' etc.

What I'd like to know is which one would you recommend to use, even if it's one I have not mentioned?

Thank you for your time, and I hope someone can help.

freakysid · Aug 16, 2002, 05:39

The only bundles I have ever used are Nusphere (for linux) and firepages phpdev (for win). I have never tried any other php bundle for win as I have found phpdev to be excellent. www.firepages.com.au

trickie · Aug 16, 2002, 05:49

I used PHP Triad when i used windows ans it was very good for beginning php. It let you not worry about configuration too much and lets you get straight into the play.

of course once you've mucked around a bit, i suggest looking into the different configurations and extensions that PHP can have.

mitsubishi · Aug 16, 2002, 05:53

I would have to concur, PHPdev is your best option, however don't get PHPdev5 on windows <2000 or if you dont require PHP GTK as it needs some fiddling, get version 4. If you want a permanent full (and still free) solution try http://www.abriasoft.com but that is probably much more than you need. Normally however I'd say install everything manually as you get a much better feel for how everything goes together

weirdbeardmt · Aug 16, 2002, 16:34

PHPTriad is now officially dead...

Dan Morgan · Aug 17, 2002, 06:40

I switched from phpdev4 (which was great) to PHP Home Edition 2, as I needed to upgrade to a later version of PHP (4.1.2 I think) and phpdev4 didnt support that. phpdev5 is out now which does, and is on my list of things to install as if its the same as phpdev4 then it would be my choice.

There is nothing wrong with PHP Home Edition, but I found phpdev easier to use straight from the box so to speak.

Dan

someonewhois · Aug 17, 2002, 08:14

I wish I could get phpDev 4 with PHP 4.1+, becuase the package that comes is 4.0.6!

Dan Morgan · Aug 17, 2002, 08:41

Quote:

Originally posted by someonewhois
I wish I could get phpDev 4 with PHP 4.1+, becuase the package that comes is 4.0.6!

Why not upgrade to phpdev5 then?

Dan

Michel V · Aug 17, 2002, 11:45

phpdev5 is great ! But it's confusing if you used phpdev4 before.
You install the thing, and it puts icons, then you think you now have to click these icons to make the thing work. But it already works, the icon is only for administration: it should be labelled as 'phpdev5 admin' and not 'phpdev5' then :P

Even if you don't need php-gtk, phpdev5 is great to get

Just ignore the php-gtk part of it.

someonewhois · Aug 18, 2002, 07:43

Quote:

Originally posted by Shin Ma
phpdev5 is great ! But it's confusing if you used phpdev4 before.
You install the thing, and it puts icons, then you think you now have to click these icons to make the thing work. But it already works, the icon is only for administration: it should be labelled as 'phpdev5 admin' and not 'phpdev5' then :P

Even if you don't need php-gtk, phpdev5 is great to get Just ignore the php-gtk part of it.

I actually use php-gtk, and already have it installed..

Quote:

Originally posted by glenplake

Why not upgrade to phpdev5 then?

Dan

I don't want Apache 2, and I don't want all that other backend.. I just want a small testing area, which wouldnt' even be alwyas running. phpDev 5 starts when you boot up, phpDev 4 didn't. That's what I wnat, just to click the bat file to get phpDev 4 to start, and finish, I don't want it opening every restart.

In summary:

phpDev 4 is small, and you do everything in your control (

). phpDev 5 has all this other stuf I don't want, liek apache 2 and php website and it starts up on it's own.

Thanks,
~someonewhois

mitsubishi · Aug 18, 2002, 07:58

What do you mean phpdev5 starts up on boot? Windows is windows, you have full control over your start up.

Xplinth · Aug 18, 2002, 07:59

Quote:

Originally posted by weirdbeardmt
PHPTriad is now officially dead...

Very true, but you can still find it. I believe you can still get a copy for download from sourceforge.

I would recommend PHPTriad

someonewhois · Aug 18, 2002, 08:56

Quote:

Originally posted by mitsubishi
What do you mean phpdev5 starts up on boot? Windows is windows, you have full control over your start up.

I searched everywhere, didn't find anything to do with Apache.

