Which language is best for my website??

[Sharky123]

Hi,

I would be extremely grateful if someone could point me in the right direction here. Basically I am new to programming languages, although I have worked with html for quite a while. I am looking to create a website that undoubtedly requires some form of coding, but I am not sure which language would be the most appropriate for this task. This is what I basically would like to do:

I wish to create a website that allows people to upload images and put them on my website in the image category that they think they should go. I would also like people to have the ability to search for a particular type of image and to add comments to an online forum kind of thing next to each image. I would also like the website to manage its self in respect to the way that it displays the images on website pages, for example, newest images first, largest images first etc.

Please could someone tell me which programming language would be most suited to this task as I do not have a clue?!

Many thanks in advance

Sharky

[welsh]

i suggest english...

[drhowarddrfine]

I recommend Whitespace (http://compsoc.dur.ac.uk/whitespace/index.php)

[Sharky123]

I recommend Whitespace (http://compsoc.dur.ac.uk/whitespace/index.php)

I will take a look at whitespace, ive never heard of it to be honest, from what I see it is quite a logical language. Would you say it is easy to use for someone starting out?

Thanks

[Sharky123]

i suggest english...

Thanks that's great...

[NogDog]

Well, after two useless answers (apparently attempts at humor better saved for the Coffee Lounge forum), I shall try to be a bit more helpful.

First: do you already have a web host? If so, what sever-side languages does it support? (Obviously, if you wish to stay with that hosting service, then we'll need to limit the choices to what it supports.)

Second: there's a good chance you can find existing, open-source applications out there that already do what you want to do. Again, though, which are suitable will depend on whether your web host supports the programming language in which they are implemented.

If PHP (with MySQL for the database back-end) is an option, I'd recommend downloading XAMPP (http://www.apachefriends.org/en/xampp.html) to your PC to help learning how to use it. It automates the installation for you and allows you to run PHP applications locally on your PC (instead of having to upload to your live web site while still developing and testing).

[Sharky123]

Hi NogDog, thanks for your very useful help. My host supports PHP and has MySQL. I gather PHP is the language to go for then? Basically I'm after something that is easy to learn. I have dreamweaver, is that best to use for PHP? I have had a small amount of PHP expereince, mainly just editing free codes. Is there any PHP app building software that you would recommend that makes creating stuf a less daunting task?

THanks for your help!

[NogDog]

I've not used Dreamweaver, so cannot comment on it. I know it has some PHP support, though I've occaisionally seen posts here from people having trouble with it getting their PHP scripts to run. (Not that it won't work, but apparently there's some config or setup issue that isn't obvious to all users.)

Most PHP-ers just use a text editor. I use HTML-Kit (http://www.chami.com/html-kit/). It provides context-sensitive text colors for PHP code, plus there are a number of PHP plug-ins available for it. It also has a built-in FTP interface which is useful for editing files which are on-line.

[LiLcRaZyFuZzY]

yep, i also see PHP as your best and easiest solution

[knowj]

dreamweaver will generate simple php code for you using the applications menu. i used it years ago now i perfer to write it myself (altho it takes me alot longer and i always get stupid errors but thats down my my knowledge) as they always say practice makes perfect. and nogdog always manages to get me out of a mess.


iv still yet to read about 1000 pages of the php and mysql bible

[Sharky123]

Ok so basically programming in php is just like using a text editor. It must be very tedious! WHat software do you use or does PHP have its own software?

thanks

[NogDog]

PHP scripts require that the PHP parser/compiler be installed to process the scripts. For PHP web pages, the web server must be configured to send PHP pages to the parser/compiler before sending the output to the browser. (This will be already configured on your web host, and if you install XAMPP on your PC it will set this all up for you.)

Take a look here for a general overview of how a PHP script is used for a web application:
http://www.php.net/manual/en/tutorial.php

PS: It must be very tedious!
Yep. Some people find programming tedious, others find it an interesting case of puzzle-solving, most find it varies between those two extremes.

[Sharky123]

NogDog

Ok great, ive downloaded a sams teach yourself php and mysql book. I'm a graphic designer by trade so I think this might be a big jump. I also installed the software at that link you gave me. To start with I expect ill spend hours trying to find out where I have gone wrong but thats life I suppose.

Thanks for your help

[NogDog]

Quick tip for running scripts on your PC under XAMPP:

Put your php files in the "htdocs" directory (or a sub-directory of it) under the XAMPP directory. To run them, point your browser to http://localhost/filename.php (or http://localhost/subdirectory/filename.php).

[LiLcRaZyFuZzY]

To start with I expect ill spend hours trying to find out where I have gone wrong but thats life I suppose.


Don't be afraid to ask ;)

[Sharky123]

Thanks for the help everyone!