What is PHP and how can one learn it?

PHP is a programming language designed specifically for building web pages and web applications. It runs on a server, generates HTML, and sends it to the browser. Users never see PHP code only its output.

Who uses PHP: WordPress (powers ~40% of all websites) is built in PHP. Facebook was originally PHP. The popular Laravel framework is PHP-based.

How to learn it:

1. Learn basic HTML and CSS first PHP generates HTML, so you need to understand it
2. Start with the official PHP manual at php.net well-written and searchable
3. Follow beginner courses on freeCodeCamp (YouTube), Laracasts, or Traversy Media (YouTube)
4. Learn MySQL alongside PHP almost all PHP applications use a database
5. Build a project: a simple blog, to-do app, or contact form with a database backend
6. Learn the Laravel framework once comfortable with plain PHP