Only the /phpdev5/ file had anything to do with it.

So it must have been somethign in there...

Thanks,
~someonewhois

Add · Aug 18, 2002, 09:01

what os is your laptop running? if it's a windows os i highly recommend not using apache, which is what is included in most bundles, but rather using iis if avaliable, or if not, pws, as both of these would be fine for demonstration purposes. you can then download php4.2.2 windows install file and have it do all of the configuration for you. i used to run phptriad with apache on my xp system and it just buggered up totaly, after switching to iis i have never gone back and my system resource useage has dropped considerably.

weirdbeardmt · Aug 18, 2002, 09:14

Quote:

Originally posted by someonewhois

I searched everywhere, didn't find anything to do with Apache.

Only the /phpdev5/ file had anything to do with it.

So it must have been somethign in there...

Thanks,
~someonewhois

That'll be because you have them running as a service. If you want to stop it then you'll need something like msconfig -- open that up, then its the services tab, hide all MS services and you should see it there.

someonewhois · Aug 18, 2002, 09:16

I still liked phpDev 4 better.

phpDev 5 gave me problems running it, just doesnt' work too well with windows 95, but phpDev 4 worked really great: Except none of my forms worked since it needed $HTTP_POST_VARS instead of my $_POST..

Decoy · Aug 19, 2002, 07:29

Thanks for all your comments everyone, I didn't expect so many useful replies.

I decided to install PHP Home Edition, but even though it was activated I couldn't get it to display anything. Having limited knowledge on these kind of things, I didn't find it user-friendly, so after much thought (2 seconds roughly) I opted to uninstall.

I then installed phpdev4 which I used on my home PC, and got everything up and running within seconds. I have no idea if phpdev5 is better, but I didn't want to take the risk.

Anyway, presentation went smoothly, so now all I have to worry about is setting up a server to do the same thing

Thanks once again everyone.

waherne · Sep 4, 2002, 05:22

Hello,

I have a Dell Inspiron 8200 Laptop with Win XP Home.

Is installing PHPDev4 the same as installing any other program on my laptop? i.e. the program will not interfere with the operation of XP. When I uninstall PHPDev4, will my computer be back to the way it was originally?

I see lots of references to servers running and am afraid that this will interfere with the configuration of my computer (which is primarily used for MS Office applications etc).

Any advice is appreciated.

waherne

Cabbage · Sep 5, 2002, 18:08

Use Norton Ghost to backup the drive. Just in case it gets screwed up you'll have a backup image of the entire hard drive.

Aug 15, 2002, 17:30	#1
Decoy SitePoint Enthusiast Join Date: May 2002 Location: UK Posts: 69	Recommended PHP bundle? Hi, After looking into PHP a couple of months ago, I downloaded PHPdev4 and installed it on my home PC. This was a useful bundle as I had no joy in configuring them to work by downloading each individually. I have recently been asked to do a demonstration next Monday on the current site, and the only means is with the use of a laptop. Ideally I'll need to download a bundle again to put on there, as this is required to view the forum section. After searching the sitepoint forums, I have come across a few bundles that all seem to do the same job. Such names are 'PHP Triad', 'PHPdev5', 'PHP Home Edition' etc. What I'd like to know is which one would you recommend to use, even if it's one I have not mentioned? Thank you for your time, and I hope someone can help.

Sep 4, 2002, 05:22	#18
waherne SitePoint Zealot Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Ireland Posts: 106	Win XP and PHPDev Hello, I have a Dell Inspiron 8200 Laptop with Win XP Home. Is installing PHPDev4 the same as installing any other program on my laptop? i.e. the program will not interfere with the operation of XP. When I uninstall PHPDev4, will my computer be back to the way it was originally? I see lots of references to servers running and am afraid that this will interfere with the configuration of my computer (which is primarily used for MS Office applications etc). Any advice is appreciated. waherne

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Aug 16, 2002, 05:39	#2
freakysid SitePoint Callithumpian Join Date: Jun 2000 Location: Sydney, Australia Posts: 3,845	The only bundles I have ever used are Nusphere (for linux) and firepages phpdev (for win). I have never tried any other php bundle for win as I have found phpdev to be excellent. www.firepages.com.au

Aug 16, 2002, 05:49	#3
trickie As the name suggests... Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 682	I used PHP Triad when i used windows ans it was very good for beginning php. It let you not worry about configuration too much and lets you get straight into the play. of course once you've mucked around a bit, i suggest looking into the different configurations and extensions that PHP can have.

Aug 16, 2002, 05:53	#4
mitsubishi Probably eating pie Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: England, UK Posts: 405	I would have to concur, PHPdev is your best option, however don't get PHPdev5 on windows <2000 or if you dont require PHP GTK as it needs some fiddling, get version 4. If you want a permanent full (and still free) solution try http://www.abriasoft.com but that is probably much more than you need. Normally however I'd say install everything manually as you get a much better feel for how everything goes together

Aug 16, 2002, 16:34	#5
weirdbeardmt We like music. Join Date: May 2001 Location: Channel Islands Girth: Footlong Posts: 6,146	PHPTriad is now officially dead...

Aug 17, 2002, 06:40	#6
Dan Morgan Gone! Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Witty Location Parody Posts: 4,806	I switched from phpdev4 (which was great) to PHP Home Edition 2, as I needed to upgrade to a later version of PHP (4.1.2 I think) and phpdev4 didnt support that. phpdev5 is out now which does, and is on my list of things to install as if its the same as phpdev4 then it would be my choice. There is nothing wrong with PHP Home Edition, but I found phpdev easier to use straight from the box so to speak. Dan

Aug 17, 2002, 08:14	#7
someonewhois SitePoint Wizard Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 7,385	I wish I could get phpDev 4 with PHP 4.1+, becuase the package that comes is 4.0.6!

Aug 17, 2002, 11:45	#9
Michel V will code HTML for food Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Corsica Posts: 552	phpdev5 is great ! But it's confusing if you used phpdev4 before. You install the thing, and it puts icons, then you think you now have to click these icons to make the thing work. But it already works, the icon is only for administration: it should be labelled as 'phpdev5 admin' and not 'phpdev5' then :P Even if you don't need php-gtk, phpdev5 is great to get Just ignore the php-gtk part of it.

Aug 18, 2002, 07:58	#11
mitsubishi Probably eating pie Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: England, UK Posts: 405	What do you mean phpdev5 starts up on boot? Windows is windows, you have full control over your start up.

Aug 18, 2002, 09:01	#14
Add SitePoint Addict Join Date: Aug 2002 Posts: 221	what os is your laptop running? if it's a windows os i highly recommend not using apache, which is what is included in most bundles, but rather using iis if avaliable, or if not, pws, as both of these would be fine for demonstration purposes. you can then download php4.2.2 windows install file and have it do all of the configuration for you. i used to run phptriad with apache on my xp system and it just buggered up totaly, after switching to iis i have never gone back and my system resource useage has dropped considerably.

Aug 18, 2002, 09:16	#16
someonewhois SitePoint Wizard Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Canada Posts: 7,385	I still liked phpDev 4 better. phpDev 5 gave me problems running it, just doesnt' work too well with windows 95, but phpDev 4 worked really great: Except none of my forms worked since it needed $HTTP_POST_VARS instead of my $_POST..

Aug 19, 2002, 07:29	#17
Decoy SitePoint Enthusiast Join Date: May 2002 Location: UK Posts: 69	Thanks for all your comments everyone, I didn't expect so many useful replies. I decided to install PHP Home Edition, but even though it was activated I couldn't get it to display anything. Having limited knowledge on these kind of things, I didn't find it user-friendly, so after much thought (2 seconds roughly) I opted to uninstall. I then installed phpdev4 which I used on my home PC, and got everything up and running within seconds. I have no idea if phpdev5 is better, but I didn't want to take the risk. Anyway, presentation went smoothly, so now all I have to worry about is setting up a server to do the same thing Thanks once again everyone.

Sep 5, 2002, 18:08	#19
Cabbage SitePoint Enthusiast Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: New Jersey Posts: 36	Use Norton Ghost to backup the drive. Just in case it gets screwed up you'll have a backup image of the entire hard drive.